by Jack
Hong Kong has roughly 7.4 million people packed into 420 square miles, with a majority of the population living in only 8 square miles. That congestion has caused some unique governance problems, but most are resolved because the locals work quite well together as a team. Hold that thought… the people of H.K. have strong bonds and a history of working as one, united force to solve many problems.
Since 1997 H. K. has been under the control of mainland China, but it was granted a special administrative status called, “One country, two systems.” This was to ease the transition from a British protectorate to just another communist city controlled from Beijing and it worked…for awhile.
The people mostly speak Cantonese (and English), which often sets them apart from mainlanders who speak in Mandarin, the official language of China. The two languages are far enough apart as to make cross-talk difficult. For example if I said, how are you? in Cantonese, it sounds like nay-hoh-maw, but in Mandarin it’s “knee how muh,” but other words get even further apart! So, that’s just the beginning of the differences.
The real difference between the two cultures is the simple fact that generations of H K. citizens have been exposed to self-rule and freedoms unheard of on the mainland. And this is exactly why China tried to go slowly when imposing its will on Hong Kong. But, times have change, thanks to a relatively new communist hardliner, President Xi Jinping. He rose to power about 5 years and is the head of the communist party and president. He has a global vision for China.
Enter Trump and his dispute over protective tariffs and trade practices that gave China an unfair advantage over our exports. Xi Jinping has shown no signs of yielding to Trumps pressure. Xi Jinping is the kind of guy who would rather lose in war today, if it would give China more leverage years down the road. He’s intelligent, fanatical and incredibly dangerous. I’m not sure Trump understands who he is dealing with anymore than he understands how dangerous Putin can be. Just my opinion, but Trump appears to be in over his head with both adversaries.
Now back to H.K. It was inevitable that Xi Jinping repressive, authoritarian style, would not go over well in Hong Kong. It appeared to the citizens of Hong Kong that Xi Jinping was ending their special status agreement and that has them extremely alarmed and in large part why we see the protesters taking to the streets in ever increasing numbers. China has issue a subtle warning, “This will end.” Remember Tiananmen Square?
There’s no doubt that Trump would like to support the Hong Kong protesters, but not to the degree that he would encourage them to more violent confrontations. This could trigger a bloody military intervention in a split second. But, how can we support those in favor of democracy and keep a working relationship with the Communists in Beijing?
Ironically, the solution to the above may be found in two hot button issues within the US, immigration and foreign trade. By giving refugee status to certain dissidents that are highly skilled and educated people in H. K. and also lowering their trade restrictions. Then its a win-win for the USA. This bolsters Hong Kong, relieves some political pressure and we’ve given them some leverage in Beijing because H.K. is still an asset economically under their capitalist system.
Here is an excellent blog for info and insight–
http://symbolic-mirage.blogspot.com/2019/09/hong-kong.html
I agree, great site. I’m glad the opinion posted mirrors my own! lol
Visited Hong Kong just before the Chinese took over. Oddly enough, it was during their typhoon season (our hurricanes) and their way of treating those storms is interesting. It was a Force 8, which means the whole island shuts down and boards up. People were nice and enjoyed the trip.
Those who watch such things were skeptical of those Chinese goofernment freedom promises, and it turns out they were right. The Hong Kong fight isn’t over. Those folks have grown up under the freedoms of the West and will not give that up without a fight.
I want to add something , just to make my opinion clear. I don’t disagree that Trump had good reasons to take on China’s unfair foreign trade policy. However, Trump has not done a great job of making himself a credible president. He needs to be credible in order to strengthening his position on trade reform. He’s done just the opposite.
Of course we should be making a better deal with China and it should be a united bi-partisan effort! Even Chucky Schumer knows this. We need to win this battle. But, Trump can’t continue to make stupid tweets or get into ridiculous fights with NOAH over weather forecasting. Trump needs to think very carefully before he opens his mouth again, because right now he looks like a rank amateur, low on credibility and suffering from a serious case of megalomania.
Well said, Jack. The hurricane drama this week was just embarassing. We need a president we can trust to give accurate information to Americans during a national disaster. Trump doesn’t take that part of the job seriously at all; his only interest this week was in proving himself right, even if he had to do so with a sharpie. We all deserve better.
Overall a good article. I disagree with this:
“There’s no doubt that Trump would like to support the Hong Kong protesters,”
It seems you’re projecting your own better nature onto Trump here. When asked about the Hong Kong protesters he seemed to take the side of China. He seems to have no problem threatening China economically, but when it comes to standing up for democracy against an authoritarian strongman, he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. Your Putin comparison is dead-on, but you aren’t quite taking it to the logical conclusion: Trump just doesn’t care very much about freedom, and he tends to admire dictators who crush dissidents in their path. Just look up the comments on Tiananmen Square he’s made in the past.
Side note: imagine if Obama had tweeted that he had invited the Taliban to Camp David.
https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1170469618177236992?s=20
Oh but, Obama invited their ilk to the WH. How soon we forget, or is it selective memory? A duck is a duck no matter what color their feathers. Same with terrorist groups whose goal are, “Death to America.”
Obama secretly backing Muslim Brotherhood:
“President Obama and his administration continue to support the global Islamist militant group known the Muslim Brotherhood. A White House strategy document regards the group as a moderate alternative to more violent Islamist groups like al Qaeda and the Islamic State.
The policy of backing the Muslim Brotherhood is outlined in a secret directive called Presidential Study Directive-11, or PSD-11. The directive was produced in 2011 and outlines administration support for political reform in the Middle East and North Africa, according to officials familiar with the classified study.
Efforts to force the administration to release the directive or portions of it under the Freedom of Information Act have been unsuccessful.”
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jun/3/inside-the-ring-muslim-brotherhood-has-obamas-secr/
Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas, Taliban: The Terror Groups That Have Called Qatar Home:
“The government of Sunni-majority Qatar has long hosted and legitimized political leaders from the terrorist organizations known as the Muslim Brotherhood (MB), the Hamas Palestinian movement, and more recently the Afghan Taliban.
“Qatar became a central target of the Saudi-Emirati-Israeli joint lobbying efforts for its perceived role in promoting the Muslim Brotherhood and hosting members of Hamas’ political bureau,” reports Al Jazeera.
In 2013, Qatar allowed the Afghan Taliban to open an official political office in its capital Doha. Although the Qatari government allegedly shut it down, Afghan Taliban leaders are believed to be still operating in Doha.
A senior Qatari official recently told Al Jazeera that Doha hosted the Taliban at the “request of the U.S. government,” led by former President Barack Obama at the time.”
https://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2017/06/13/muslim-brotherhood-hamas-taliban-the-terror-groups-that-have-called-qatar-home/
You still have not supported the claim that the MB was invited to the WH. And they are not of the same “ilk” as the Taliban; they are in fact more moderate. Still bad, but not nearly as bad.
Yes, I did. Check the post you asked me to provide them.
Yeah, two out of the three articles you provided did not actually say that the MB came to the White House, and the third one was based on lying about someone being in the MB. So pretty much what I expected from you.