Some Americans are stupid. Advertisments like this prove it. America is the only nation that has to have 4 years of college to get students up to standard to enter university. Students in countries such as the UK and Australia are able to jump straight in. I guess we're much smarter than Americans, with very few exceptions.

PS: If anyone knows how to get in touch with Cracker Barrel Philosopher and make him aware of the great Munuviana invitational please let me know.

For non-Australians it may have passed unnoticed that Ian Thorpe slipped off the blocks in the Olympic qualifying event for the 400 metre freestyle swimming. This lead to an automatic disqualification and has been a major news story since. In Australia sports stars are deified and none more so than Ian Thorpe, world record holder and Olympic gold medallist as well as marketing gold. There has been much debate since on the merits of the second qualifier, Craig Stevens, and if he should stand down in favour of Thorpie.

I'm going to make some bold predictions. Stevens is already under a lot of pressure. Some are taking the moral high ground, saying that rules are rules and all that. But that's bullcrap. We're talking about the Olympics here, and we need our best man there on the day to win a gold medal so we can continue the Australian tradition of being 5th or so in the medal count (and so reclaiming some pride over the English following the Rugby). Here's some potential solutions:

1. Stevens gets in touch with Thorpie's sponsors. Cut a deal - say 25% of Thorpie's earning from sponsorships for the next four years. It's more than the guy will see any other way, and it keeps Australia's advertising industry safe. Who else can flog everything and anything with such panache?
2. Two months out from Athens Stevens suddenly finds his brakes aren't working while he's travelling down the Hume Highway at 100 km/hr. The resulting "accident", which he survives, turns into a struggle broadcast on national TV every night until Thorpie wins the 400m swimming at Athens and dedicates it to "My mate Craig back in Oz." Nation weeps. Sponsors organise tearful reunion broadcast on national TV.
3. The war on terror takes on a new meaning: ASIO calls in Tonya Harding to do John Howard's dirty work to prevent terrified sponsors from losing their key marketing weapon.
4. Stevens announces he's undergoing plastic surgery and comes out looking remarkably like Thorpie. Sure he gains a few inches and a couple of shoe sizes too, but nothing against it in the Olympics rule book.
5. Thorpie changes his name by deed poll to Craig Stevens.
6. Craig Stevens go for a swim in the ocean, with his last comment being "I'm off to find Harold Holt."
7. Someone from Swimming Australia tells Stevens the Olympics have been moved from Athens to Lightning Ridge because the "stadium's not ready and there are too many Greeks in Athens."
8. World Swimming, at the urgings of the Australian Olympic Committee, announces that Craig Steven's swimming actions are "suspect" and will be investigated.
9. Craig Stevens is disqualified from the Qualifiers for not saying "Polo" after the crowd roared "Marco" at the third turn.
10. Grant Hackett tells the country he's actually got a chance of winning the medal too. Country asks him to stick to the 1500m and leave the important stuff to Thorpie.

If any of these sensible solutions are followed Stevens will automatically qualify for 2004 Australian of the Year and the country can get on with life.

Typical HK moment: Giles and I were heading for our sort of weekly squash trashing game. I open the taxi door on my side and notice that Giles hasn't gotten in because some woman had cut in and opened the door before him. She looked at me like a rabbit caught in the headlights. She did not know what to do as she stood there, frozen in terror at what these two gwielos might do. Her small mind couldn't deal with the situation. So we helped her out by getting in the next taxi and proceeding to tell the guy we had to cut off that cab in front. Which we did.

Moral: don't get in taxis that aren't yours.

The latest edition of the China Blog Block has again had the opposite effect. Indeed China can be thanked for in the past getting most of the local China bloggers off Blogspot. What will happen now? The beauty of blogging is it has very low barriers to entry. Typepad being blocked? Go and set up with any one of hundreds of cheap hosting services. Getting set up again takes little effort, although your archives may be lost. As many people as China employs to watch the net, with new blogs popping up all the time it is impossible for them to clamp down on them all. China's point isn't to block to divert attention to blogs. It is far less subtle: it is to prevent the blog being read. It will raise international awareness, but internally I doubt there's going to be much difference to the average Chinese blog reader. Especially as Typepad blogs and others tend to be in English.

Adam points out that China is blocking blogs that are China lovers. But obviously it is an unrequited love. Internet censors aren't going to delve into nuances such as which blogs "love" China, especially those that show love by sometimes pointing out what's wrong with the place. The current trend of black backgrounds as a form of protest is pointless. Tilting at windmills can certainly make the jouster feel better, but the windmill keeps turning over oblivious. While the ban is bad, it is ultimately useless on the part of China and useless to protest on the part of blogs. Deal with it, set up a new one (I'm happy to help with hosting if need be) and move on. Even with 40,000 censors China cannot stop blogs from continuing to pop up, many of which will not be to its liking. If something is worth saying then finding a way to say it is, these days, not hard despite the best efforts of the CCP.

From the SCMP:

The Hong Kong Observatory issued the first amber rainstorm warning of the year late last night, heralding the arrival of seasonal rains. The observatory said it recorded 60.9mm of rain yesterday until 11pm. It issued its first thunderstorm warning for the day at 3am...Another warning was issued at 5.30pm as conditions remained poor.

Next time I'll be taking an umbrella.

Hong Kong public servants enjoy an enviable life. Historically they have been well-paid, which some have argued has lead to the least corrupt civil service in Asia. Additionally in the days of British rule expat (read English) civil servants enjoyed great perks to compensate them for their "hardship" post. When the locally employed civil servants complained they did the only thing they could think of: they threw open the benefits to everyone.

One of those perks is the Overseas Education Allowance. This is money to pay for civil servants' children's education in the UK, all fully paid for by the Government. The civil servants do not pay a single dollar (or pound) in fees. While this ceased to be offered to civil servants starting after 1996, more than 100,000 still receive it at a cost of HK$646 million (US$83 million) at a time the Government is running a major deficit. The Government is considering imposing a cap, while the civil service unions will bleat how it is another infringement on their pay and conditions. Another proposal is to allow students to go to other countries where education is cheaper, such as Australia or Canada.

And they are 100% right. These overpaid bureaucrats receive benefits that far outweigh anything on offer in the private sector. Locally based civil servants receive a home passage allowance, even though their homes are in Hong Kong - another relic of the "catch up" with expatriate pay. There are so many absurdities in the current civil service pay structure that it boggles the mind. The Government is slowly chipping away at these benefits. However the Government can afford to be bolder. If a pampered civil servant doesn't like it, they can try and find a job in the private sector. I think they'll find it difficult to land an equivalent job with anything like the same benefits and pay. If they don't want to abolish the allowance, at a minimum they should require the civil servants to contribute a healthy percentage to the cost as a co-payment.

Civil servants, by definition, are meant to serve the public. In many countries civil service pay is lower than the private sector, partly because of the honour and power that comes with working for the Government. Hong Kong's Civil Service needs to learn the harsh realities of life without these anachronistic perks.

China's going to pop an artery in response to re-elected Taiwan President Chen's comments in this article. Again Chen has stated the obvious and for his troubles he will cop it from all sides: from his opponents in Taiwan for being honest, the CCP for being honest, and the USA for disturbing the status quo. That's the problem with common sense: people don't want to hear it. What is also ridiculous with the China/Taiwan question is the ongoing diplomatic battle they wage for recognition:

Just days after Chen's narrow election to a second four-year term that faces an opposition challenge, China further isolated the island it claims as a rebel province by winning over one of Taiwan's few diplomatic allies, Dominica. Only 26 countries now recognize Taipei and not Beijing.

As Chen points out recent events in Hong Kong also do not bode well:

Chen also chastised Beijing for blocking democratic reforms in Hong Kong, a move that he said would make Taiwan even more determined to reject unification with China, the [Washington] Post said. "Right now, the people of Hong Kong are fighting for direct elections...but the Beijing authorities are unable to consent. They even say, 'Wait another 30 years and we'll see'," he said. "I think this is very ridiculous," Chen said. "For the 23 million people of Taiwan, this is the greatest warning and also the clearest signal," he said.

Look for another big march this July in HK. The economy may be better but the politics is a lot worse.

*_{which will come, as night follows day, given they can publish a human rights progress report with a straight face.}

(Article via Conrad)

China's economy dominates headlines and political debate (even if much of the worry about outsourcing is just plain wrong). However many seem to forget there's a rival clipping at China's heels, India. Most interesting is this assessment:

Even by 2050, China's GDP per head will still be half that of Britain, and less than 40 per cent of the United States. India's will be less than 30 per cent and 20 per cent of Britain and the United States respectively.

This afternoon we're off for an ultrasound of Ubul. This will allow the doctor to tell us the baby has two arms, two legs, two eyes and that everything is where it should be. In Hong Kong the norm is for people to be told the sex of their child. We are traditionalists - we will find out when Ubul decides it's time to join us. But these ultrasounds are great, they allow you to know that your baby is healthy and your doctor's Ferrari repayments will be met. You go into a darkened room, where a machine sits humming quietly. The doc applies a gel and proceeds to poke around to try and find the baby. Eventually the screen turns from one shade of static to another and the doc exclaims "there it is!" He proceeds to tell you that he can see fingers, there's the head, oh look, it's sucking its thumb. It is polite in these circumstances to go along with the doctor, even though you've got no idea if he's telling the truth. Indeed it may well be a replay of the static from the video player you can't quite tune. You'll never know the difference.

In Hong Kong you have an ultrasound every time you visit the doctor. Now I'm vaguely aware of the science of ultrasound: it sends a ping and looks at the echo. But surely sending this many pings is going over the top? I don't want my baby saying "ping, ping, ping" every 30 seconds like on those submarine movies. In Australia for both JC and PB we had a couple of scans and that was it. From what I recall in history classes many generations have been born without constant ultrasounds. So methinks this is a scam to make these machines really pay their way. Looking at them they can't be cheap. They've got so many buttons and dials. They can print pictures or even record the ultrasound on videotape. Although like wedding photos, no-one is going to look at that video once it has been made. Unless they're trying to tune the VCR.

So these machines can print out photos of static and maybe your baby. The really advanced (read the extortionately expensive) ones can now give you a 3 dimensional image of the baby. This is not good. There is a reason why babies stay inside a womb for 9 months. Because they don't look human for most of the time. The stages are: tiny pin-prick; amoeba; little tadpole; bigger tadpole; alien; alien sucking thumb; fish; frog and finally baby. These are not meant to be seen. However that's not the worst part. People ask for these 3-D prints so they can put them on their fridge. I can think of no better diet technique than putting a half-formed 3-D image of a foetus on a fridge door. And when guests come you just know they're not going to raid the fridge that's got that on the door. Best thing to do is to make sure the guests know it's there by showing them as soon as they walk in. That way they won't want to eat anything, and you can just scatter a few stale biscuits instead safe in the knowledge that soon your guests will make their excuses and leave.

So we'll be asking for the 3-D print today. Anyone want to come to our place?

Mrs M wasn't feeling the best this morning. It's to be expected sometimes given she's 20 weeks pregnant and looking after 2 lively kids. So I did the responsible modern Dad thing. I got the kids up, gave them their milk, changed the nappies, gave them their cereal and toast, had them watching TV, took the dog out, gave the dog her breakfast, pills and eye drops, ate my breakfast, shaved, showered, skimmed the paper, made a drink for Mrs M in bed while listening sympathetically to her ails, cleaned the girls' breakfast and faces, washed the dishes, dressed in my suit, took JC to school and got a kiss and a "You're not my friend, Daddy. I love you," for my trouble. I got on the bus feeling slightly smug about handling all of this with such aplomb.

Until it dawned on me Mrs M does it every day.

Ever since an Ethiopian goat herder noticed his flock got frisky when they ate some berries, coffee has become a way of life. This vile, putrid liquid has become part of modern life, evoking rituals as detailed and intricate as the Japanese tea ceremony. It has spawned the ubiquitous coffee shop, especially the Starbucks variation, which recreate the coffee experience in a mass commoditisation way.

The ceremony itself is simply and oft-repeated each working day. It begins when does that cannot face the working day under their own accord appeal to fellow workers to join in the first run. Often this person calls in on their way into the office to enable the slothful early birds to remain entranced by their computer screens. Each person quickly establishes their "regular" drink, which usually involves a baffling combination of milk, sugar, chocolate or anything else that can disguise the taste of the vile black scum. All important is to quickly abbreviate one's order into the "lingo", including latte, short blacks (for those with no concept of taste), caps, moccas and so on. For the healthy there is the skinny variety, where watery skim milk replaces full cream milk in a vain effort to save one's health.

Once the first run has been consumed it becomes a waiting game for the second run. Finally someone's caffeine addiction overcomes their hesitation and they announce they're off for a coffee. This seems to release the appropriate chemicals in fellow addicts, because suddenly a second coffee becomes a must for everyone. And so the procession continues, several times a day, much in line with the rise in Starbucks' share price. There is a reason the place is named for the boat in Moby Dick - although it seems the boat has overtaken the whale in size.

There can be breaches of etiquette. Should one show enough gumption to go and get a coffee alone, any return to the office will be met with howls of protest from fellow addicts who lament the opportunity to feed their disease. This only has to happen once or twice before this enterprising person learns that being different is a sure recipe for disaster, and they too are quickly dragged into the group coffee run net.

For those of us who despise the stuff this leads to a murky morass of moral dilemmas. To sit out run after run sets us apart from these lesser mortals. In order to enter into the espirit d'corps occasionally we have to shout (i.e. pay) and make the run, substituting hot chocolate or a juice. Instead of enjoying our superior status we need to drag ourselves down to the level of these desperate addicts in an attempt to fit in, to join in with the hoi polloi.

It demeans us but it is the price we have to pay - otherwise I see a diversity training course in my future. I hate coffee.

For those unsure of the current state of play in Greater China, I humbly present a summary of recent events for you.

1. Common sense ceases to be a factor for Taiwan's opposition.
2. China decides one country, one system is far better than the previous effort.
3. 40,000 gweilos are nursing sore heads today.

We report. China decides.

My apartment building slavishly avoids bad luck by not having a 4th, 13th or 14th floor. In Cantonese the number 4 sounds very similar to the word for death. Not good. 13 is unlucky for Westerners. And 14 sounds like 'certain death' to Cantonese ears. But in fact the poor people on what is called the 5th floor are actually on the 4th, and those on the 16th shouldn't buy lottery tickets, being on the 13th. Those on the 17th shouldn't make long term plans at all, being on the very unlucky 14th.

You can't trick Feng Shui, even if you play with the numbers.

Hong Kong car parks exist in a warped space-time continuim that bears no resembelence to the rest of the known universe.

