Happy or Unhappy: Which One Should We Care for?

The city of Hangzhou in east China should feel quite happy about itself, because it has taken the crown on a public survey of the 10 happiest cities in the country.

The survey held by the National Bureau of Statistics involved 3 million citizens in more than 260 cities. However, although some people are happy about the result, more people are questioning the meaning of these official statistics.

China Youth Daily argues that the feeling of happiness varies greatly depending on the person. Any survey, no matter how sufficiently prepared, can not summarize the happiness of a city.

Besides this, every city has its own advantages and disadvantages. It makes no sense to ask people about their happiness, and simply add the results together.

There are happy people in unhappy cities, and there are also unhappy people in happy cities. The paper says the public should pay more attention to those unhappy people, so to make them happier. That's the right thing to do. After all, what we need is not "more flowers on the brocade" but "fuel in the snowy weather".