UK extends visa rights to 3 million Hong Kongers

[Eddie Teach]

Invent a time machine.

[The Minsky Moment]

I grow up here.  I have been hearing the "Hong Kong will die/will become just another Chinese city etc" line since I was in primary school.  It hasn't happened.  As far as civil liberties go, we aren't worse than say Singapore or Shanghai.  And these places are doing quite well. 

That's the question isn't it?  What advantage does HK have over Shanghai other than its distinct political-legal structure?
Of course the city won't die - Chinese second tier cities do fine.  But it does seem to be turning into another Chinese city.

[Monoriu]

I grow up here.  I have been hearing the "Hong Kong will die/will become just another Chinese city etc" line since I was in primary school.  It hasn't happened.  As far as civil liberties go, we aren't worse than say Singapore or Shanghai.  And these places are doing quite well. 

That's the question isn't it?  What advantage does HK have over Shanghai other than its distinct political-legal structure?
Of course the city won't die - Chinese second tier cities do fine.  But it does seem to be turning into another Chinese city.

Sure the differences are narrowing.  But I think the differences are large enough that even if they are somewhat diminished, they are still sufficient to make Hong Kong prosperous.  Singapore doesn't grant a lot of civil liberties.  Yet people still prefer Singapore over say Jakarta.  The problems with Jakarta go beyond civil liberties. 

[The Minsky Moment]

Singapore is authoritarian but it is run according to the rule of law by a competent and honest bureaucracy.  The HK civil service has historically commanded international respect, but its autonomy has been undermined.  The perception is that doing business on the mainland is much more risky then in HK or Singapore because contracts are more difficult to enforce, and the application of law and regulation generally is more arbitrary and less predictable.  The kind of stability that big investors worry about isn't whether their car has to detour around some college age kids protesting in the streets.  It's what happens if their $500 million dollar contract goes sour, they get an ICC arbitral judgment only to find the domestic courts won't enforce it against a favored local son.

[Monoriu]

What happened last year was a lot more than "some college kids protesting in the streets".  That described 2014, not 2019.  Emotions ran very high, to the point where 60-70% of the entire HK population felt that must force the government to do something.  Much of the city was basically in revolt.  Imagine if Nixon insisted in sending a lot more men to Vietnam, or Trump pardoning the Minneapolis police and insisting in no police reform whatsoever.  The HK government literally fought against 70% of the population for more than a year.  If the HK government and the police did not counteract, the whole city would ground to a halt. 

[Zoupa]

Democracy Activists' Books Unavailable in Hong Kong Libraries After New Law

https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2020/07/05/world/asia/05reuters-hongkong-protests-books.html?auth=link-dismiss-google1tap

Uncensored internet won't be far behind. Bye Mono!

[Eddie Teach]

They may take our lives. They may take our freedom. But they may never take our ANIME GIRLS!

[Duque de Bragança]

They may take our lives. They may take our freedom. But they may never take our ANIME GIRLS!

Namely if streamed or downloaded illicitly. 

[Razgovory]

Classic problem of induction.

If that's the problem, then what is the solution? 

Declare a category error and run like Hell.

[Monoriu]

Democracy Activists' Books Unavailable in Hong Kong Libraries After New Law

https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2020/07/05/world/asia/05reuters-hongkong-protests-books.html?auth=link-dismiss-google1tap

Uncensored internet won't be far behind. Bye Mono!

You don't understand how civil servants think.  "Can't let this happen to my area".  I won't let these slogans appear in my responsible areas either.  There are entire dedicated teams responsible for managing public libraries.  They need to defend their area. 

Nobody is responsible for the internet   No one will feel compelled to defend it. 

[Monoriu]

Classic problem of induction.

If that's the problem, then what is the solution? 

Declare a category error and run like Hell.

I have answered this question a thousand times already.  There are no jobs in Canada, so the answer is still no 

[Eddie Teach]

Democracy Activists' Books Unavailable in Hong Kong Libraries After New Law

https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2020/07/05/world/asia/05reuters-hongkong-protests-books.html?auth=link-dismiss-google1tap

Uncensored internet won't be far behind. Bye Mono!

You don't understand how civil servants think.  "Can't let this happen to my area".  I won't let these slogans appear in my responsible areas either.  There are entire dedicated teams responsible for managing public libraries.  They need to defend their area. 

Nobody is responsible for the internet   No one will feel compelled to defend it.

No compulsion necessary. If the system allows petty tyranny, some of your colleagues will jump at the chance.

[Monoriu]

No compulsion necessary. If the system allows petty tyranny, some of your colleagues will jump at the chance.

The principle is, I cannot let people use my facilities to promote illegal stuff.  The people who manage the libraries can't let that happen.

The internet is not government facilities.  Nobody will get blamed; no civil servant will be fired if somebody said something on the internet.

[Zoupa]

 

[Razgovory]

Classic problem of induction.

If that's the problem, then what is the solution? 

Declare a category error and run like Hell.

I have answered this question a thousand times already.  There are no jobs in Canada, so the answer is still no 

When your ancestors fled to Hong Kong did they have jobs waiting for them?