Firstly you enter them. This is never easy as it usually involves running over hoardes of pedestrians whom seem oblivious to the 750 kg of car trying to get through the driveway. Of course, if you are a pedestrian you must ignore all cars trying to get into car parks, but that's for another day. Often an attendant in a flurescent yellow jacket and orange airport waving thingy (that's the technical term) comes to your aid - just as you've made it through. Next you need to switch sides. Hong Kong drives on the left, but in car parks the reverse is true, sometimes. In fact sides of road become a random decision based on what's coming the other way. And if enough space exists to pass. Which it doesn't.

You make your way up or down a dizzying spiral before coming to a floor that has spaces. You can tell because an attendant jumps out and points it out for you using one of their orange airport waving thingys. You wait for someone to complete their attempt to squeeze into a spot that is inches too small for any regular car. Then it is your turn. Challenging everything you've ever learnt about spatial relations you ease the car into the space. Then you try to open your door, only to find you are hemmed in by other cars or randomly placed poles. Hense all cars in HK have dent collections on their sides, even though the cars themselves are often top of the line models. And hense why gweilos tend to drive crap cars in Hong Kong.

Returning one has to stop at the shroff office, which is one of the ugliest words in the English language. There someone who hates the world takes your ticket and demands a king's ransom for the privilege of having your car turn into a golf ball. Unless it is one of the flashy new car parks, which are exactly the same as the old ones except you pay using credit card or Octopus card at the exit. Be careful for those drivers that are more important than you as you leave. They will let you know who they are by talking on their mobiles, constantly trying to overtake you and/or racing to get into their cars and away before you. Yes, I'm talking about you blue Mercedes GF 2557 from Saturday in Causeway Bay. Once your heart rate returns to normal, repeat trying to run over pedestrians as you exit. Then blend in with the relaxing Hong Kong traffic for the journey home.

The host with the most, Pixy, has throw open the gates of Munu to all the blogosphere's needy to celebrate Munu's 1 year anniversary. For those looking to move off blogspot, or those under the thumb due to China's recent blocking of Typepad and so on, please leave me a message in the comments and we'll get you switched over to the MT based Munu server. Follow the link for the strict (not) entry requirements. If you know of blogs you'd like nominated, let me know.

Finally the world of economics comes to grips with one of the pressing issues of our times: faking it. Scroll down to The Economics of Ecstasy. Good to see at least some PhD students applying their minds for practical rather than theoretical problems.

(Finally, something useful via the SCMP)

Hong Kong has nothing to fear but fear itself. Now that China's parliament, the NPC, has decided that they are the begining and end of the review of Hong Kong's basic law. The good news is

The National People's Congress Standing Committee will not be ``tyrannical'' when it begins interpreting the Basic Law later this week, SAR Basic Law Committee member Ng Hon-man said yesterday...``It won't give Hong Kong people a feeling that it is tyrannical or that [the NPC Standing Committee] is forcibly imposing the interpretations on Kong Kong people,'' he said.

Meanwhile in Taiwan the faux-crisis continues. President Chen remains entirely sensible in asking the opposition to follow the law and then he will order a recount. It really is extremely difficult to see what objections the pan-blue alliance can maintain to Chen's actions so far. Certainly he has come out of all this looking much the better choice.

Welcome to another week in the glorious Far East.

Friday afternoon: not much going on. Everyone's busy with "conferences", "client meetings" and "seminars". Read copious amounts of drinking and rugby watching. Personally I'm unlikely to witness the spectacle of 40,000 gweilos competing to spill the most beer and act the most outrageously this year. Something to add to the list of Hong Kong things to do in the future.

Once you've read every single entry I've made this week and in keeping with the week-old tradition I'm going to pick some of the better bits around the blogosphere this week for your reading pleasure.

Paul is lecturing in Blogging 101, lesson 1 and lesson 2. It's funny in a "Oh my God that's all true" kind of way.
Andres has a thoughtful reflection on Chinese nationalism.
DaGoddess has moved house and Phil's started a business.
Rob finds another good use for Google.
Pixy let again eloquently answers a ding-bing.
Munu welcomes G'day Mate to its world domination portfolio team.
Jim becomes tactlessly correct.
Life 6 is working out well for Helen.

The story closest to my heart this week has been China's banning of all typepad and blogs.com hosted sites. Links are summarised here and one apparent reason behind it is here.

Finally one last site you need to go visit is ALN - a worthwhile use of the blog medium.

Now you'll have to excuse me because someone took my last piece of gum and I'm in a bad mood.

The pre Rugby Sevens atmosphere means little in the way of work is being done here today. Most conversation revolves around tales of previous nights' drinking, plans for future drinking and how to scam tickets to the said event. It all leaves plenty of time for my $0.02 worth. Here's another on an example of women in business.

Australia's biggest bank, NAB, is in trouble. Their foreign exchange trading operation suffered A$360 million in losses due to fraud. So far the four traders have been sacked, the CEO and board Chairman (and other senior executives) have left and the regulator, APRA, has imposed draconian supervision on the bank until it gets its house in order. There remains only one person still facing pressure to resign: the head of the board's audit committee. This is the committee that monitors the bank's risk management. Clearly they failed in this task. The APRA report is damning of this committee:

This week's report by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority claimed the committee failed to understand fully the dimensions of the currency crisis or alert top management.

It added: "Our concern is (the committee) became too focused on ensuring process was in place, without understanding or inquiring into the substantive issues underlying what was being put before it by management or adequately probing inconsistencies or warnings."

I applaud the move for greater female representation in senior levels of companies. No doubt the woman in question is an extremely smart and able woman, able to hold her own in the boardroom of the biggest bank in the country. However if a man was in her position there would be similar pressure brought to bear for a resignation. So statements that say "Supporters claim she is being made a scapegoat and her status as one of the nation's most senior executives could draw widespread support, particularly from other female executives," I find confusing. Why should other females support her because she is female? If she has been found wanting in her job she should do what any normal person (of either sex) would do and resign. If she thinks she has grounds for retaining her position, then law courts are the place for that. Using one's sex to protect one's position demeans the position and the person. She has failed to fulfil the duties in her position as chair of the audit committee. Her sex has nothing to do with it.

Male or female, the chair has to go.

China's latest NPC session recognised private property rights for the first time. Yesterday China clamped down on Mainland blogs. Human Rights Watch has just released a new report about forced evictions by local authorities and property developers. The evictees have no legal recourse. As an example:

"Victims are sometimes evicted by hired thugs or have their homes knocked over by bulldozers while they are asleep in bed," said Davis. "Instead of enforcing existing laws, local officials do little to stop illegal practices and in fact often benefit financially from close association with the developers."

Demolition and eviction has several decades of history in China. In the past, ordinary people longed for demolition and eviction [because they were moved to better homes], but now ordinary people fear demolition and eviction, they hate [it], and even use death and suicide to oppose [it].. This hatred, this opposition to demolition and eviction has really only appeared in the last few years.

­­- Tenants’ rights advocate Xu Yonghai, “Open letter to General Secretary Hu Jintao and the Central Committee”1

At 8:45 on the morning of September 15, 2003, forty-five-year-old farmer Zhu Zhengliang and his wife sat down in Tiananmen Square under the portrait of Mao Zedong. As his wife quietly watched, Zhu doused himself with gasoline and set himself alight. Police stationed in the square rushed to his aid, and Zhu was hospitalized in Beijing with minor burns on his arms and back. According to news reports, Zhu attempted self-immolation to protest his family’s forced eviction from their home in a rural region of Anhui province.2

Zhu’s was the most prominent, but by no means the only, attempted suicide to protest forced evictions in China in 2003. In August, a Nanjing city man who returned from a lunch break one day to find his home demolished, set himself afire and burned to death at the office of the municipal demolition and eviction department.3 In September, resident Wang Baoguang burned himself to death while being forcibly evicted in Beijing.4 On October 1, China’s National Day, Beijing resident Ye Guoqiang attempted suicide by jumping from Beijing’s Jinshui bridge to protest his forced eviction for construction related to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.5 These suicides and attempted suicides were the most dramatic in a wave of almost daily protests that swept cities across China from September to December 2003.

This report, based largely on published Chinese-language sources—including press accounts, Internet discussions, expert commentary, and government laws, regulations, and statements—details the problems many Chinese citizens face as they are evicted from their homes, sometimes violently, by state and private actors. Many of these forced evictions violate basic human rights protections in both Chinese and international law. The report also provides an overview of current eviction and demolition practices in China’s cities, the regulations governing such practices, and the parties involved. It traces the emergence over the past several years of a vibrant tenants’ rights movement and the government’s recent crackdown on some of the leading figures.

The issue of forced evictions in China has begun to receive attention in official circles, and has even prompted a constitutional amendment, but significant hurdles remain. If the deficiencies in implementation of laws are not remedied and rights of evictees not upheld, eviction practices can be expected to serve as a continuing source of high profile social unrest and at times extreme forms of protest. In Beijing, the clearing of new sites for Olympics venues likely will continue to be a flashpoint.

To some extent, the scope of the evictions and of protests against them detailed in this report are inevitable byproducts of China’s unconstrained development and the eagerness of many local officials for rapid modernization. In many cities, new high-end residential communities, shopping malls, and golf courses are replacing the stone houses, courtyards, and hutong (胡同, alleys) that characterized old China. After surviving long winters in unheated, drafty older buildings, many of which lack indoor plumbing, some urban residents now enjoy new and comfortable apartments. Many people in China express pride in their country’s rapid modernization, even while others mourn the loss of the country’s traditional architecture.

However, a rising tide of complaints by people around the country, reported in Chinese media and posted on the Internet, raises shared concerns. Residents in many cities say the process of “demolition and eviction” (chaiqian 拆迁)is arbitrary, marred at all levels by a lack of due process for those evicted from their homes. They point out that China lacks basic property rights protections, so homeowners are just as vulnerable as renters to sudden eviction with minimal compensation. Many point to widespread corruption and other deep-rooted conflicts of interest in local government that tie the interests of powerful developers to those of local officials.

China’s weak judicial system also frequently fails its citizens in this matter. Evicted residents have tried to seek redress in the local courts, but many find that courts refuse to hear the cases because of pressure on judges and lawyers by local Communist Party officials. In the rare instances when a court finds in favor of residents, their homes are likely to have already been demolished. Some have even complained of yeman chaiqian (野蛮拆迁)—“savage” or violent eviction by hired thugs, wrecking crews and bulldozers that maim or kill residents while clearing sites for new construction.

Given the lack of routes for legal redress, it is unsurprising that many angry residents have taken to the streets to protest. In September, many traveled to Beijing to stage peaceful sit-ins and marches on October 1, a national holiday; many more did so in the following months. In response, authorities cracked down on demonstrators, jailing many and preventing hundreds of others from boarding trains bound for Beijing. Beijing even passed municipal regulations prohibiting “suicide protests.”6 Frustrated residents have taken to contacting international media and human rights groups, and to posting their personal stories on Internet bulletin boards—all risky choices, given the government’s monitoring of the Internet and international telephone calls, and the ever-present danger of charges of “state subversion.”

The Chinese government has used politically motivated prosecutions to target many of the most outspoken advocates for evicted residents, including Xu Yonghai, a tenants’ rights activist in Beijing; and Zheng Enchong, a lawyer who advocated for the rights of evicted tenants in Shanghai. Xu, at the forefront of 2003 tenants’ rights protests in Beijing, was arrested in December and formally charged with revealing state secrets in February 2004. Police arrested Zheng in June and charged him, too with “circulating state secrets” because of faxes he sent to the New York-based organization Human Rights in China. Since Zheng’s imprisonment, lawyers and tenants report that fewer lawyers are willing to take on forced eviction cases.

Because most of the available information in Chinese media and on Internet bulletin boards deals with urban evictions, this paper focuses on problems in urban areas. In fact, urban evictions are just a small fragment of the whole picture.7 Demolition and eviction in China’s cities is part of a larger national context that includes dislocation of impoverished populations, especially of rural peoples in areas where land values are rising, and ethnic minorities in resource-rich areas.8 In some rural areas, land expropriation drives farmers to the cities to seek work. In other rural but urbanizing regions, populations may have to endure multiple rounds of demolition, relocation, and reconstruction, as areas “improved” once are torn down and “re-improved” two or three more times in following years, profiting well-connected construction firms and the government offices that charge them fees.9 Residents of ethnic minority regions face even greater procedural problems than most urban residents, as they face linguistic barriers that make it difficult for them to obtain justice in Chinese-language courts.10

Many of the problems with demolition and eviction detailed here have been publicly acknowledged by high-ranking members of the central government, who are aware of the high level of public outrage—and the potential challenge to the Communist Party’s rule—percolating in rural and urban China. Even state-controlled media, such as the People’s Daily, have published articles and editorials openly critical of the state’s handling of these issues. Senior Chinese legal scholars have argued for reform of the system.

In December, Beijing announced some modifications of existing regulations and planned changes to the constitution that would signal the government’s concern about lack of housing rights.Such steps, while welcome, will bring only limited change without a thorough reform of the system that implements them. China’s displaced residents desperately need a reliable system through which to seek redress—so much that some are even willing to die for it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1 Xu Yonghai, Open letter to General Secretary Hu Jintao and the Central Committee, June 10, 2003, www.boxun.com, posted October 5, 2003.

2 “Farmer sets self on fire in Tiananmen Square,” China Daily, September 15, 2003; An Zhiyong, “Chaiqian jiufen shi daozhi Anhui nongmin zai Tiananmen zishade yuanyin [Demolition and eviction conflict caused Anhui farmer’s suicide [sic] in Tiananmen],” Nanfang dushi bao [Southern Metropolis Daily], September 17, 2003.

3 An Zhiyong, “Demolition and eviction conflict…”

4 “Beijing chaiqianhu yin hangyi zao qisu [Beijing evictees charged for demonstrating],” BBC Chinese service, November 13, 2003.

5 “Beijing evictees charged…,” BBC Chinese service.

6 “Beijing’s new self-immolation law,” Asia Times, October 31, 2003. Suicide as a form of protest has a long history in China, dating back to at least 3 BCE. Because the emperor ignored poet and official Chu Yuan’s memorials about political problems, Chu Yuan threw himself into a river and drowned. His suicide was seen as proof of his nobility, and the anniversary of his death on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month is a major Chinese holiday.

7 For further discussion of rural Chinese land expropriation, see reports and analysis of China’s land laws on the website of Rural Development Institute, www.rdiland.org.

8 For instance, there have been ongoing reports of protests and demonstrations by Inner Mongolians. China is in the process of relocating 200,000 Mongolian nomads from the grasslands in Inner Mongolia, and 800,000 in Qinghai. Human Rights Watch interview with Enhebatu Togochog, president, Southern Mongolia Human Rights Information Center, January 6, 2004.

