A mirror has two faces

Some may deem him "not man enough", but he did something not many men have the courage to do, ie, to help a family member overcome possibly the biggest obstacle in her life that he did not have a hand in creating.

Sometimes I have the impression that some of China's netizens have never been affected by the May 4th Movement. They could be living in a feudal era when women were forced to bind their feet and be obedient to their husbands. Something bad happens? Oh, it must be the woman's fault. When emperors kept a harem of thousands of young women, it was a manifestation of their virility. When Empress Wu Zetian kept a few gigolos, it was a sin that wiped out all her political achievements in the public eye.

Cecilia Cheung admitted in the interview that she had "made a mistake" with the photos. Couldn't the public forgive her more readily than her male partner in the moral offense? There are people who support her for speaking out, but more, or rather the majority, if you read Sina.com, have stigmatized her to the point they'll remind her son of "the shame brought by the mother".

I guess these people were craving, in the innermost recesses of the heart, that Tse would kick her out and she would jump into a river, baby in arm. Moral purists demand nothing less than such an act of melodrama.

And moral purists tend to be hypocrites. If you are moved by Edison Chen's contrition, shouldn't it be easier to take in the hushed yet emotional plea by Cecilia Cheung, someone who is taking care of a newborn baby? Of course, one has the right not to forgive any of them. At least that's integrity. But if you think Chen is so handsome and deserves a break but Cheung's beauty made her a demoralizing force, that is definitely a double standard.