All the votes for John Lee go in this pile, and, er…

Today’s obscure charges and other lawfare… Labour rights activist Lee Cheuk-yan is convicted of breaking (wait for it) aviation regulations. For flying a balloon. Pro-dem media tycoon Jimmy Lai pleads not guilty to a desperate-sounding office lease transgression. And pan-dem politicians who took part in a primary election have their never-ending case adjourned to June.

The BBC looks at the plight of the last group undergoing detention without trial…

Critics say this pre-trial detention undermines the idea of innocence until proven guilty – and is designed to break the will of those accused.

…”They put them in prison and don’t try them with anything, and just wait and wait and wait – until they plead guilty,” 

Your tax dollars at work: the government is training civil servants to carry ballot boxes and count ballots.

Sing Tao reports that, as a hip young groovy ‘lady killer’ teenager, John Lee was (allegedly) into soft-rock band Bread. Two possible explanations: 1) he genuinely was a fan of the group that produced sickly ballads like If and Baby I’m a Want You; or (far far worse) b) he and his PR advisors think that claiming to have been will make him look cool and in touch with the kids. By coincidence, Bread are today’s guest stars (click on a pic).

Some quick weekend reading…

Five BNO refugees tell their stories.

A German businessman and boss of a European chamber gets quite undiplomatic about the Chinese government’s ‘Zero Covid’ policy…

For the past two years, the party leadership and government have spun the narrative that China has handled the pandemic much better than the decadent West. Now this narrative is blowing up in their faces. 

…The authorities have spent a year bad-mouthing Western mRNA vaccines, with the result that people in China don’t trust the vaccination. That’s the problem: The political leadership can’t admit, so close to the Party Congress, that there is another way in dealing with Covid. 

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19 Responses to All the votes for John Lee go in this pile, and, er…

  1. Chinese Netizen says:

    Maybe John Lee was just literally a lady killing teenager as he looks like one of those basement dwelling “incels” or socially awkward Japanese men that resort to anti social outbursts on the subway?

  2. Red Dragon says:

    Bloody hell, Hemlock. Spare us!

    That Sing Tao piece on John Lee makes some pretty gruesome reading.

    Incidentally, it’s been bugging me which cartoon character lugubrious Johnny most closely resembles, but I think I’ve finally hit on the answer.

    Yes! None other than Tex Avery’s Droopy Dog.

    Have a nice weekend.

  3. Chinese Netizen says:

    “None other than Tex Avery’s Droopy Dog.”

    Nailed it 100%.

    https://youtu.be/3AA7Ub1c2cI

  4. justsayin says:

    That running dog of the CIA Joerg Wuttke does not understand Our China.

  5. One man, one vote, Chinese characteristics says:

    Re Photo cap from govt press release: “Photo shows counting staff in a simulation of sorting ballot papers.”
    Seems excessively overcautious, especially as they’re only going to use this training in a simulation of an election…

    Re EU Chamber boss: Getting a real hegelian “the only thing that we learn from history” vibe from the guy on his experience of Zero Covid versus his take on Taiwan:

    Zero Covid is really dumb, so they’re doing it:
    “In closed meetings – especially in ministries that deal with the economy and businesses – I meet very well-informed and open-minded top politicians. They know what Zero Covid means for the economy. It’s just that they can’t use this knowledge to bring about policy change at the moment. Until the 20th Party Congress, which will take place later this year, they will stick to the Zero Covid policy. President Xi wants to be confirmed for a third term, so he cannot change his narrative this close to the finish line.”

    Invading Taiwan is really dumb, so they probably won’t do that:
    “I personally believe, for example, that the party leadership in Beijing probably realizes that an invasion of Taiwan could be much more difficult than they had thought.”

  6. dopey says:

    The question I’ve been asking myself is: at what point does my presence in HK make me complicit?

    I’ve only really became aware of this in the last few weeks. All signs point to leave.

  7. Mark Bradley says:

    “ The question I’ve been asking myself is: at what point does my presence in HK make me complicit?