9 This happened in at least two cases in Yunnan province. In Kunming, the capital of Yunnan, major traffic arteries were expanded and improved in 1997-98 as part of an urban development plan, only to be redone a year later for the Yunnan Flower Expo, a large exposition that was hoped would draw hundreds of thousands of international visitors but that failed to live up to expectations. In Jinghong, capital of Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture in southern Yunnan, streets and sewers were torn up and improved in 1998 in order to attract more domestic tourists, and were redone again two years later for the Flower Expo. Kunming now plans another complete reconstruction in which it will be transformed into four small cities connected by a superhighway (Human Rights Watch interview with Mary F. [pseudonym], architect, New York, January 12, 2004).

10 Human Rights Watch interview with Dao [pseudonym], ethnic minority community leader, Yunnan, December 2002. Where indicated, names and identifying characteristics of Chinese citizens and some international experts working in China interviewed for this report have been changed to protect interviewees against government retaliation.

Asia takes the top two positions in a world-wide poll against some stiff competition. The all-time corruption league table. Suharto and Marcos beat out some pretenders from Africa. Yes, another victory for the region.

I do not understand why, but at the slightest hint of rain traffic in Hong Kong multiplies and slows to a crawl. Are cars here like sea-monkeys, that multiply in water? Does the population suddenly expand? Where is everyone going? And why does everyone drive so badly in the wet?

I know I said I wouldn't comment any more on Taiwan's election but like any good politician my promises are only valid until I break them. If only Al Gore had thought of this in 2000 things could have been very different.

Note: there's a SCMP fisking too...

From the SCMP:

Legislators from the two camps are meeting today and through the weekend to finalise amendments to the electoral law to allow the president to issue an executive order for a ballot recount. But lawmakers from the opposition Kuomintang and People First Party alliance demanded inserting an "assassination clause" that would effectively require the Central Election Commission to nullify last Saturday's election.

The controversial clause states the commission must call off a presidential election if a candidate suffers injury or dies in the seven days before the election. The clause, the opposition demands, must have retrospective power and apply to Saturday's poll.

You lose the election, but it's close. The winner even offers a recount. But you don't actually want a recount because you might lose that. So you dredge up all sorts of spurious reasons the vote was "rigged". If 20 million people cast their votes, of course there are going to be occasional discrepancies. I once drew Bart Simpson on my ballot paper in Australia and gave it to a mate in the next booth who added Homer. They managed to declare a winner in that poll nonetheless. The pan-blues have yet to provide any reasonable evidence of systematic vote-rigging; so far all they've got is some isolated incidents. Even the High Court in Taiwan said the opposition can't yet file a suit on this, because that's the law. Remember that pesky little thing, the law?

The longer this goes on the better Chen looks and the worse the KMT looks. Chen just has to keep his mouth shut and let the KMT completely self-destruct.
*******************
The SCMP's CK Lau, Executive Editor of Policy and Bullshit, has come up with the following editorial which I bring to you in its full stupidity:

Taiwan is the only Chinese society that has become a full democracy. But the conduct of its presidential poll last Saturday was a great disappointment to all Chinese who had hoped that the island would set an example for the democratisation of the mainland and Hong Kong.

The alleged electoral frauds associated with the razor-thin victory of incumbent Chen Shui-bian over contender Lien Chan suggested manipulation of the electoral process of the gravest kind.

The suspicious circumstances that surrounded an attempted assassination of Mr Chen and his running mate Annette Lu Hsiu-lien on the eve of the election have led many to suspect that it was engineered to produce a sympathy vote.

Other irregularities have also occurred in the election to make one wonder if Taiwan has a credible electoral system.

Under-aged children who accompanied their elders into a polling station were caught on television casting "their" votes. The results of ballot counts in some areas were allegedly not accurately reported to the Central Election Commission.

Local governments with political affiliations reportedly put their sympathisers in charge of polling stations. The fact that exceptionally large numbers of ballots were declared invalid in some districts controlled by Mr Chen's Democratic Progressive Party has lent credence to such concerns.

In the event, the team comprising the Kuomintang's Mr Lien and the People First Party's James Soong Chu-yu lost by 0.24 per cent of the vote, even though it was leading by a modest margin in opinion polls before Mr Chen and Ms Lu were shot. As many as 337,297 ballots, or 2.5 per cent of the total, were declared invalid.

The Lien team has since mobilised supporters to force a recount and an independent investigation of the shooting.

In fact, most Taiwanese do not have sufficient faith in the polling process because all political parties, including the KMT, have a history of trying to rig the outcome.

While outright attempts at buying votes or stuffing the ballot boxes with dubious papers are said to have been reduced in recent years, attempts to manipulate the conduct of elections have remained.

In the latest example, Mr Chen used his presidential authority to tie the so-called defensive referendum on the deployment of missiles to the presidential poll.

On the strength of members appointed by the DPP, the election commission even held at one point that votes for the presidential election which were accidentally placed in ballot boxes for the referendum would also be counted.

The commission chairman, who is an old hand, had to reconvene a meeting, while some of the pro-DPP members were overseas, to reverse the ruling, which would have certainly caused even more confusion in the counting process had it been allowed to stand. That the chairman had to resort to questionable tactics to overturn a problematic decision said a lot about political manipulation of the electoral process.

As the protest by KMT supporters outside the presidential office in Taipei drags on, the courts have rejected the party's bid to declare last Saturday's poll invalid on the grounds that the election commission has not formally announced the outcome of the election.

This is because by law, the commission is not due to make such an announcement until seven days after polling day, even though it had already told the world last Saturday, about six hours after polls were closed, that Mr Chen's team had got more votes than Mr Lien's.

In the ensuing chaos sparked by Mr Lien's call for a recount, there were apparently no procedures for the commission to store the ballots under seal after they were counted. That had to be done by court officials the next day - a Sunday - by special arrangement after Mr Lien filed a suit. All these have shown up glaring holes in the electoral laws. The flaws would not have seemed so damaging had there been bi-partisan trust in the institutional integrity of the island's systems and a mutual respect for fair play.

Sadly, largely because of the legacy of the era of one-party rule by the KMT, which had used its executive authority to manipulate the systems in its favour when it was in power, that trust is lacking.

And what has transpired before and after the latest poll, which suggests that the DPP is just as manipulative, is not conducive to bringing that about.

Desperate to win, both parties' strategists do not seem to mind engaging in unscrupulous practices that are narrowly within the limits of the law.

As things stand, the KMT and the DPP are still locked in a zero-sum game that neither can afford to lose. Whether by executive or judicial order, a recount is almost certain to take place. The disconcerting prospect is that whether it is going to confirm Mr Chen as the winner or install Mr Lien as president, about half the island's population will not be pleased.

Yet again the SCMP hoists itself by its own petard. This kind of drivel is what passes for mature political discourse in this place. At least the SCMP continues in one vital service: it provides plenty of blog fodder.

Finally after much pressure from the various authorities (hereafter collectively referred to as the "grandparents") I present the 2004 Annual Family Report: Overseas and Over There.

Thank you fellow shareholders for attending this year's Annual General Meeting. This report intends to summarise the key events in the company for the previous calendar year. 2003 was an important year in the company's (herein referred to as the "family") development. Since the family was started in December 1998 (please see 1998's Annual Report: The Wedding, The Honeymoon and Real Life) it show consistent growth in line with our core values. We have stuck with our core competencies of recreation and procreation with a strong stable of future prospects. Going forward 2004 and beyond are looking solid and the family expects to continue to exceed market expectations.

Subsidiaries

The Mrs M division continues to remain the main driver of the family. Fulfilling all roles to the highest standards of the industry, this division is truly a world class organisation in its own right. Be it cooking, cleaning, organising social events, keeping the other divisions in line, keeping the HQ in order and the other important functions of this division consistently exceed the targets set. The family is extremely lucky to have such a talented Chairwoman who can do several things at once. Her sporting group has proven capable to compete at top levels in tennis after re-entering the market following an extended absence. The organisation of the family's internationalisation in late 2003 followed hard on the massive early 2003 move to larger headquarters (see the 2003 Annual Report: My that's a lot of boxes) saw the division stretched to its limit and yet it came through with flying colours. There is no doubt in your CEO's mind that without this division the company would cease to exist in any meaningful form. There is also no doubt in your CEO's mind that at crucial times this division has provided your CEO with much needed support. Additionally acting as main tour guide and hostess for the various overseas visitors who come to see the family at work and play is handled with much aplomb. At the time of writing this division is in the process of developing the newest division in the family, at the moment known as Project Ubul. Amazingly this has not constrained the division's performance in the slightest.

The JC and PB divisions astound with their rapid growth. Following a recent merger these two divisions now share a common head office, despite an overnight noise problem with JC's area. These two divisions work extremely well both together and separately and show stunning potential for the future. JC's mastery of all movies ever made by Pixar along with her mastery of numbers (up to 2) show the kind of genius we are working with. She has taken the expansion into pre-school like a Shrek to mud. PB's curly hair line has seen more photographs per day than any other gweilo child of her age since the move to Hong Kong in early 2003. Both divisions coped well with the major change of country without a whisper of complaint. They continue to experience teething problems (literally) as any greenfields site is likely to do. Occasionally there are rivalries between these areas, but these tend to be resolved without intervention and in amicable ways (these include clops over the head, fingers in the face and the old favourite leg pulling). That said it is not too early for this CEO to say that based on his years of experience we are developing two world beating divisions.

The Misti division has shown recent signs of turn around after a much needed injection of both care and capital. She has regained much of her old pep and vim, meaning no leg is safe from her effervescent attentions upon entering the HQ. Having this division back to full strength and here with us in the international HQ enables the other divisions to continue working solidly and happily.

As for your CEO he has happily presided over an operation that mostly looks after itself. Under the guiding hand of Chairwoman Mrs M the machine that is the family is well-oiled. This is just as well given the significant amounts of time your CEO's attention is diverted by his other activity, being work (OK, yes, and blogging). Bedding down the internationalisation of the family has proved to be far easier than this CEO expected. The new domicile of the family has proven a far more hospitable and family-friendly place of business than the CEO ever expected. The side activity of work has exceeded expectations and having the other divisions running smoothly eases the CEO's mind immensely.

Profits and Balance Sheet

The move to the new domicile has proven financially rewarding in some senses. Moving from a high taxing to low taxing country has assisted cash flow and enabled the previously stretched debt ratios to be brought under control. The financial recovery plan (see the 2002 Annual Report: We're up to our eyeballs in it) remains in place and the future goals so established remain achievable. Indeed there is now potential to make some acquisitions, such as the all important LCD TV (according to your CEO) or food (according to the Chairwoman). In other senses there have been the inevitable financial drags but inevitably they are for good causes or important reasons. The family financial situation continues to improve and your Chairwoman and CEO remain confidant that the key financial ratios and positions are poised for ongoing improvement. Previous attention to costs has left the family in the happy position of being able to fund such future developments such as JC and PB's education and Ubul's arrival without relying on credit card debt.

The Future and Summary

As mentioned earlier the Mrs M division is working on the continued expansion of the enterprise. With two such immensely talented young divisions already, the track record is there to expect only good things from the third division. Your Chairwoman and CEO continue to work closely together to run and improve the company.

Overall all divisions and operations this year have made this one darn proud CEO. We have the very best company in the world, bar none, and it will only get better from here. I love my job and I love my divisions and I have no qualms about continuing to work hard to keep this successful endeavour moving onwards to bigger and better things.

In light of the Madrid bombing, France has raised their terror alert level from "run" to "hide". The only two higher levels in France are "surrender" and "collaboration".

(Thanks to Aaron, the lumberjack).

China is indignant at an American anti-China human rights motion at the UN. With their attitude to free speech and expression it is a wonder. Check out the excellent Living in China for much more on this and reaction to it. Then I refer the CCP to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in this case Article 19:

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

UPDATE: LiC are offering members server space if this turns into a more permanent thing. I'm pleased to say the magnificent Pixy has also offered the ample wide plains of the Munu server should the need arise. Please contact me at simon[at]simonworld[dot]mu[dot]nu for more information.

As an aside times like this prove the real value of Living in China as a blog portal and aggregator for all China blogs.

Jim is going to have an absolute conniption when he sees this about PC reaching into sign language. No one is safe.

Today we're going to take a little trip around the idiocy that passes for a normal day in Hong Kong and China.

Firstly the good news. It seems the only people fleecing expats and foreigners in Shenzhen now will be the shops. From the SCMP:

Expatriates and foreign visitors in Hong Kong will soon be given visa-free access to Shenzhen as part of new measures under the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (Cepa)...Expats and foreign visitors usually pay $210 [US$27] for a one-time mainland entry visa, or $850 [US$109] for multiple entries valid for six months. Charges for visitors from certain places, such as the United States, are even higher.

Now let's look at the "it would be funny if it wasn't serious" news:

1. Local Beijing apologists tell the SAR Government "too much democracy could drive away investors." That explains why the USA and Western Europe have done so badly.

2. It's all pointless anyway because Beijing's achieved their goals (from the SCMP):

The two-month propaganda war waged by state media against Hong Kong's ambitions for political reform has cooled as Beijing is satisfied people in the city have received its message, analysts say.
They suggested that the barrage, characterised by verbal and printed attacks on pro-democracy politicians, had abated after Beijing managed to dampen hopes in Hong Kong for a faster pace of democracy.

3. China lectures the US over a 'human rights violation' with a straight face. Apparently the US ignores truth about China's rights record. So those truths would be things like this, these or stuff listed here.

4. A bunch of Chinese go and land on an island in the middle of nowhere claimed by China, Taiwan, Japan and Iceland in a pointless jesture. At least it explains the 6 idiots standing outside Exchange Square last night with two banners, 4 camera crews, a loudhailer and no-one listening.

Spent the bus ride into work chatting with my nameless friend. I'm working up the courage to ask him for his business card to cut through this mess as it's clear he doesn't know my name either. He had a good time at the Malaysian Grand Prix though.

Hong Kong is a city of contradictions. Whenever you come across a door of an office building you will see people engage in all sorts of contortions to avoid touching the handle in a quaint avoidance of microbes. Despite their computers containing plenty. Despite the spitting in the street. The pollution we all breathe. It doesn't matter as we're all a day closer to dying today anyway.

That's what Hong Kong's dreary fog can do to you.

Hell hath no fury like a drag queen scorned:

Myer [an Australian department store] management didn't predict the response they would get when they called police to remove a drag queen from their city store last week after determining her hemline was too high.

