To no-one’s great surprise, Hong Kong’s new government gives up trying to push its bureaucratic restructuring through the Legislative Council. The spin is that a 
few filibustering radicals should not be allowed to prevent innocent Hong Kong people from enjoying the life-enhancing measures being held up by the delay. It is a predictable enough angle, but it ignores the role played by lack of support among supposedly pro-establishment lawmakers.
This isn’t how it’s supposed to work. The phrase ‘executive-led government’ in Hong Kong’s Basic Law is a euphemism for government securely led by trustworthy folk acceptable to and appointed by Beijing. Just as the Election Committee that pretends to choose the Chief Executive is rigged, so – in theory – is the Legislative Council. The composition of Functional Constituencies is carefully designed to guarantee a loyalist bloc in the legislature that has the power to veto undesirable measures and the ability to join with directly elected pro-Beijing members to override pro-democrat opposition to desirable ones.
In practice, it doesn’t always work. This is partly because some FC members are billionaires who balk at getting out of bed at night to help get budgets through. But increasingly it is because some of the supposed loyalists are sullenly unreliable. The Liberal Party in particular, partly in a huff about CY Leung rather than Henry Tang becoming CE and partly out of self-preservation ahead of September’s legislative elections, are acting as a semi-opposition. (They did the same in 2003 by withdrawing support for Tung Chee-hwa’s Article 23 law.)
This means that they – in theory, again – are blocking the Chinese Communist Party’s ultimate and absolute control over the Big Lychee. Of course, if Legco tried to pass measures to pass control of Hong Kong to American and Taiwanese splittists, the Liberals would fall into line without question, but it is a supremely important principle. To Beijing officials monitoring Hong Kong, something and/or someone will need to be put right.
Meanwhile, today’s Standard leads with a ‘shock survey’ showing that “people willing to be interviewed on the street tend to be more liberal,” so rough and ready polls carried out by political parties are unreliable. Which is something we have long known; such surveys, employing leading questions, just create cheap 
publicity and give interns something to do. And that’s just as well given that this most recent opinion poll reveals Hong Kong people to be miscegenation-obsessed race-traitors. The research shows that 59% of males and 70% of females would rather marry a non-Chinese (we have to presume that the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment Etc of HK, which did the survey, questioned only ethnic Chinese).
DAB spokeswoman Elizabeth Quat, perhaps forgetting momentarily that she is supposed to adhere to Beijing’s line on everything, breezily concludes that Hongkongers are more liberal and (you almost get the impression) are perfectly right to think Western culture is superior. A Chinese U academic on the other hand, stuck in his ivory tower and deluded by crackpot sociological theory, insists that Hongkongers are just money-grubbing vermin gold-diggers.
Either way, who would have thought it? For Americans who believe the Book of Genesis is science and Barack Obama is a Muslim; to Canadians whose response to external stimuli is to stare into space with blank, uncomprehending eyes; and to the British, grunting monosyllables and stuffing deep-fried pizza into their faces… there is hope.
Click to hear the Byrds’ ‘I Knew I’d Want You’!
September’s elections will be an interesting litmus test. Don’t be surprised to see a move by middle class voters towards the more business orientated and dare I say, selfish, Liberal Party. The New People’s Party are particularly active also in a targeted area near Yuen Long it would also seem.
Yuen Long: the new Mid-Levels.
Only people with a uni degree are welcome to join Vagina’s NPP. What message does that send to the other 96% ?
It remains unclear from these surveys what expat males would gain by marrying HK girls. Perhaps they want to experience constant pouting and a full range of Hello Kitty iPhone accessories instead of Tagalog lessons and a vigorous sex life?
The key word in the paragraph is ‘generally’, Hemmers
Dear Hemlock, I think your concluding remarks today show a marked tendency to insult Science, Muslims, Space and most of all Pizza – food of the gods ( but, please, not deep fried).
PS : I thought the Brits were still hooked in deep-fried soggy chips, although cooked these days at chipperies run by Muslims from Iran and Pakistan
@Maugrim,
I do hope your wrong – As I really think it’s time we consigned Silly Jimmy Tien, Green Miriam, Minimum Wage Tommy etc to history. They really are some of the most stupid ‘politicians’ god put eyes into.
Daft as it sounds a vote for Albert’s Democrats (I know I know) is probably the lesser of evils. They may (and it’s a big may) enable a future more democratic legislature which may bring in some much needed talent which, in this city of seven million, must be out there, regardless of skin pigmentation ?
Stephen, I hope I’m wrong too. However two things are evident at present, i. the Dems, in particular the Civic Party have dropped the ball big time and ii. HK is full of people who mostly care about ‘what’ s good for them’ above any other consideration.
In Britian, they put corn on their pizza. Surely a land of the damned taste buds.
“people willing to be interviewed on the street tend to be more liberal”
Every sample is biased in favour of the people who are willing to take part in it. For example, many years ago I was involved in retail panels – which were biassed in favour of stores who were progressive – and therefore prepared to take part – and thus (usually) more efficient than average. We were aware of that and could account for it in the interpretation of the results.
In this case, where were the questions asked? – I would bet you would get a very different answer asking about marital preference in Central than in say, Mongkok.
The other swing factor is the questionnaire itself. Basically, a skilled researcher can design a questionnaire to give any answer you want. See this YouTube clip:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0ZZJXw4MTA
That doesn’t happen deliberately too often, but it can happen inadvertently.
So until you see the questions that are actually asked, you can’t really interpret the results.
Luv the pics of the Brit youngsters, all proud holders of ASBOs, which no doubt would be mistaken for a degree here. I am reminded of Stephen Hawkins quote about the possibility of alien cultures visiting earth: “We only have to look at ourselves to see how intelligent life might develop into something we wouldn’t want to meet.”
I suppose the advantage for expats males is having a partner who does not borrow your razor each morning.
I hope no-one is under the misapprehension that those “Mounties” are Canadian.