Hong Kong experts say the city can further relax Covid travel and social-distancing rules. David Webb pens a letter from a quarantine hotel asking the government to let Hong Kong be part of the world again.
From Bloomberg via the Standard – tiptoeing away from zero-Covid looks like obvious common sense. But it contradicts CCP ideology and/or hurts the feelings of the compatriots on the Mainland. We must pretend we are not doing it, or at least not enjoying it. And be very, very surreptitious about it. Or something…
“A few months ago, the government didn’t want to admit that the strict Covid policy was hurting Hong Kong, but now they appear to be admitting it. It’s very difficult to go back to zero Covid — the public won’t accept it.”
Two AFP pieces. Holmes Chan looks back at the amazing successes of Carrie Lam. Among her many achievements: nearly one in four Hongkongers are living below the city’s not-exactly-generous poverty line. An infographic. And Su Xinqi considers the future under John Lee. That future does not seem to involve solving the problems left by Carrie.
CNN on what John Lee means for feminism and gender rights in Hong Kong…
“In the mainland model, civil society groups that advocate for liberal rights — including gender equality — are seen as conduits of Western influence.”
Lee says he will work to keep Hong Kong international. Will probably legalize cannabis too.
SCMP asks whether Christian churches should be worried by Beijing state media denouncing their prominence in education and other realms of life in Hong Kong, which is of course a rhetorical question…
“They are actually paving the way to turn schools non-religious.”
Some links for the (another???) long weekend…
Reuters op-ed thinks China’s anti-Americanism is possibly self-defeating…
Infrastructure spending combined with data fudging – artful reweighting of inputs and prices, for example – will prop up China’s stats this year.
Not everyday that you get Fuck the Popo, Sing Hallelujah to the Lord and Glory to Hong Kong all in the same story – music of the 2019 protests.
A pithy review of City on the Edge by Hung Fo-hung…
Hung insists that the struggle for the future of Hong Kong has not ended. But his analysis of how Hong Kong arrived at this bleak state is so persuasive that it doesn’t leave the reader with much hope.
On out-of-area affairs: the Vanderbilt ball of 1883.
…………………………………
Hopefully/possibly reassuring news for contributors to the comments section. All existing IP addresses in the comments archives now read ‘127.0.0.1’, the default IP that every PC calls itself for no doubt fascinating techie reasons. And the system will no longer store new IP addresses. Must dash – someone knocking at door.
“He later told a pro-Beijing newspaper he was motivated (to join the popo*) by being bullied by neighbourhood hooligans.
Two former classmates gave a more practical reason — the police force offered a stable career for Lee and his pregnant wife Janet.”
*my addition
Mmmm…a new CE motivated by revenge lust. This will work out very well. Ironic since the popo later ended up co-opting the “neighbourhood hooligans” to do their dirty work.
Dear Hemlock, Thanks for the security update.
I don’t know about you, but I am all in favour of turning schools non-religious.
The “education” system in Hong Kong is riddled with God-botherers of every stripe, but particularly Roman Catholics and happy-clappy evangelical Protestants. I do not regard this as healthy.
Besides, one only has to look at the conduct of those products of religious schools who have for so long infested the upper echelons of the Civil Service to understand the baleful influence which such institutions exert.
404: CE not found?
Happy to hear that you fixed that IP thing, 008.
The essence of an education at a religious establishment is that you take the good bits with you and leave the rest at the door on your way out.
Unfortunately far too many students are too dumb to evaluate the system and this is especially the case in Honkers where the presence of so many evangelical ‘churches’ is a cause of amazement to rational folk.
But then so is the proliferation of pay for sex services when all that is required elsewhere to generate some leg over is a few rounds down the pub.
As a Rhondda Valley exile, the song was particularly endearing today. Diolch, Dai Iawn!
Last weekend dopey wrote: “at what point does my presence in HK make
me complicit?” and there was some discussion.
This poem imitates ‘The Unconcerned’ by Thomas Flatman (1637-88).
I don’t think he has been mentioned in this website before.
– – – – – – – –
Stay
Now that the land is so much changed,
And laws are torn out piece by piece,
Red lines circling, red flags flying,
Many asking, none replying,
Home and work are rearranged,
And have you seen the grim police?