News of the outrage spread like wildfire at Newtown's Imperial Hotel - the setting for memorable scenes in the movie Priscilla, Queen of the Desert - and a phalanx of eight men in dresses marshalled at the store's Pitt Street gates at 3pm yesterday to stage a protest.

"We're just going to have a quiet shopping day and get them used to seeing drag queens around," said the lady in question, Kirsten Damned, before attempting re-entry to the store.

Staff and shoppers gawked at the gaggle of girlfriends and security circled for about 45 minutes until the store manager, John Pappas, approached the group in the Barbie section, where Kirsten said she finds inspiration for her handmade dresses.

Myer had no problem with their presence, Pappas said, given Kirsten's skirt was of sufficient length this time. "The last time it actually didn't cover certain parts of the anatomy." Kirsten claimed she had offered to buy one of "Grace Bros' other skirts" last time, but Pappas said the offer wasn't made to him.

When it became clear the store's policy was all about centimetres, fellow drag queen Mitzi quipped: "It is with us as well. We concur with management entirely."

A search on Google for China bubble brings about 434,000 replies. A search for China boom brings 832,000 or almost double. Every day there's more and more written about the China economic miracle. Every multinational worthy of the name has a China strategy. But there's a problem. It is not sustainable. Indeed it's all a house of cards destined to fall.

This week's Economist has a survey on business in China. It is great reading for anyone interested in what's really going on in China. Unfortunately not even the Communists have found a way to beat the laws of economics. Some select quotes follow:

China's real problem, however, is not inflation but overinvestment...Easy credit is producing massive overcapacity, leading to deflation, more bad debts and fewer new jobs. Already, nine-tenths of manufactured goods are in oversupply, yet investment in fixed assets last year grew by 30% and contributed 47% of GDP. But the biggest concern is that China's growth is staggeringly wasteful. Whereas in the 1980s and 90s it took $2-3 of new investment to produce $1 of additional growth, now it needs more than $4.

But as in imperial times, the country's scale can prove more of a hurdle than an opportunity. China has 31 provinces, 656 cities, 48,000 districts, seven major dialects and 80 spoken tongues. Climate and geography vary from the freezing northern plateaus to the semi-tropical south. There are enormous disparities in income, education and lifestyle between city dwellers and farmers, and between the wealthy east coast and the poor west and north-east. For most products, there is no such thing as a national market. China's consumers are too dispersed, too inaccessible and too different from each other.

Yet as Tex Gunning, president of Unilever Bestfoods Asia, says: “Foreigners still think they can tackle China in one go, when they would never start in 17 countries in Europe at once.”

The problem in the world today is too much liquidity is chasing anything that might have a chance of returning a quick profit. But there's no such thing as easy money; at the end of the day returns have to bear some relationship to risk and prices have to bear some relationship to returns. Stocks are off their highs and rich. Property's bubble is bursting. The expansion of debt is coming to an end despite still low interest rates in many countries. While China is growing at a furious pace it cannot carry the world's growth hopes indefinitely. Especially when it cannot carry on long as it is, and especially when it is still only the world's 6th largest economy. Countries such as Japan and Germany continue to bumble along. I don't think it will end in a crash, but I do think it will end. And when it does that's when the opportunities will arise.

There's plenty more and I strongly recommend reading it all to anyone interested in China and the current bubble. It's worth the price of subscribing on its own, let alone the year's worth of good reason you get thrown in.

Ross Gittins gives us another reason why everyone in Australia hates Queenslanders.

I'm sick and tired of the women at work who constantly mentally undressing me. More disturbingly, some of the men too. It's not easy being good looking, as you would know, dear reader.

In a discussion of growth industries and good investments here at work today I mentioned that I see cemetaries as a great investment. Given one of the alternatives being bandied about is lumber, it isn't that absurd. There's always plenty of folks dying, cities are getting bigger and there's less space for cemetaries. It's a growth industry. The discussion ended when someone pointed out I'm a growth industry too.

One of the slightly more ridiculous policies at work is the "clean desk" policy. From the three lines of the email I have read it states that when you leave for the day, your computer must be locked or off, your drawers locked and your desk clean and devoid of paper. I usually manage one of the three. However there is a (growing) pile of paper to my left. It's a combination of old newspapers, discard presentations, some notes from my Cantonese lessons, a couple of calendars, some business cards and a magazine. The usual clutter of genius. Most of the desks around me have the same.

So there has been much merriment this afternoon looking at the photos taken by the security people of desks they have deemed to "fail" the policy after a random sweep. Desks such as mine passed no problem. Some such as Giles have failed miserably - in his case for having a fax lying across his keyboard.

The company is paying good money for people to walk around after hours and take photos of desks with paper on them. Where's my broker...

Hong Kong has an image of a low tax capitalist haven. To some extent that's true. To a much greater extent, it is all about special interests and cartels maintaining their happy little ways of life (and money). As usual Conrad has done a good job of pointing out the unabashed avarice of HK's lavishly overpaid public servants. HK must be the only place on Earth where working for the Government is more lucractive than the public sector. With perhaps the exception of several corrupt African regimes. And Singapore.

Low taxes doesn't mean they still need to be wasted.

Rosie Reid has made something of name for herself by being a lesbian who's auctioned off her virginity. She managed to raise 8,400 pounds to help pay her university debts. A quick Google search tells me in the UK "Prostitution is not illegal if the prostitute works independently without disturbing the public order. Men who are found several times in prostitution areas buying sex can be fined. It is criminal to advertise prostitution, to run a brothel, and to recruit persons for prostitution." So I'm not sure if this woman is liable for prosecution because getting the world's media hooked on your Ebay auction is an effective advertising tactic.

But what is the man who paid all that money thinking? Let's leave the morality of prostitution aside for a minute. I don't know what the going rate is for the "full deal" in the UK, but let's be generous and assume its 100 quid. Was this really worth 84 times that amount?

Somewhere along the way the cult of media worship has gotten out of hand. So to speak.

Australia's Labor opposition are taking the lessons of the Spanish election to heart, by promising to pull Aussie troops out of Iraq should they win the next election. I don't think Iraq is or will remain enough of an issue to swing voters who's minds are already made up. For those undecided voters there are more immediate issues such as rising interest rates and employment. That doesn't excuse opposition leader Latham's latest comments on Iraq.

His arguments run as follows:
1. Troops in Iraq make Australia more vulnerable to terrorism.
2. The war in Iraq was a "folly, a mistake and a side alley".
3. The war in Iraq has "made the situation worse; it hasn't made the world a safer place."

His first point is completely wrong. Australia is no safer should it withdraw its troops. Is Spain any safer now? No. France never sent troops and yet is worried about the threat of terrorism too with its large Muslim population. The Islam extremists fighting this war see all Western civilisations as the enemy. The Bali bombing pre-dated the Iraq invasion as did 9/11. It is more accurate to link Afghanistan with the war on terror. But it seems not many object to the continued American presence there. Terrorism is a separate issue to Iraq. Having troops there does not make a country any less or more safe. Japan is never mentioned by Osama despite their military presence in Iraq. Al-Queda's beef is with the West, not those in Iraq.

The second point is even more absurd. The war in Iraq removed a brutal dictator. At the time the burden was on Saddam to prove he didn't have WMD. Numerous UN resolutions over the years demanded full and complete disclosure, something even the weapons inspectors admit was not forthcoming. Would more inspections have helped? Given Saddam's past form it looked unlikely. The people of Iraq don't seem to have demonstrations demanding a return of Saddam's rule. Unless he explains more I cannot see how anyone can describe Iraq as a folly, mistake or side alley. The war on terror is a different style of war to that in Iraq.

The area where Labor can make good headway is criticising the reconstruction. Even though Australia is only peripherally involved, the case remains the coalition forces were ill-prepared for running Iraq once they won the war. That said there is progress in Iraq's reconstruction but the execution could be better.

The final point, that the world is not a safer place, boggles the mind. Since the war in Iraq Libya has admitted and openly disarmed, Iran has opened up to the IAEA, Syria is under sustained pressure and even North Korea is slightly more open to negotiations. It is impossible to tie all of these developments solely to the war in Iraq but it is certainly a factor in all of them. So quite how it has made the situation worse is hard to see. Would terrorism not be occurring in Western countries (Israel aside, where unfortunately it is a given) if the war in Iraq happened? Of course it would. Despite initial arguments the war on Iraq had nothing to do with the war on terror. There were (and remain) solid justifications for the war on Iraq that have nothing to do with terrorism. In the words of Deng Xia-pong, "it doesn't matter if the cat is black or white, so long as it catches the mouse."

There are good reasons to think Labor will give the Government a run for its money in the next election. That is to be welcomed because Howard & co. haven't faced real opposition for years. Either way Australia is a winner. But pandering to thoughts like this discredit Latham and Labor.

The farce in Taiwan demands one final look before we leave it alone. President Chen proposes an ammendment to the electoral law to allow automatic recounts if the winning margin is less than 1%. An entirely reasonable solution and one that will allow a quick recount and a rapid resolution to all the uncertainty. Without having to rely on courts. Conspiracy theories continue to be spouted over the assassination attempt, even though the Taiwan police themselves can see what a ridiculous notion it is.

Responding to KMT and PFP members' skepticism after the president was only slightly injured by the shooting, the CIB chief ruled out the possibility that a sharpshooter could have planned to hit the president without actually exposing him to mortal danger.

This from the same people who last week had a poster comparing Chen to Hitler. Regardless of their policies this kind of hyperbole has no part in any modern polity and I'm glad the KMT didn't win this election. Tactics like this show they are scum.

I would be grateful for anyone able to provide a full translation.

A short note to readers: making comments on this site remains completely free of charge.

Looking up luddite on Google returns 121,000 pages. Using the definition, assume half cover the historical group, that leaves half who are waaaay missing their target audience.

From the London Review of Books comes John Lanchester's biased but interesting article on Rupert Murdoch. Admittedly it's from the 5th February issue but well worth it for this anecdote:

He could be Dr Evil if he wanted, but he doesn't, because it would get in the way of business. The paradoxical proof of this comes in his actions in China, which are in one sense as despicable as anything he has ever done, and in another oddly comforting, since they prove as much as anything can that he is motivated not by ideology but by a simple need to keep doing business, and keep making ever bigger deals. The irony is that the events in China, which showed Murdoch finally abandoning any claim to the anti-establishment, anti-authoritarian, muckraking pose he has for many years struck at every opportunity, were prompted by one of the few openly political speeches he has ever made. New telecommunications technology, Murdoch told an audience at Banqueting House in 1993, has 'proved an unambiguous threat to totalitarian regimes everywhere'. Murdoch's speech was reported all over the world. A month later the Chinese Government banned all satellite dishes in China, inconveniently for the man who had just spent $825 million in Hong Kong to buy the satellite channel Star TV. The Chinese Government knows how to make a supplicant eat shit, and in the years to come Murdoch was to pay Deng Xiaoping's daughter a substantial advance for a biography of her dad, back out of publishing Chris Patten's book East and West, ban the BBC World Service from the Star satellite, and slag off the Dalai Lama as 'a monk in Gucci shoes', as part of his strategy of appeasement. The Chinese Government enjoyed it, too. When Murdoch finally secured a meeting with Zhu Rongji, then one of the country's Vice-Presidents, in 1998, Zhu switched from talking via the interpreter to ask Murdoch a question in English.

He had heard, Zhu said, that Murdoch had taken out US citizenship when he wanted to operate a television network in America. Would he consider taking out Chinese citizenship to further his interests in China? Murdoch was clearly taken aback. Zhu watched his reaction for a moment, then turned to his entourage and repeated his question in Chinese - to general mirth.

(Found via Melissa)

In terms of population per square foot, the mostly densely populated place in the world right now is any outlet of the Hong Kong Jockey Club. Tonight sees a drawing of Mark 6 (lottery) with a prize of HK$36 million (US$4.6 million). That combined with Hong Kong's pathological addiction to gambling means hundreds of people cram into lino-floor cash hoovering machines. You can interact with a human, or you can use any one of the ATM-style betting machines. Either way the giant sucking sound of large amounts of money continues unabated.

But you can all stop. I've got my tickets so the winning numbers are locked in. If there's no blogging tomorrow you'll know why.

In order to handle my emails I have set various rules to move messages to folders with snappy titles like "Admin", "Mar04" and "Pretend to read later". Usually this system works well. Except for the four to five times a day when the email crashes. The folders get locked and messages cannot get moved to them. This quickly makes the inbox look like a phone directory. The IT guy's response is re-assuring. He tells me that it is a common problem and they're working on a fix. At least, that's what he told me four months ago. Now he just looks and shrugs. The only solution is to completely log out of the email program and log in again. That requires saving everything that's open. It becomes a 5 minute process every time. That 20 to 25 minutes a day. It's a brilliant waste of resources. And it happens company wide. Let's say there are one hundred people just on my floor - that makes 33 1/3 man (or woman) hours a day wasted because of this friggin' email bug. That's just on one floor of one branch of my monolithic company. FIX IT! It's worth the resources to find the solution.

Email has only resulted in more of a paper pile than ever. The printer at work goes no-stop almost all day. Pieces of paper strewn across every desk in the office. Pens go missing with a strange regularity. I'd like to meet the inventor of the paperless office and find out if they actually live on Planet Earth. Or if they live on the same planet as all the other IT people that conspire to make normal working people's lives a misery*.

_{* To those IT industry readers of this site - by reading this site you automatically prove you are better than all other IT people.}

In return for handing over a king's ransom each month JC's pre-school kindly provides a quarterly progress report. This is an A4 piece of paper with various development skills listed for us to monitor her progress. In the touchy-feely education speak of the modern era, there are three categories: B (beginning to develop), D (developing) and H (Highly developed). Apparently parents of 3 year olds aren't ready for terms such as "fail" or "no chance they'll be able to do this before they are 18".

Of course JC is naturally brilliant at almost everything she does but even my parental bias can't help but notice on certain skills she is lacking. For example in JC's world the number system is 1,2,6,7,11,12, giggle. In that order. Sometimes 3 creeps in, but 6 has pride of place after 2. To say her numeracy skills are beginning to develop is fair. Her reading skills are very strong. She will often read books to PB. These sessions consist of JC making PB sit down, picking up the book, opening it and proceeding to read. However what she reads tends to have on a remote link to the actual words on the page. Instead the narrative tends to follow the pictures on every third page, with a rapid "The End" and closing of the book. I would class that as Highly developed.

I'm looking forward to the next report card:

Tying shoe laces.....B
Counting.....D
Bashing sister over head.....H
Sharing with others.....D
Nuclear physics.....D
Parallel play.....H
Telling everyone at random times they are either her friend or not her friend.....H
Developing poverty allieviation programs for Africa.....D

It's a good school.