    I’ve only really became aware of this in the last few weeks. All signs point to leave.”

    I am firmly in the “stay” camp. I have friends and family here. I am not complicit in anything as I do not consider this new NSL regime legitimate nor constitutional.

  8. Wolflikeme says:

    @dopey a very fair question for those with a choice and the means to leave. I feel a bit dirty just being here.

  9. dimuendo says:

    Mark Bradley

    It is not whether you consider yourself complicit, or whether you consider the NSL regime is legitimate or constitutional.

    They currently have the power of interpretation and enforcement.

    If you keep your nose down and mouth shut, you may be fine. But if they identify you, even on your past posting history, an “imaginative” NSL police officer or prosecutor could make your life very difficult.

    Power comes out of the barrel of a gun.

    Or, if you prefer, realpolitik.

  10. Chinese Netizen says:

    “I am firmly in the “stay” camp. I have friends and family here. I am not complicit in anything as I do not consider this new NSL regime legitimate nor constitutional.”

    Funny how what you consider about the legitimacy or constitutionality of something won’t matter a hill of beans once you’re deemed….complicit.

    They don’t need no steenking reason.

  11. Sam Clemens says:

    @dopey

    To leave would be to abandon my friends in jail. I am not complicit in anything. I will stay and witness.

  12. Bradly Pitter says:

    I think Old Hemmers should be a bit more nuanced here about China’s CoVid response instead of just being a right old Debbie Downer.

    Over 3mn people have died of CoVid in Europe and the US. The real number is likely to be SIGNIFICANTLY higher due to failure of testing. Even if you account for lying / underreporting in China the real number is likely to be in the thousands at most.

    So yes, the 2022 response to Omnicron in China has been severely bungled. Yes they should have rolled out mRNA instead of that nonsense herbal remedy shit.

    But let’s strive to be bit balanced in our commentary here least we fall into the very pitfall that we often accuse others of

  13. Low Profile says:

    @Hemlock – dimuendo said: ‘But if they identify you, even on your past posting history, an “imaginative” NSL police officer or prosecutor could make your life very difficult.

    You require an email address for comments. When the NSL Gestapo eventually get around to checking out your computer, will they get the email addresses of the rest of us here?

    RESPONSE FROM H: You can use a fake email address. But they could possibly still track the IP address. Self-censor!

  14. Kwun Tong Bypass says:

    I have two more kids in their last high school years.
    Yesterday, one of them told me that in English language they have to discuss a ‘global topic’ but were specifically told that anything dealing with Hong Kong or China would be off limits!
    Upon my question, whether this is the red line – we have viable, although interruptive options – I was begged: “please let us to finish our IB here”.
    So, we stay and keep on pointing out to our children what it means to live in an authoritarian Marx-Leninist dictatorship. I am sure, a lesson for life!

  15. wmjp says:

    You can use a fake email address. But they could possibly still track the IP address. Self-censor!

    Use a VPN, double if possible

  16. KwunTongBypass says:

    Why can I not proudly announce in these comments section that I have ONE follower on Tiwtter?
    Check it!
    Interesting

  17. Joe Blow says:

    Hey Hemlock: after posting for years on your blog you tell us NOW to self censor? I always assumed that our posts would be safe.

    BTW, I have no intention to self censor. I’d rather leave.

  18. Mary Melville says:

    As the ultimate cynic, has the timing of the tax refund I found in my post box on Fri anything to do with the 786 Selection? Strangely other years demands or refunds arrived around Oct/Nov.
    Timed to give us that warm fuzzy feeling perhaps?
    FS’s $5,000 was also conveniently timed to coincide with the one gelding ‘race’.

  19. Mark Bradley says:

    “ Hey Hemlock: after posting for years on your blog you tell us NOW to self censor? I always assumed that our posts would be safe.

    BTW, I have no intention to self censor. I’d rather leave.”

    As long as biglychee is hosted in US or EU, the NSL will not have an easy time collecting emails or Ip addresses.

    As other noted you can add extra for protection using a vpn or tor.

Comments are closed.