The protests are a really big deal, especially considering this about democracy in HK, yet I feel like not a lot of places are talking about it much
I fear this will not end well.
The photo that includes the banner that says âdo you hear the people singâ brought me to tears. In 1989, for my birthday, my mother took me to see Les Miserables. On the way home, we heard a story on the radio about Tiananmen Square, so those two are intertwined in my mind forever.
Tear gas is always terrible, but to see photos of so many people standing up to violence, to try for a better life, is hopeful.
I hope all people, everywhere in the world, can be free to make their lives better, and live free from fear. From Hong Kong, to Baghdad, to Ferguson, to every personâs home.
@Grey_Devil, I also would like to hear more about this in the news.
I also cried when I read that sign.
Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes
The Asian Autumn!
I fear that as well. I lived and working in HK for a year and I have a lot of friends left there. Iâm scared for them.
Thanks for continuing to post Xeni. This isnât getting nearly enough coverage.
Great! Guess who has tickets to fly to HK in a week ⌠
I fear this may end up being a rather⌠provincial⌠movement.
Hong Kong is in a very unique situation, having spent so long under British rule. The culture of the city is quite different than the rest of the nation, and while opinion may be strongly democratic among the protesters of Hong Kong, this might in the end be a hopeless struggle if the mood isnât shared elsewhere.
Even still, my cynical prediction is that the central government is already preparing to crush the protests violently if they drag on and threaten to spread to other areas of the country. Unlike Tiananmen, they canât roll in tanks easily, due to the island geography of the city, but I could see them blockading the harbor and sending in aircraft, including military gunships to strafe the streets.
I very badly want to be completely wrong in this.
Donât they all die in the end, though?
Next civic infrastructure project in HK: Ridiculously wide boulevards which make no sense for traffic planning but make it easy to move the tanks in when the proles get uppity, just like in Beijing.
I remember my heart breaking when the Union Jack went down in 1997 less than a decade after Tienanmen Square, I am actually surprised the PRC has let the appearance of franchise remain this long. Though the golden goose does produce so many golden eggs on such a consistent basis.
The whole Chinese (PRC-CCP)nationalist, expansionist, anti-Japan thing has gotten to a fevered pitch in the last few years.
I suspect that economists in China must realize and pass on to leadership that population curves which have benefited for so long from one child are peaking and with a post peak productivity pop there will never be another historical golden opportunity to grab and freeze facts on the ground again after such a very long period of humiliation.
China is developing an amphibious capability for occupying Taiwan so tanks are a real possibility and would be a nice chilling demonstration by the PLA of that capability.
One of my friends is the daughter of an adviser to Lech Walensa leader of Solidarity in Poland. When the Soviets didnât use tanks in 1981 as opposed to Prague in 1968 or Hungary in 1956 we in a way saw the first cracks appear in the Iron Curtain. The tanks are more symbolic to show resolve in photography as people also die pretty fast in the face of infantry weapons, air power canât sit as a nearly invincible show of the flag in every intersection though air patrol surely enhances the effect.
The Chinese people I have known over the years value order to an extent that is frustrating to me, wealth is an aspiration for most but there is a failingly small democracy and human rights culture, minority people and opinions are for most people simply not appreciated as far as I can tell, too many make US Republicans look worldly IMHO.
Maybe it will amount to no response from Beijing. Which I think will be the best peaceful, yet unresolved resolution. In relative terms of course.
Like PeterVonNacken, Iâm also off to HK in a month. Despite my Chinese genes, planned to visit some memorial wwi and wwii sites. Hope I wonât encounter fresh memorial sites. Yea, Iâm cynical at the moment.
I think that the PRC is well aware that Taiwan is watchingâŚAs the integrating of HK goes so goes the chance of peaceful reunification of Taiwan.
I am not a military strategist, but I will throw a few bucks in the ring to say that there is no way in hell China would strafe HK streets to get rid of protesters. China doesnât need to use air powerâtheyâve got enough tanks and infantry forces available to do the job.
Suffice it to say that I expect China to tighten the screws on the protesters, and there is a very real likelihood tanks and infantry will roll to disperse the protests if the tear gas and riot police donât work. I certainly wish the protesters the best of luck in their endeavors, but I fear their ability to voice their displeasure is not long for this world.
I wonder who, in HK, is not offering support of the protestors movement.
Given recent experience I would predict that many over 50s do not and confoundingly; many women of all ages⌠but then Iâm Scottish and voted âyesâ, so I probably have a misguided perspective on matters of home rule (or even the type of fair election the protestors demand).
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