Taiwan's close election is rapidly heading into farce. It hurts to lose, especially when the vote is so close. And even more so in such dramatic circumstances, such a day after an attempted assassination on the President. A list of the KMT's grievances doesn't provide a compelling arguement that there was widespread electoral fraud. In any election where you have 20 million voters there are going to be errors and mistakes. So long as they are small and not systematic they will, in effect, cancel each other out. That's not the problem.

The level of suspicion is high. An otherwise perfectly rational Taiwanese woman in our office is convinced the shooting on Friday was a set-up by President Chen. When I put to her that it was a hell of a risk to take even if the accusation was true, her response was that Chen is a greedy politician who will do anything for power. She felt the KMT was "robbed" and pointed to the large number of spoiled ballots despite there being a movement this time called "Millions of Invalid Votes" which explains the large amount of invalid votes cast (2.5% of the total).

A very good and rational overview of the election and its aftermath is at Asia Times. The problem is rationality and logic isn't often brought to bear in matters such as this. I hope the Taiwanese courts can avoid getting caught up in all the hysteria, otherwise the implications for Taiwan's young democracy are dire. Elections should be settled via the ballot box, no matter how imperfect, and not by judges.

Does this matter? You bet it does - do not underestimate the feeling on the Mainland about Taiwan. Any further drift towards independence (which is part of Chen's platform) will be met with the only answer the PRC knows - shows of force. Forget about North Korea; there's a much greater chance of this quickly turning into a flashpoint that drags in far more than just China and Taiwan. At the moment China is adopting a wait and see approach; that's about the only good thing to come out of the weekend's events so far.

Anything you can do, China can do better. Remind you of anything?

I've not ranted about the SCMP for several weeks. However I nearly spat my corn flakes across the living room when I read Saturday's SCMP and saw an article discussing the merits of the MMR vaccine (unlinkable, but the full article is in the Jack van der Kamp copyright free extended entry).

Essentially the article rehashes "worries" about the MMR triple vaccine. What they are relying on are old and discredited claims by Dr. Andrew Wakefield that the vaccine is dangerous. A quick Google search brings you to this page which clearly dispels the myths. I realise it is difficult for journos to fit in a quick search of the internet when writing scare-monger articles but it would certainly help their cause. Unless accuracy is irrelevant to them. Which clearly it is.

Even the article itself fails by its own measure. For example

Since the combined MMR vaccines were introduced for one-year-olds in 1990, the number of new autism cases diagnosed by the Department of Health has jumped, from 146 in 1990 to 446 in 2003.

A spokeswoman attributes this to increased awareness about autism and the opening of two new centres to deal with more cases. "It is is too remote to link the trend to MMR vaccination," she says. The department strongly recommends children are immunised, saying failure to do so leaves them unprotected against the three diseases. "Repeated independent overseas studies have shown no association between the MMR vaccine and autism," the department says...

Even the Society of the Welfare of the Autistic Person, which represents 700 families with autistic children in Hong Kong, says its members seem indifferent to the controversy.

Perhaps we should chip in for the SCMP for an internet connection so they can stop spouting such drivel.

IN JANUARY, Hong Kong mother Angela Wan May-ying did something that would cause sleepless nights for many of her counterparts in Britain. Without even considering the consequences, she took her baby daughter, Christie, to the local government clinic and held her in her arms while the nurse gave her a vaccination for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR). Afterwards, she took Christie home and carried on as normal without giving the vaccine a second thought.

If she lived in Britain, it would be a different story. Ever since 1998, when Dr Andrew Wakefield published a research paper in the medical journal The Lancet linking the triple vaccine with autism and bowel disorders in some children, the letters "MMR" have struck fear into parents of recently born babies.

But while the debate about the vaccine rages overseas, in Hong Kong MMR is just another routine injection to be ticked off on the immunisation schedule given to parents at one of their child's early visits to health clinics.

Many Hong Kong parents are unaware of the debate. "I don't know about this," says one. "I only follow the time schedule to have the injections." Others such as Dora Tsang, 31, when told of the reported risks, says she's happy to let the government decide what's safe for her 11- month-old son, who is due for his first dose next month.

Hong Kong paediatrician Anthony Ng Wing-keung says most parents he comes across are oblivious to the controversy surrounding MMR, and he only occasional gets questioned about the vaccine - mostly by expatriates.

But should Hong Kong parents be told? Since the combined MMR vaccines were introduced for one-year-olds in 1990, the number of new autism cases diagnosed by the Department of Health has jumped, from 146 in 1990 to 446 in 2003. A spokeswoman attributes this to increased awareness about autism and the opening of two new centres to deal with more cases. "It is is too remote to link the trend to MMR vaccination," she says. The department strongly recommends children are immunised, saying failure to do so leaves them unprotected against the three diseases. "Repeated independent overseas studies have shown no association between the MMR vaccine and autism," the department says.

Even the Society of the Welfare of the Autistic Person, which represents 700 families with autistic children in Hong Kong, says its members seem indifferent to the controversy.

"We heard of the controversy after a parent migrated to England and faxed the information to us," says the society's spokeswoman. "There is no big reaction from our parents as we have no evidence to link MMR to autism."

Ng, a visiting lecturer of reporting public health issues at the Journalism and Media Studies Centre of the University of Hong Kong, has completed a thesis on vaccines, including MMR, and is a strong supporter. He says Wakefield's claims are unfounded and that, even if the autism link is correct, there's no basis to suggest separate vaccinations against the three diseases are safer. But he also says parents should be better informed. The danger of not telling them, he says, is that they may get the wrong information.

In 2002, Ng hosted two presentations on the MMR controversy, but neither attracted much interest from the medical sector. "At present, those who have found out from the internet tend to be the ones who are more educated and influential to society," he says. "As they opt not to have the MMR injection, then other parents will follow. If it gets to the critical level whereby only 50 per cent of the population has immunity, then the viruses can spread and that can be very dangerous."

Fellow paediatrician Yvonne Ou is also concerned about parents opting not to have their children vaccinated. She says this happened in the late 1980s when vaccinations plummeted amid fears that the whooping cough vaccine might cause high fever and seizures leading to brain damage.

"We have since seen an epidemic of babies getting whooping cough and then brain damage," says Dr Ou. "Now, the vaccine is coming back. How many kids do I need to see who get measles or mumps or pregnant women with congenital rubella before we then go back to saying, `Oh well, we'd better do vaccines again'?"

Ou says she understands why parents with autistic children have supported claims of a link between MMR and autism. "If you have a child with problems you want an answer ... For the majority of autistic children no cause can be found, and this link is just so acceptable to parents," she says.

Alan Mercer, chairman of the Rainbow Project, which provides special schools for autistic children in Hong Kong, says the controversy has become too emotional, and informed debate is needed.

"We need to look at this subject in a more balanced and less emotional way," he says. "There is a spiral in the incidence of autism - especially in the middle spectrum of the disorder. Maybe this is because children who would previously have fallen within other categories of developmental delay are now being diagnosed as autistic.

"But this alone cannot explain the rise. A lot of people in the field think that there are new factors at play - maybe environmental or diet or vaccine-related - and this clearly merits sensible and serious scientific inquiry, and serious money should be put in to find out what's going on."

In the meantime, until proof is found one way or another, the parents are left in the middle. For those, such as British-born mother and journalist Adele Rosi, 30, who knows of the controversy, the decision to vaccinate or not presents a tough decision. Rosi is the mother of Felix, a healthy 15-month-old who is due to have the MMR vaccine.

"Felix is a very happy, healthy 15- month-old, and I don't want anything to interfere with or change that. If I felt that a decision I had made jeopardised that well-being I would never forgive myself," says Rosi. "I worry that, several years down the line, they will confirm that MMR causes autism.

"I am completely confused now as to what to do, and don't feel I have concrete information either way."

Parents who are unaware of the controversy will go on none the wiser, taking their children to the government clinics and having them vaccinated. Angela Wan May-ying says that, now she has been told of the alleged risks, she is afraid. But she says she would have preferred someone at the government clinic to have told her. She thinks mothers should be offered the option of single doses.

"I was scared when I found out," she says. "But if I knew beforehand, I would have thought twice or try to find more information from the internet before deciding whether to give [my daughter] the injection," she says.

You know those big signs at many Asian airports saying "Trafficking drugs carries the death penalty" and the like? That's because trafficking drugs in those countries carries the death penalty. I'm no fan of the death penalty myself but the rules are extremely clear. The Australian Government will go through the motions of asking for clemency but Singapore has "a history of ignoring leniency please from abroad." Which is fair enough. Especially as this man has admitted his guilt and appears to have no legitimate extenuating circumstances.

Just a reminder not to ignore those signs next time. If there is one.

On a very pleasant Saturday afternoon this weekend just passed the kids were having a run in the playground. The usual fare: JC was busy trying to get her hair caught in one of those spinning death trap things, while PB was conducting experiments with gravity and her body. The regular afternoon bonhomie was rudely interrupted by a loud screech of radio static. A girl of twelve took the walkie-talkie from her pocket and proceeded to tell her father that should be home soon.

Several things struck me about this. In the not that long-ago time when I was young, walkie-talkies (working or not) were important elements of the international fantasy spy game that all kids play. How else could you contact International HQ to say you had caught one of the despised enemy and were busy looking on the other side of the park for the others? They often came in handy as tools for subduing said enemy if it came to it too. And like all kids our parents had an extremely convenient child retrieval system: their voices. A bellowed "Dinner time" would quickly see children running from all ends of the park to our homes. It wasn't much, but it worked.

Now it seems walkie-talkies have moved on. Now their a convenient way for parents to keep in touch with their kids. Which was formerly done by mobile phones. And which before that was done in the old fashioned manner of voice or the even more old fashioned manner of "Be home by 6pm or die." There's a lot to be said for the old fashioned way of doing things. Not using a walkie-talkie to help save the world from evil seems like a complete waste of technology. What's even more disturbing are the two sets of Barbie walkie-talkies JC received for her 3rd birthday.

I never knew there was an international Barbie HQ.

In the absence of information conspiracy theories proliferate. It is a golden rule of politics. Add in a close election and you've got the makings of the latest conspiracy theory. Actually, that should read theories, because no-one's quite sure what theory they're backing. Was it the Commies? Was it President Chen himself? Was it the French?

This leads me to a more serious point. The world is in fear of terrorism, regardless of your standpoint on the issue. Al-Queda & company clearly are not stopping until they achieve their aims, however unrealistic they may be. Given they have justified the Madrid bombing partially on what happened more than 500 years ago, this is not a battle of common sense.

In all of this there is one large country that remains conspicuously absent from these Islamists rantings. China. China's repression of all religions is well documented and Islam is no exception, particularly in China's western regions. But I've not seen Osama and crew mention or threaten China at all. If this is a battle between the "Western crusaders" and these fanatics then why exclude China, a nation that has done its fair share of repressing and oppressing? If it's a battle of ideology then surely Communism is just as anathema to these people as liberal democracy?

Don't get me wrong. I'm not advocating these terrorists should focus on China. But it is interesting they deliberately avoid tackling China. Is it because they fear China would not suffer the same moral qualms as the West? Certainly the war on terror would take on a different complexion with China's involvement. No doubt it is a deliberate tactic on the part of Islamic fanatics to pick their battles carefully. It is not an excuse for China to then sit out the war on terror.

AFP is reporting Sheikh Hussein, head of Hamas, has been killed in Gaza City today. If so, this is big. Here's the report from Reteurs.

As always LGF is on top of things - more there.

Hong Kong Island has exactly one highway. Everything else is at best two lanes each way and at worse barely one each way. Despite what many think the Island is not just a concrete jungle. In fact almost half the Island is taken by parkland. That sometimes means that major roads suffer blocks. And such blockages in Hong Kong are unique.

Often it is because in an effort to hold back nature every hillside in the entire city is concreted to prevent landslides. That's right - every hillside. Each hillside has a registration number and drainage plans. If this seems strange to you then you don't understand Hong Kong. Of course the easiest solution is to not build in areas prone to landslides or to do works that mitigate the landslide risks. But you can't get in the way of real estate in this city. And so the hillsides become concrete.

So the family are driving out to Shek O beach yesterday and we encounter a traffic jam. Because the roads are often windy the courtesy is to put one's hazard lights on to alert those behind you that you are stopping. Apparently brake lights don't do the job. Then everyone proceeds to sit there wondering what is going on up ahead. After a few minutes the impatient start doing 43-point turns to turn back and go another way. Despite there being no other way without circumnavigating the entire island. Then the golden rule of HK traffic applies: once three people do these U-turns, traffic begins moving again.

Inevitably at the road block the scene is the same. There is a woman swaddled head to toe in clothing, scarves, blankets and whatnot. This happens in the dead of winter or the height of summer. This woman has the important job of switching the signs that say stop or go. Then there's the assorted municipal workers standing around doing not much. A universal phenomena. As the traffic from one side meanders past the traffic on the other side is at a halt, staring enviously at those lucky people who have made it through.

But these people don't stay there all day and night. They work a normal shift and then go home. So what happens to the traffic? Simply they follow the traffic light that controls the flow instead. Which makes one wonder why they need those swaddled women inhaling noxious fumes for hours on end when the traffic lights work just fine?

Another make work scheme courtesy of the HK Government.

Taiwan puts on an election with everything. An assassination attempt, a razor-thin victory for the incumbent, protests demanding a recount. It seems democracy makes for interesting times. Following the example set in 2000 by the Americans the result will be decided by the courts instead of the people but no-one said democracy was perfect. In fact often is a messy compromise as recent events in South Korea have also shown.

Let's consider the alternative. China's recent NPC (Parliament) session went by without a murmur of protest. Wanna know why? From the SCMP:

One day after being released from a forced "vacation" during the NPC session, veteran petitioner Guan Zengli and more than 100 colleagues protested against corruption outside the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection's office last Wednesday.
As soon as the police relaxed their iron grip on the capital after the closing ceremony of the National People's Congress on March 14, protesters flocked to sites such as the commission, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Supreme People's Court and the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Outside the commission's office, Mr Guan met many other petitioners who were forced to take a two-week "holiday" in farmhouses or resorts on the capital's outskirts. When asked if security measures for this year's NPC were stricter under new Beijing Mayor Wang Qishan, Mr Guan said: "They were more sophisticated this year. They told me they were taking me to a rural area for a break. But I was not given a choice, even though I really did not want to go."

While Mrs M watches the world's worst reality TV show I find myself puzzled. How can it be that some men can be so singularly stupid about such obvious things?