What is a poor expat to do
When doubt is high and hope is low?
Stay, perhaps, and do your best;
You have no say, you’re not complicit.
Hiking, cooking, drinking, eating,
Reading, writing, blogging, tweeting,
Life is pleasant, have a rest.
It’s your guilty conscience, is it?
Never mind, just be content.
Do not envy those that went.
Self-reproof? Away! Dismiss it!
Stay, be quiet, and consent.
Many people are jealous because we have a pope and postage stamps.
Knownot, please know that that was excellent and now resides in my “notes” for future reference (with all due credits of course)
And nice to see the usual rogues gallery of useful idiots at it still:
https://newsletter.chinadailyhk.com/newsletter/top_headlines/article/270376#A-fresh-approach
“Will probably legalize cannabis too.”
I am picking up my monthly cannabis infused vape cart from my HK dealer now.
Obviously not legal, but somehow all of the legalised cannabis products from the USA like the “brass knuckles” vape carts and thc infused gummies make their way to hk.
Thanks, Formerly. If you guys need another reason not to go to Lan Kwai Fong, here it is (in the article).
BOYCOTT LAN KWAI FONG
@Formerly known as
Good find and mandatory reading for afficioandoes of ass-licking
Mr Hemlock
Thank you for the note on.IP addresses.
What about the “library” of past email addresses?
If I return?
@Formerly known as
Made it through. Does this Pinkstone guy actually exist or is it CCP copy that’s pasted onto some poor random gwailo’s head? You’d have to work long and hard to make those other four actually sound halfway reasonable, but Pinky came through. What a nob end.
@Mary Melville
A fine aspiration, but the catholic school system was basically kickstarted by a guy who was explicit in its aims: “‘ Give me a child till he is seven years old, and I will show you the man.’
Pinkstone is a real guy. Ex civil servant and now Regina’s personal Pinkerton.
Stephen Roach trying to find his next job after decades of shoeXining
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/05/06/theres-no-way-china-will-meet-its-5point5percent-growth-target-stephen-roach.html
@Formerly Known As …
Enjoyed the cock-up in the article’s picture caption:
“Hong Kong chief executive candidate John Lee Ka-chiu (second from right) talks with local residents during his visit to West Kowloon Cultural District on Wednesday.”
Easy mistake to make*, but second from right is some other random lapdog: Pikachiu is the dog that’s third on the right, with the muzzle on.
*Apparently, much like the Party it serves, the China Daily gets flustered if there’s more than one dog in the race.
From the toady daily article: “It is an important election. The single candidate has done a very good job of setting out policy priorities.”
Impressed he has had time to read it in the 7 days since it was given to Mr. Lee.
@Formerly know as… : The support of whitey (and one brownie) makes you LEGITIMATE!!! Not at all influenced by evil foreign forces!
How many want to wager Semen said this with gun pointed to head? Or said it while reading off a note card? All boxes ticked and very robotic response. Now his properties won’t be seized by the CCP for the motherland.
“Allan: I believe that many people in Hong Kong do not see John Lee as a CE because most of his life has been spent in the security field. Since he announced his candidacy, he has had many press conferences on a daily basis. His results-oriented ideas, bringing back the competitiveness of Hong Kong and addressing the city’s housing problems, are high on his agenda. He also advocates simplifying a lot of the bureaucracy which occurs in government and the civil service at the moment. Many people in Hong Kong are now beginning to understand and believe that he will be an advocate for change to make the lives of the people better. This also includes creating a better future for the youth. Hong Kong has been sorely lacking in all these areas and I believe once he puts a strong team together to work with him, these results can be achieved.”
@Ignoramus – perhaps males are more susceptible to brain washing.
We gals had no problems jettisoning much of what the nuns had expounded, particularly anything that got in the way of the alluring alternatives of SDRnR.
@Ignoramus Toyota – it doesn’t always work that way, as Mary Melville points out. True, the most devout Catholics usually attended Catholic schools, but the most virulently anti-Catholic people usually did so as well, and hated it.
More boisterous applause for Knownot – latest offering and always.
I think that comes from all here, though often unstated through familiarity.
Reader –
Thank you very much.
But Hemlock is even more familiar. We should applaud him more often.