At 2:52 p.m. on March 31, Taiwan had yet another major earthquake. It measured 6.8 on the Richter scale, and caused five deaths. The worst damage, and all the deaths, occurred at the construction site of the planned Taipei Financial Center when a crane fell to the ground.

Fortunately, however, we got off relatively unscathed compared to the great earthquake of September 1999, and we didn't see anything like the suffering caused by last week's magnitude 6 earthquake in Afghanistan, where some 4,000 people died and tens of thousands have been left homeless.

We have much to be thankful for, but the big earthquakes of recent years have taught us that life and property can be wiped out in the blink of an eye. No one can be sure that he will be safe the next time disaster strikes.

When we find ourselves rejoicing at our very survival, we ought to react by helping others and living life the way it ought to be lived. To do otherwise is to waste one's existence.

Thoreau wrote in Walden that many of the people one sees on the street are human in form only, and are not actually human beings in the strictest sense.

There is a sure-fire way to become one of the people Thoreau criticized. Just follow your natural impulses day after day. Allow yourself to be led around by your primal desires. Study, work, make money, eat, and sleep. Let external circumstances determine your mood. Get upset about trivialities. That should do the trick.

The courage and wisdom to face the challenges of life are something we acquire by living right. If we go through life in a fog, in moments of crisis we are controlled by fear and regret.

The most precious thing about life is its tremendous potential and uncertainty. No one can be certain what his life will be like in the next instant, but we can treasure the present moment. Someone once said that we should ask ourselves how we would act if we only had 72 hours to live, or perhaps 24. What would we say and do? To and for whom? If everybody asked themselves this question from time to time, we might treasure our time on earth a bit more. We might watch after our health better, care more about the person next to us, show more concern for the earth, and do what we can for those in need. We wouldn't be living in vain. We might just let ourselves forget about unhappy little incidents. If we only had 72 hours left, who would waste their time worrying about such things?

That may be why many people's lives have changed so dramatically since the 921 earthquake. Many journalists have volunteered their time in the reconstruction effort. Whereas before they hankered after yuppie pleasures, now they are tasting the joy of life itself.

Since disasters are an unforeseeable part of life, we should pluck up our courage and prepare for them. Let us live each moment to the fullest. Let us leave no regrets, laugh to our hearts' content, and go forward bravely.

Besides reminding us of the need to be prepared for disaster and to live an "examined life," Sunday's quake has also reminded us how lucky we are to be living in Taiwan. Where were you when the quake hit? In a warm home? Viewing the flowers in the Yangming mountains? Shopping in town? Has anyone thought about how much more suffering has been caused in Afghanistan. After suffering the ravages of war and famine, how are those beleaguered people to deal with an earthquake?

Taiwan today is an affluent and multifaceted society. There is always room for improvement, of course, but there is certainly no need for us all to be at each others' throats, wasting our energy on internal strife and complaining. There are avenues of rational discourse available for handling the controversy over national security versus freedom of the press, the relationship between economic development and cross-strait relations, and banner headlines (scandalous or otherwise) about public figures. Every major event offers a chance to learn and grow. We can only hope that Taiwan's democracy will foster the emergence of a true civil society in an atmosphere of rational debate.

This month's issue includes a feature on the state of Taiwan's think tank culture, which is developing rapidly within the framework of democracy. While the early think tanks tended to focus strictly on policy research on behalf of the government, today there are many more think tanks. They are allied with political parties of different leanings, and have spurred a coming together of industry, government, and academia. Today's think tanks give Taiwan's rulers and electorate a broader field of vision and an expanded range of choices. One step at a time, they are helping to lay the foundation of a democratic society. Many observers feel that think tanks are too closely allied with certain political parties, and may evolve into mere tools for endorsing the views of the latter. But a democratic society must have its machinery. Debate must involve the presentation of logic and evidence. The public is becoming better informed all the time, and this affects how we think. Everyone naturally knows what fairness and justice are. We are confident that the development of think tanks will take our democracy to a higher level.