Over the last few months I have heard of several men who have been caught having affairs. Nothing unusual about that. However every single one of them has been discovered through their mobile phones. A text message undeleted; a called dialled to an unknown number. Women don't become stupid when they become wives. Quite the opposite. However some men seem to actually drop IQs once the wedding ring slips onto their finger.

I am a faithful man. But really if any of these men had put in two seconds thought they would have availed themselves of one of two simple solutions. Either wipe your messages and dialled numbers when you get home, or have a seperate phone/SIM card. Not difficult and not expensive. While I do not condone such affairs it seems so immensely stupid to be discovered this way.

Unless they want to get caught.

The weekend approaches. I've done more tinkering with the sidebar to sort out the various links. There's a lot there. So as a service I'm going to pick out some favourites from the last few days from some of the blogs I read regularly. I recommend them all.

The always thoughtful Andres Gentry talks about small ideas.
Asian Labour News is a must read for anyone interested in real working conditions in this region, rather than the hype. Stephen filters various articles on the subject.
See how a paratrooper celebrates St. Pat's day.
Adam and I have agreed to disagree this week on France's naval exercises with China.
Da Goddess is moving.
Iowahawk breaks the latest news in Rio Bravo.
Conrad brings us news on life, if that's what it can be called, in North Korea.
Shaky combines his two loves: Photoshop and Red Bull.
Tim Blair points out another piece of ABC hypocrisy.
We knew it. Pixy is a super-hero too.
Helen adapts to Life Number 6 in the Old Dart.
Jim introduces the world to Tiffani.

There are plenty more good blogs over there. Do yourself a favour - once you've read every entry I've ever written, go and check some of them out, too.

Just tell 'em Simon sent you!

Let me be the first to say that there is inevitably going to be some kind of French connection to this attack on Taiwan's President just prior to the weekend election. The Chinese connection is even more obvious. Think about it. Who invented fireworks. That's right. China. Who has a history of interfering in Taiwan's elections. That's right. China.

But we all know the French are somehow involved too. In protest I am going to consume as many French products as possible this weekend to try and prevent the French themselves from enjoying them. Selfless, I know.

I'm a fan of the TV show CSI. Every week within 47 minutes a horrendous crime or two is solved in Las Vegas thanks to these geeks. As an aside hasn't everyone in Vegas worked out that staying their is likely to get you killed in a bizarre fashion? But I digress. There's always the requisite gore and pseudo-scientific riff backed by an appropriately funky music track. There's not a criminal these guys can't nail.

I am also very partial to The Sopranos. One of the best written and acted shows on TV it follows the life and times of a Capoin the New Jersey Mafia. These guys literally get away with murder as well as the usual activities associated with the "waste management business".

So why not put one up against the other? It's like when you get those comic-book crossovers and Spider-Man teams up with Batman to fight off some menace. It's really not clear to me who could win such a contest. The Mob are experts but so are the CSI crew, even if they import their Miami cousins. Any thoughts?

UPDATE: My brother Paul, who by a cruel twist of IT department fate is now blocked from seeing this website* has made this suggestion: "The Sopranos meets Friends, in which a wise crack by one of the Friends turns out to deeply offend Tony Soprano, who in turn kills each of the friends, thus ending that series and making the world a better place. Follow up sequels could include Queer Eye for the Soprano Guy and ER meets the Sopranos in which the bodies of the Queer Eye guys are sent to the hospital and are completely made over."

_{*any ideas how he can get it via PDA much appreciated}

Hong Kong's richest man, Li Ka-Shing, has shown himself to be a great magician. Firstly he sells whatever he can to help pay for his big gamble on 3G phones. It cost him HK$9.7 billion this year (that's US$1.25 billion) with more losses to come. Sounds like a good bet so far. But he still needs something to push that news off the front page. So why not be like a Hearst and make news yourself? Just latch on to the latest topic and throw in your 2 cents worth, even if it is in contrast to what you said last year.

Billionaire Li Ka-shing has rejected suggestions for universal suffrage in 2007-2008, saying that political reform should be gradual. Li, speaking to reporters at Hutchison Whampoa's results briefing yesterday, said he believes most Hong Kong people are patriotic but warned against using the issue of patriotism to build a platform for election gain.

``Hong Kong can't withstand any major shock and can't handle big volatilities, political reform must be step-by-step,'' Li said. ``Step-by-step doesn't mean it's 2007-08.''

"Half a million people marched with good order and without causing any problems. Hong Kong should be very proud.

The three card shuffle. Oldest one in the book.

Yesterday's Bangkok Post provided proof (required registration or username simonworld, password simonworld) that Thailand is getting serious about infidelity:

"Somsak pans implanting of chips in cocks."

Good job he's opposed to it.

Please don't send me an email an hour before quitting time slightly modifying a complex financial structure that requires seven interlinked spreadsheets to be solved iteratively on a day when one co-worker is in London and we've been annoyed to death by various other centres (you know who you are, Tokyo and Mumbai), especially when the said seven spreadsheets are in Excel and thus vulnerable to crashing at random inopportune moments, and even more especially when you preface your email with "I need this urgently for tomorrow morning's meeting where we finalise legal terms." The words 'urgent' and 'finalise legal terms' are actually antonyms; it's like comparing milliseconds with eons. And when you ring a few minutes later to ask me to check my email because you need it tonight, even though your meeting is not until 10am tomorrow and you cannot provide a reasonable reason why it must be had by tonight instead, be preapred for the answer.

No, you can't have it.

This from today's SMH is a disgrace. Effectively Australia is washing its hands of Russian Jewish refugees, arguing they have a right to citizenship in Israel instead. It doesn't matter if they don't want to live in Israel (and sometimes you can understand why). Under the appropriate treaty the Federal Court has ruled Jewish refugees are entitled to "effective protection" because of Israel's Law of Return. It doesn't matter than, as Justice Ronald Sackville points out:

that Syria permitted all nationals of Arab states to enter without visas, with the exception of Iraqis and Somalis. "It would presumably follow that Australia owes no protection obligation to any refugee from an Arab country, except possibly Iraqis and Somalis," he said.

Staggering and heartbreaking.

Oops.

Last night I scanned the program to see what diamonds in the rough may be on offer in the vast wasteland that is Hong Kong TV. My eye caught "The Drew Carey Show" - yes, that would nicely pass 30 minutes of time with a comic genius who can actually make you laugh without the need for a laugh-track. It was a few minutes early, so I caught the end of the lamentable American Idol. What's funny about this show is it is the music industry demonstrating to the world how artificial and manufactured "stars" are. And it rates through the roof too! It's the perfect example of convergence - the idea that Hydra-like entertainment companies can screw dollars every which way.

So I'm watching this show and it was a "let's laugh at the hacks who audition despite having no talent" episode. It's like Funniest Home Videos in that people watch to enjoy others making fools of themselves - schadenfreude. And funniest of all is the most popular person in this show is a Hong Konger called William Hung. Dubbed "Hong Kong Ricky Martin" he is described as an "earnest, tone-deaf engineering student who gained instant fame and an unlikely record deal by mangling Ricky Martin's "She Bangs" in the open audition." Even the guy behind the thing, Simon Cowell, isn't happy. "When you celebrate awfulness it puts you in a slightly uncomfortable position," said the British record executive. Mrs M and I watched in horror as this poor shmo proceeded to embarrass himself through a 5 minute interview and two songs. If everyone's laughing and you're not, it means they're laughing at you.

Then I realised it was Wednesday, not Tuesday. No Drew Carey and 37 minutes of my life I can never get back. Bastards.

Almost worse than spam is the daily round of emails from friends proclaiming "Read this" or something similar. Sure enough this morning the following (in disturbingly large font) was sitting in the inbox (I've removed the inordinate amount of lines):

One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books. I thought to myself, "Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd."

I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on. As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt.

His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him. He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes. My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him and as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, "Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives." He looked at me and said, "Hey thanks!" There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived. As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before. He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books.

He turned out to be a pretty cool kid.

I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends. He said yes. We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him. Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, "Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday! " He just laughed and handed me half the books.

Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends. When we were seniors, we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown, and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor, and I was going for business on a football scholarship. Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd.

He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak. Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous. Today was one of those days.

I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, "Hey, big guy, you'll be great!" He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. "Thanks," he said.

As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began. "Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach...but mostly your friends... I am here to tell all of you that being a
friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story."

I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told the story of the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home. He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile. "Thankfully, I was saved. My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable." I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment.

I saw his Mom and dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize it's depth. Never underestimate the power of your actions. With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse.

Tom's reply to the group email:

I think we've all probably caused a suicide or two in our life.

JC awoke this morning to announce she had yet another dream about Snow White and bunnies. It's tough being 3, let me tell you. That's the third time in a week she's had that dream. As the slowly creeping humidity steams up Hong Kong I helped get JC ready for school. She goes to Mcdonalds Pre-School, and we're hoping she can get into Marlboro Primary next year. From the SCMP:

Schools in Beijing can now officially be named after the businesses that sponsor them.
An education official said authorities had bowed to reality in making the decision.

The change, announced by the Beijing Municipal Commission of Education this month and applicable to primary and middle schools, has caused concern that schools may be named after "undesirable" firms...

The commission did not stipulate restrictions on what kind of companies could sponsor a school. A senior official in the city planning office admitted the commission had not thought of putting any conditions on the deal.

"So far, there aren't any western fast food companies or cigarette manufacturers that have applied to invest in schools," he said.

In fact it could also be an answer to Western problems with declining school attendence. Usually the pornography industry is a leader in new forms of marketing. I can almost guarantee a leap in attendence should a school be renamed "Candy's XXX Swedish Girls Public School". Biology classes would be packed out. The Drama classes would take on a whole new meaning. They'd attract some of the best teachers in the industry. It is the solution to schooling's woes.

Giles makes an apt comment on the meaning of Spain's bombings for Hong Kong. Being on blogsplat meants the link in tenuous, so I reproduce it in full:

Without getting into a turgid debate on which way the Spaniards should have voted, clearly the weekend's result in Spain, and the promise from the Prime Minister-elect to withdraw their troops from Iraq could easily make terrorists think they can now control elections with strategic bombing. Fortunately here in HK we don't have to worry about the tedium of elections, and judging by the rhetoric from Beijing are unlikely to ever have to. This should mean we are unlikely to be attacked.

Perhaps the pro-Beijing camp should use this as an argument against universal suffrage - it certainly makes more sense than the rubbish they've come out with so far.

The Singaporean Government's efforts to make the place the Beirut of Asia continues apace:

Singapore is set to partially lift its famous ban on chewing gum this week...Starting Thursday, the tightly controlled city-state will allow the sale of Nicorette -- a nicotine gum for smokers trying to quit.

What did Singapore's people do to deserve such enlightened governance?

Thanks to Shaky found this extremely amusing guide to Phuket (which would have come in handy a month ago, when I was actually there). And of course the obligatory blog. Onto the 'Look at' roll with you.

Taiwan's President wins the stating the bleeding obvious award with this statement:

Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian lashed out at China and France, saying their first joint naval exercises just days before the island's presidential election were aimed at influencing the outcome of the cliff-hanger vote.

Beijing has dismissed suggestions of a link between the timing of the unprecedented joint exercises -- launched on Tuesday about 1,250 km (780 miles) from Taiwan's northernmost point -- and the presidential election on Saturday. [They would say that, wouldn't they - Ed.]

Chen described Paris as "evil hearted" for siding with the island's arch-foe in exchange for its own commercial interests

Let's have a look at Chinese public opinion on the Taiwan issue. From Reuters

Some 43 percent of mainland Chinese think Taiwan should be reclaimed by force, an independent mainland polling agency said on Tuesday in a survey just days before a presidential election on the self-governed island. About 55 percent of respondents to the telephone and Internet poll by the Social Survey Institute of China said they believed Taiwan should be brought back to the fold peacefully, the poll showed...If Taiwan declares independence, 32.6 percent of respondents said they would blame it on the decisions of the Communist Party's elite Central Committee, while 57.5 percent said the Taiwan authorities would be at fault.

Most Chinese polled said they thought Nationalist challenger Lien Chan would beat independence-leaning President Chen Shui-bian on Saturday. Only 10.7 percent said Chen they thought would win, while 53.5 percent thought Lien would emerge the victor.

However, only 6.5 percent of respondents thought Taiwan independence would become a reality if the current situation of "no war, no peace" continued, the poll showed.

Or that the propaganda machine is working well in China.

While many in the West get their knickers in a twist over Iraq, the people most directly affected seem happier with things. Yet strangely they don't feel happy about those who actually liberated them.

A year after U.S. and British troops invaded Iraq to overthrow Saddam Hussein, the majority of Iraqis say life is better than it was under the former dictator, according to results of an extensive poll released Tuesday. But many have little faith in occupying troops and the U.S.-led administration -- and nearly one in five say attacks on foreign soldiers in Iraq are justified.

Asked whether their lives were better now than in the spring of 2003, nearly six in ten Iraqis said the situation was somewhat better or much better than it was, according to the survey of 2,500 people conducted for a group of broadcasting organizations by Oxford Research International...

Iraqis often complain about a lack of security, the scarcity of jobs and their fears for the future, but the survey suggests that despite this, most feel life has improved.

Asked how things were going in their lives these days, seven in 10 said the situation was very good or quite good, and only 15 percent said things were very bad. Looking ahead, 71 percent said they expected conditions in their lives to be much better or somewhat better a year from now...

While half of those questioned believe the invasion was the right thing to do, compared with 39 percent who said it was wrong, more than four in 10 said they had no confidence whatsoever in U.S. and British occupation troops, and 51 percent oppose the presence of coalition forces in Iraq.

Who would have thought it?

The SCMP reports

An American teacher wanted on child sex charges and on the run from the FBI has been arrested by Hong Kong authorities and extradited to face trial. He was detained trying to cross the border into the mainland.

It seems that yet again Afghanistan is becoming the forgotten war as Iraq and other events dominate. But it's always important to know what the enemy is up to*.

_{* No animals were harmed in this post. There's one slightly confused donkey, but that's all.}

Only in Hong Kong would your barber be wearing a genuine Rolex.

WTF is the deal with men wearing diamond rings? I've now seen two men in the last three days wearing diamond rings. Did I miss something? Was I meant to get one for February 29th? Call me a traditionalist on this one but diamonds are a girl's best friend, according to someone who should know. Full marks to the diamond industry for realising they can double their potential market. Didn't take them long.

Thanks to Charles for showing me this:

O Jonny the power of your boot
And the accurate heart-stopping route
Of your goal as it ghosts
Through Australian posts
Is a triumph we gladly salute.

A Song For Jonny

O Jonny the power of your boot
And the accurate heart-stopping route
Of your goal as it ghosts
Through Australian posts
Is a triumph we gladly salute.

O Martin the height of your leap
And the gritty possession you keep
Of the slippery ball
In the ruck and the maul
Is enough to make patriots weep.

O Jason the speed of your feet
And their side-stepping hop- scotching beat
As you touch down and score
While the terraces roar
Is the thing that makes chariots sweet.

O forwards and backs you have all
Shown us wonderful ways to walk tall
And together with Clive
You will help us survive
Our losses with other-shaped balls.

Following up on yesterday's news that France and China will conduct joint naval exercises to Taiwan's north in the week prior to Taiwan's election comes more from those funsters at Xinhau.

The joint maritime exercises between China and France scheduled for Tuesday will be the most comprehensive military exercises between China and foreign countries so far, the captain of a Chinese warship said here Monday.

Ju Xinchun, 39, said the French navy, founded in the 17th century, had a long history and strong combat effectiveness. "The French navy is experienced and we are eager to learn from them their experience in coordination skills in joint military exercises," said Ju.

"We have had only four days for detailed consultations on preparation work since their arrival," said Ju.

The Chinese navy's advanced equipment and professionalism is impressive, says a French officer aboard a visiting frigate on Monday.

(Commander) Allain took pride in visiting China, saying she was impressed by seeing that the Chinese naval officers were highly devoted to study and had a good command of English.

But stand back and behold the mighty French frigates engaged in this political exercise.

France's rust buckets frigates in China

Today the internet is slow in the office. The only possible reason is because it is a slow day and everyone is trying to use the damn thing at the same time. It also leads to the inevitable emails titled "Try this", "Interesting" or "Games".

Courtesy of Emily comes this one which uses numerology to help you pass 5 minutes you would otherwise use to stare out the window. I've enclosed my results in the extended entry in the hope that one day I'll be bothered reading the full thing.

That said I am not happy the computer is on first names basis with me. Sure I call it various (unpublishable) names, but this is a level of familiarity better suited to a pimply waiter in an American restaurant than an inanimate electronic device.

Ki System

Natal Year number: 9
A cheerful soul, Simon is an attractive individual whose humour and charm can inspire others to follow his ideas. Although his active brain can generate many bright ideas, he cannot be guaranteed to finish one idea before starting on the next. Although money tends to burn a hole in his pocket, Simon will always maintain the impression that all is well.

Natal Month number: 2
Compassionate and supportive of others, Simon is something of a perfectionist who will find it hard to delegate even routine tasks. Simon is hard-working and good with details, but to get the best out of him, Simon needs to know that in the end his efforts will be properly rewarded and acknowledged.

Natal House number: 3
With a high energy level, and ambitions to match, Simon will show early promise. Unless his tendency to expel this energy on too many projects can be overcome, a promising beginning may soon evaporate, giving way to anger and frustration. Simon is someone who enjoys a good time with an active social life, and needs the direction of more sober minds.

Comments based on Western Grid

1

Although Simon may be reasonably talkative in public, he finds it difficult to express personal feelings to those closest to him. In employment terms, this inhibition is of little consequence.

3

With a creative mind and a good memory, Simon is honest, straightforward and optimistic. He will achieve his aims. He is capable of creative thought, and will appreciate art and music. He also enjoys an excellent memory - a significant advantage in any employment.

5

Well-balanced, with an understanding and compassionate nature, Simon is a natural leader who can inspire others. But he needs a certain amount of freedom at work and at home. With a compassionate and caring nature, and with the ability to get on well with others, Simon will be a strong member of any team and will provide solid inspiration and support to his colleagues.

7

Simon will find life's lessons hard to learn. He will suffer from loss (of possessions or those he loves) before questioning the cause of that loss. It is likely that Simon will develop a faith of some sort, and although it need not necessarily be a religious faith, it will nevertheless be something that he holds onto against all the evidence. Potential employers need to find out what that faith entails.

8

Good with details and with a methodical approach, Simon nevertheless is someone who enjoys constant new challenges to maintain his interest. He is a methodical individual with attention to detail, but is inclined to leave tasks unfinished if his active mind alights on something of greater interest. Routine tasks that fail to challenge his intellect are at greatest risk, so Simon needs a job that offers variety.

9

Ambitious to improve his lot, Simon will constantly push forward to achieve something in his life, yet this ambition will be balanced by humanitarian ideals that will lead him to support causes that may demand self-sacrifice.
[The Arrow of Compassion: the numbers 3, 5 and 7] Over time Simon will develop a strong faith and a compassionate view of humanity. It is quite likely that he will enjoy music, or pursue a musical career. There is a mystical quality to Simon that may lead him to develop a powerful faith in some aspect of life that will sustain him as he grows older.
[The Arrow of Activity: the numbers 7, 8 and 9] Enjoying the outdoors, Simon is someone who will perform best by being busy. He dislikes confined spaces, and needs both physical and mental exercise. A good walk in fresh air is an intellectual catalyst like no other to Simon, whose need to be constantly occupied is an asset to any employer.
[The Arrow of Determination: the numbers 1, 5 and 9] Determined and persistent, Simon has the patience to wait until he has achieved his goal. He enjoys a progressive and enterpreneurial approach, and as such, will be an asset to any employer. If the number 4 (in the Western Grid) is missing, he will be inclined to lose his temper on occasions.

Comments based on Chinese Grid

1

Simon will make some money and enjoy a reasonable standard of living.

3

Unless Simon also has in the Chinese version either the numbers 5 and 7, or the numbers 4 and 8, he will be hypersensitive and prone to stress-related problems.

4

Intelligent and logical, Simon is not someone who acts rashly on the spur of the moment.

6

Simon is family-orientated, and needs a pleasant working environment as well as a comfortable home.

7

If the numbers 3 and 5 in the Chinese version are missing, Simon is something of a perfectionist who seeks to achieve detailed accuracy, and has a natural instinct to unearth the truth. If the Chinese Grid also contains the numbers 3 and 5, he will be attracted to work in a spiritual or humanitarian field.

9

Although Simon is ambitious, his ambition is tempered with humanitarian ideals.
[The Arrow of Frustration: Lacking the numbers 2, 5 and 8] Simon will be frustrated by events over which he seems to have little or no control. Failure can be avoided if he thinks carefully before acting.

The Yuen Long crocodile is so last year.

Now it's time for the Shing Mun tiger. It seems like Tourism HK have hit upon a winning promotion here - wild animals lure the Mainlanders. Although the South China Tiger hasn't been seen in HK since 1949, some postulate they can be seen of an evening in certain Wan Chai bars.

As if Hong Kong doesn't have enough trouble with fake products already, we now have a couple of Mainland "guardians" (read final arbiters) of the Basic Law telling us to beware the latest imitation: fake democracy. From the SCMP:

They also warned Hong Kong people to beware of ambitious politicians who fought for power under the guise of democracy...Xu Chongde, one of the so-called "four guardians" of the Basic Law, warned Hong Kong people to distinguish fake democracy from real democracy.

"Democracy is a very moving word. But we definitely have to define what real democracy is and what fake democracy is. We definitely have to have a democracy which would safeguard Hong Kong's prosperity and stability, but not ... a kind of democracy which betrays the national interest."

The Basic Law should be understood in its entirety not just by its words, a leading mainland legal expert said yesterday.
Principles such as patriotism and the executive-led government were contained in the spirit of the mini-constitution, even though they were not overtly stated, the expert said..."We have to understand the Basic Law in words, but also have to understand it in its spirit, essence and legislative intention ... We have to understand it in entirety, not only reading on the face of its words," Professor Xiao [a Basic Law drafter] said...Professor Xiao also said provisions restraining the legislature from tabling motions that affect public expenditure and government policies implied that the principle of executive-led government should remain dominant in the political system.

Xu Chongde, another Basic Law drafter and law professor of People's University, urged Hong Kong people to distinguish between real and fake democracies. He said democracy should not be equated with universal suffrage and that such a demand came only from a part of the population.

Shao Tianren, another Basic Law drafter and legal adviser to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said historical factors and Hong Kong's present situation had to be taken into consideration when interpreting the Basic Law, otherwise it would undermine social stability. Mr Shao said Hong Kong did not have a tradition of democracy and it could not blindly follow the mould of western democracy.

The principles they divine are simple. Firstly the right kind of government for Hong Kong is executive-led. Forget about a balance of powers between the legislature, judiciary and executive. It's the Chief Exec and that's it. Given how badly it has gone since 1997 it may be time for a re-assessment on that score. If the executive has no popular mandate they spend their time worrying about their legitimacy. Rightly, as it turns out. The killer quote is democracy should not be equated with universal suffrage. Which is of course entirely correct. It also included rule of law, freedom of press and expression and a respect for property and human rights. But I don't know of any example of a democracy that doesn't include universal suffrage as a key element. But that's so "Western" of me. China's different. It doesn't have a "tradition of democracy". That's the perfect reason why they shouldn't start now.

Welcome to political discourse, Hong Kong style. We report, China decides.

Following up from my previous post on the woman who refused a C-section that would have saved one of her babies' lives, there comes more from The Smoking Gun. There's been some lively debate on this one and many are rushing to this woman's defence, but on the face of it there remains a good case that she was culpably responsible for the death of the baby.

Spain's election. The Socialists won. This has led to heated comment from various members of the blogosphere. There's a real sense of anger and disappointment from many of the sites I read regularly and respect and indeed usually agree with. And that itself is disappointing.

The outpouring from these sites supposes two things:

1. The Spanish electorate have been cowed into submission by the bombings.
2. These writers know better than the electorate itself.

Spain is a big and diverse country. The ruling Popular Party was by no means perfect. Like many countries there are local and regional issues as well as nation-wide differences. However when something as drastic as the events of last week occur it is going to profoundly affect people. Enough to change some voters' minds. But the democratic system means the majority speak via a ballot box and that result stands, respected by all. Most of the people commenting have assumed that the terrorism issue became the only one that mattered. They have no way to back that up. Like most elections, even when rocked by such an event of magnitude so close to voting day, hinge on a multitude of issues. Voters weigh up decisions and cast their ballots accordingly. Perhaps the Socialists would have won even without the bombing. We can never know. It is incumbent upon the rest of us to respect this result. You may not like what France does either but it clearly is a Government elected by its populace and doing what it thinks is best for the country on that basis. The same applies to Spain. They have made their decision. It is their decision to make. The rest of the world can be disappointed, outraged, overjoyed or not give a rat's arse, but it is only a matter for the people of Spain. The electorate know what they are doing - they are exercising their right to decide. It is, after all, their country.

The second supposition is even more apparent. The disappointment with the Spanish result is one thing. But saying it is a loss in the war on terror is a massive assumption not backed by the facts. There is never one reason why an electorate votes for (or against) a particular party. Again the bombing was a large factor, but it was not the only one. The war on terror is not over. The withdrawal of Spanish troops from Iraq would have happened if the Socialists had won, regardless of last week's bomb. It was part of their platform. It is rather an electorate making its decision. The rest of us need to stand by and respect that. Lecturing the Spanish on their "folly" is in itself a mistake because it is attacking the very democratic norms the war on terror is trying to defend.

I am disappointed that the Spanish chose the Socialists. But to be honest, like most people, I don't know enough about Spain to know more about which party was better for Spain. It is far too simplistic to divide parties by pro or anti war on terror and leave it at that. Part of being a responsible voter is to investigate what each party stands for and make decisions based on that. While I do not think that most of Spain did that, I imagine that the average Spanish voter would know far more about each party than I (or others commenting from outside Spain) ever would. I reserve the right to disagree with whatever the Spanish Government now does, just like I do about various other Governments. But I cannot tell the Spanish people they've made the wrong decision. Because it's their decision to make.

That's the thing with democracy: it sometimes gives results you completely oppose. But it gives you an outlet to disagree at the same time. That's worth defending. It's up to each country (at least the Western democratic ones) to decide how to defend it themselves, and then work together to form an effective alliance against the forces against us.

China in particular thrives on symbols as a means to a political ends. But what is France thinking when it comes to this?

China and France will hold rare joint naval exercises off the mainland's eastern coast on Tuesday, just four days before Beijing's rival, Taiwan, holds presidential elections. China's official Xinhua news agency made no link between the exercises off Qingdao -- about 780 miles from Taiwan's northernmost point -- and the election.

But the show of military strength and solidarity signalled China's desire to isolate the self-governing island before the vote and its first-ever referendum, which Beijing views as a provocative step toward independence.

That's why I imagine July 1st is going to be big again in Hong Kong this year. From the SCMP:

The head of the Catholic Church in Hong Kong says Catholics in the city should take part in a demonstration planned for July 1 to seek a speedy move towards the introduction of full democracy.

Amid the heated debate on patriotism and constitutional reform, Bishop Joseph Zen Ze-kiun said all members of the church, together with all Hong Kong's people, were patriotic and loved the city.

Note to self: next trip to China needs to include a visit to the Great Wall (if I can see it) and then on to Shaoguan in Guandong. Just look at that statue at the front. China's tourism people know their stuff.

Adam and CDN report on China's new-found "respect for human rights" by banning various blog and news services. Progress already.

The 10 day meeting of China's parliament has come to a successful end.

China ended its annual session of parliament Sunday, with the rubber-stamp congress keeping intact its record of never opposing a government proposal or document for 50 straight years.

The 10-day meeting concluded with 99 percent of the delegates' votes in favour of 13 amendments to China's constitution, some of them landmark changes in the country's socialist system...

Also endorsed, but with a more lukewarm approval rating, was the work over the past year of the country's courts and prosecutors, which lack independence and are plagued by corruption.

In a clear sign that retired president Jiang Zemin still retains considerable power and influence, he stuffed his red envelope into the ballot box ahead of President Hu Jintao in a carefully orchestrated ceremony for the television cameras.

As head of the Central Military Commission, the 77-year-old is inferior in rank and should not be voting ahead of a sitting president.

Of course Malaysia knows how to run an election. What the CCP don't seem to realise is faking democracy is an Asian tradition.

We were swimming yesterday and I took PB, all of 19 months old, into the mens for a shower to wash the chlorine that had caked on. Once I dried her off she happily ran around naked for a while in the mens. Age 19 months, that's OK. Age 19, that's not OK (if it's my daughter). So clearly there's a line to be drawn - at what age does it come unacceptable for opposite sexes to run around naked in change rooms?

_{And at what age does it become acceptable again?}

The weekend brought with it the first indicator of Spring in Hong Kong: thick fog. Where we live visibility was down to a few metres at best, and that was just in the apartment. Couldn't see anything outside at all. Which was just as well given it was raining. Which meant Saturday consisted of repeated trips to the indoor kids playroom, which is mankind's best way to give yourself a headache. Confine 20 kids of varying ages into two rooms with various means of destruction masquerading as toys and a relaxing time it isn't. We recovered with a light evening of Mystic River (good acting but a plot that lacked sense in several key areas, like the middle and end) and Dan Ryan's (motto: "We making frying fun").

Sunday was better. The fog lifted and a full day of inactivity was planned. And so it was to be. In a stroke of genius we avoided the indoor playroom by instead inviting several families with kdis to our place. We are still trying to find the floor beneath the layers of Barbie, cars and blocks.

The real highlight was PB. The humidity has turned her curls into tight ringlets, making her look even more angelic. She also uttered her first complete sentence on Saturday: "Mummy eat apple". Despite it being a pear, the borken verb and incorrect tense, the basics are there. We were lucky she uttered the phrase at all, given she was also eating a pear at the time. But it counts. Yes, another genius in the making.

"Hello Kitty" hand-knitted jumpers and matching bright pink pants do not constitute appropriate business attire.

What are you all trying to tell me? There will be a boy* one day in my household, even if Ubul turns out to be a girl. Mark my words.

_{* OK, another boy after me. Let's not get into immaturity jokes here.}

Lest you think the Japan-USA alliance is under strain, I've come across a picture of George W. and Japanese PM Koizumi after a recent meeting.

George W. Bush and Junichiro Koizumi emerge after a lunchtime meeting.

I don't often set homework, but anyone interested in China at all needs to read this. One of the doctors responsible for finding China's SARS cover-up has now asked the CCP to re-assess its views on Tiananmen Square. This is big - this man is high profile so the way the CCP deal with it will be watch with interest.

Found via Adam

While you're at it, have a look at how people try and get around China's Great Firewall.

Oops. Some people shouldn't lose their phones.

And some people need to get better advice on what to do with their money.

It is inevitable that modern society and its pressures to "look good" will be blamed for this ugly incident. A woman refused a Caesarean section to save her twins due to cosmetic considerations. One was born stillborn. That is sick and she deserves the full punishment the law can give her. Once she lawyer's up she will no doubt try and blame society and the drive to remain beautiful, to remain forever young. The sad truth is she only has her own vanity to blame. That she faces only 5 years in prison is woefully inadequate. That her other child will suffer immeasurably too makes the whole episode a sad and sorry one.

Slowly America is showing signs of moving away from a no-blame society, where responsibility is taken by everyone but yourself. This is a start. It has powerful implications going forward, especially in the law of torts. People taking responsibility for their own actions - what a concept. It may one day prevent tragedies like this one.

If a Government doesn't have a direct popular mandate, it tends to spend a lot of its time worrying about its image with the public, at least here in HK. That's because if you rule without the consent of the governed you're not going to be effective. So for example this week's Hong Kong budget again took the whimpy approach to a potential Goods and Sales Tax, by suggesting a study. Any fan of Yes Minister knows this is an effective way of postponing what you don't want to do. But Henry Tang has gone one better, saying he "promised that the tax would not be implemented if the people were opposed to it."

Hands up who wants a new tax? No one. OK, so let's not do it. We'll just keep running deficits and relying on 1/3 of the working population, some company tax and more property sales. It's worked well so far. Except for the big deficits.

My mum and mother-in-law will be pleased.

First they had background pictures for the new video mobile phones; now comes "Soundcover", a sound alibi generator.

In other news this must be a joke - an African dictator thwarting a coup d'etat for a fellow dictator. Mercenaries, South Africans, half-baked plans. Chuck in the CIA and it's perfect.

There is something distinctly unique about Hong Kong's Statue Square. Flanked by the stunning HSBC building on one side and the colonial Legislative Council building on another it is an oasis of tranquility in a sea of modernity. But only in HK would pride of place be taken by a statue of a general manager of a bank.

Let's chalk another up under the crazy Singapore file. Don't have kids because you want to. No should have them because it is your duty. Try this:

'Procreation is not only the duty of everyone, but also the responsibility of every citizen towards his family, parents, society and country.'

Courtesy of Nicholas

It is bordering on cliché to say this year's American Presidential election is the "most important in a generation". The first of the "key battlegrounds" invariably are Iraq and national security. Problem is it isn't true.

These issues deal mostly with the past. There is a broad but not universal consensus on the way forward in Iraq - if anything the Republicans are in a greater hurry to get out of there than their Democratic rivals. The idea of passing over sovereignty to some kind of democratically elected government as soon as practical is commonly accepted. Whether the current Administration bungled the post-war reconstruction is a separate argument and not very relevant, unless the US plans another adventure in nation building on this scale anytime soon. Otherwise leave it for the policy wonks and academics to ponder and let the rest of the world get on with things. The rights and wrongs of the war itself are good for whipping up passions but do little to influence people who matter - swinging voters. Iraq is such a hot-button issue that people made their minds up long ago. I am sure it has vitalised the bases of both the Republican and Democratic parties but it is not an issue that is making many swinging voters change their mind. Neither is September 11. By the time the election comes around 9//11 will have been 3 years past. It is still fresh enough to be in people's minds but since then there is again a broad consensus on the increased need for homeland security in the USA. There has thankfully not been another attack on US soil and with luck and vigilance there will be no more. Again the way forward is clear - continued improvements in homeland security and greater vigilance. But once the attacks shook America awake to the dangers in the world there was going to be no other way. These are not issues that will swing votes because these are backward looking issues - they are debates about the past. It is an issue that galvanises the activists in each party, and they are the ones making plenty of noise. But that isn't where elections are lost and won, especially when both sides get equally worked up.

As always what influences those votes that matter is things closer to home. Jobs, the economy, schools, crime, the budget, health. Forward looking issues. Closer to home issues. Day to day issues. Outsourcing is going to influence more minds than Osama. It's a lesson learnt in 1992, when Bill Clinton taught George Bush Snr. the basics of politics - it's all local and it's the economy. Which is one reason why George W. is only level pegging with John Kerry. Admittedly Kerry is enjoying a honeymoon period as a the new candidate but the US economy is where it's at.

As reader Ken pointed out, it's between George "CEO" W. Bush and John "Flip flop" Kerry. Either way it's not a great choice. George W. spends like a Democrat and John Kerry just can't make his mind up. Shame these two are running for President of the most powerful nation on Earth.

Just when you think it can't get worse someone goes and proves you wrong. I just received an email telling me to look at my email. The same person had sent an email two minutes previously and was checking I had received it. Up goes the meter...

The ongoing farce over the extradition of two wanted men from Australia to Hong Kong continues. From Australian Foreign Minister Downer two days ago came this:

Journalist: Mr Downer are you concerned at the damage that may be done to the relationship with Hong Kong by the Justice Minister’s refusal to surrender two Australian fugitives?

Downer: Well it hasn’t been raised directly with me by anyone in Hong Kong. Though there have been discussions at the officials level about this. The details of it you’ll have to put to the Justice Minister, because he’s the one who’s made the decision, not me.

Journalist: You’re responsible for diplomatic relations.

Downer: Yes, sure. In the case of Hong Kong I haven’t had ministerial level representations from the Hong Kong Government about it in recent times. And there has been officials level discussion. I would say it’s an issue that there has been officials level discussion about. But it’s not an issue that’s damaged our relations with Hong Kong. It’s a big relationship.

Journalist: Senator Ellison has refused to give reasons for surrendering these two men. Should he?

Downer: Well look that’s entirely a matter for him. I won’t offer a view about that. That’s something you’ll have to take up with him. This is an area that falls within his portfolio, and within his area of responsibility. And I’ll leave it to him to answer questions.

Journalist: We have an agreement with Hong Kong. What’s the value of that is it’s …

Downer: We do have an agreement, but where extradition takes place there has to be mutual agreement on that extradition.

Journalist: …explaining to Hong Kong the reasons for refusing to surrender these men?

Downer: As I say there have been discussions with the Hong Kong Government about it.

I received written submissions which touched on matters relevant to the exercise of my discretion. As I recall, they were directly from Mr Hendy; Mr Voigt; members of their families, including their children; friends; solicitors acting for them; and two members of parliament.

I am aware of Ms Lau's comments. She is entitled to those as a member of the Hong Kong parliament. We have assured the government of Hong Kong of our commitment to work closely with them in law enforcement matters, and they have echoed that commitment. It is business as usual. We continue to work closely with the Hong Kong government in relation to law enforcement matters, as they do with us, and we value that cooperation.

The Minister might not think so but this has caused enormous damage to the relationship between HK and Australia.

Australia negotiates a lame free-trade agreement with the USA, which the Government is flogging as a "victory" for Australia. Shame the USA doesn't think so.

What has happened to the world of show biz and entertainment? It's all about one-upmanship, living up to cliches. Sometimes it's funny. Sometimes it's deadly. Mostly, though, it's just boring.

I refer you to Law number 6. "Don't call me to tell me you sent an email." You're just making the stupidity meter rise needlessly quickly. But that's the nature of the stupidity meter - it rises unnecessarily.

I've always wondered how budget airlines can offer such cheap fares. Now I fear we are finding out.

Australia's second-largest airline, Virgin Blue, has admitted its maintenance records are in disarray, raising serious questions over the upkeep of its fleet of 40 aircraft. The airline has agreed it will fly within an hour of an airport at all times, forcing it to deviate from the most direct path and add travelling time.

Eyal has found a few more great ways to get annoyed at your computer. Flash games - helping pass time on slow days for years.

This advertisement article on the "Quarterlife Crisis" book and phenomena veers between funny and sickening. As best as I can make out a 'QLC' involves precocious kids in their 20s and early 30s having a crisis of confidence when they realise the world doesn't revolve around them and life can be a series of messy compromises. This compares to the more traditional mid-life crisis where people realise the world doesn't revolve around them and life can be a series of messy compromises.

The two examples cited in the article. Firstly 23 year old kid who was "on his way to being a bank manager." Then he realised he was unhappy so he did what any mature adult would do - he quit, drove up to sunny Queensland for a few months "until his money ran out. Then he went on the dole." Fine upstanding citizen indeed. Realising he wouldn't actually be managing director of a bank until he put in years of hard and at times boring work he decided to leach off the taxpayer instead.

Then we have James Arvanitakis, a "successful banker...he owned a Mercedes and was paying off a home." He decided he didn't like material possessions, went to Bolivia, found a cause and that's what he now does. That's great - he managed to grow up and make a decision age 27. He made a personal choice and now wants the world to applaud him. I'm sure he's doing good work. So keep on doing it, buddy, but don't push your middle-class guilt onto everyone else.

The harsh truth is this is all the typical whinging of a pandered generation. I should know - it's my generation. Yes it's a sweeping generalisation but articles and books like this simply re-enforce the stereotype that people of my age are happier worrying and whinging than doing. The truth is we live in an age of unprecedented prosperity. People our age are able to live and buy products that make our lives easier or better. We are richer than any other generation was at our age. Many of us are not forced to work in dangerous jobs involving hard physical labour that will shorten our lifespan and hit our health. We can travel. We can surf the net. We can watch our TV, DVDs, videos, listen to our radios, play on our computers, eat out, eat in, go out, stay in. The world is full of more opportunity than ever; many of us live in freedom and prosperity unparalleled in history. Stop friggin' whinging and start living in the real world. If you feel guilty about having so much, do something about it. Give it all to charity, or work for a NGO. Save the whales, save the trees, save the world. Leave the rest of us who have made other decisions alone.

Crisis solved.

There's a nasty piece of intrigue involving my old and new homelands. The SCMP reports:

Australia's foreign minister yesterday weighed into the diplomatic row surrounding two executives wanted in Hong Kong on corruption and bribery charges for their role in a construction scandal.
However, Alexander Downer refused to explain the decision not to surrender the men. Mr Downer dismissed suggestions that his government's refusal to hand over the two fugitive businessmen was due to a lack of confidence in Hong Kong's legal system.

His comments follow concern from senior Department of Justice, Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) and Security Bureau officials who say they are mystified by the decision.

The ICAC wants David Hendy, 42, from Perth, and Carl Voigt, 46, from Brisbane, extradited on bribery and corruption charges relating to a short-piling building scandal in Tung Chung. The two executives allegedly ordered staff to make shorter foundation pilings for a building than specified in plans so work would be finished on time...Hendy has been charged with 11 offences of corruption, conspiracy to defraud and furnishing false information, while Voigt faces 14 charges for similar offences. Others convicted over the scam have received prison sentences.

Let's be straight here. These two men are wanted and more likely than not will be convicted if tried in Hong Kong. Hong Kong works under the same common law system of law as Australia. It has a recognised system of courts and prisons that are comparable with Australia. Others who worked with these two men have been convicted and imprisoned. For the Australian Government to overrule courts on this extradition matter without further comment is suspicious to say the least. Those who are following this in Hong Kong are completely mystified as to why this is happening, especially in light of past co-operation between the authorities of the two countries.

Something is rotten in Canberra.

UPDATE: Phil agrees. This stinks.

One of the major debates in this year's American election is on the movement of jobs offshore. Slowly but surely traditional areas of American labour are being replaced by foreign workers that can the job cheaper and better. It affects everyone.

For the past two weeks there has been an ongoing series of scandals involving Australian rugby league players and allegations of rape. Rugby league players tend to be meatheads who see sport as organised violence and would otherwise be enjoying time at Her Majesty's leisure. It is a stupid sport played by tiny minds but somehow it is enjoyed by large parts of the Australian population. It has now emerged that at an after game hotel a woman was raped. Her full story is here but in brief she went from consensual sex with one player to having a different player raping her AND another player watching the whole thing. Primeval. It has lead to a police investigation which is being stymied by the code of silence. That's the code that says it is more important to stick by your mates than to report a crime. Even worse is this is not an isolated incident.

What is becoming more apparent is that in times past sports stars have been able to get away with it. However now a combination of more assertive women and media not held in thrall of such stars are fighting back. Sadly it's not likely to stop stories like this happening, at least overnight. But for God's sake, the players who won't even report on their "mates" are as guilty as those that commit these crimes. They are guilty of conspiracy and covering-up illegal acts and should also be prosecuted. It is not acceptable for a person to say they don't want to testify against team mates. There is a greater principle of justice involved.

These matters can often be difficult to resolve. If they denigrate into claim and counter-claim with no outside witnesses then they become essentially unsolvable in the absence of physical proof. But clearly one player going out and sending a mate in instead is rape. Groups of players intimidating women into sex is rape. Sports players who think themselves somehow apart from the rest of us are learning that everyone is equal before the law.

The "good old days" for male sports teams are gone. Not before time.

Honey, I'll do the ironing tonight.

Living in a high rise can prove interesting. The management often leave notices in the lift foyer telling residents of upcoming renovations, changes in bus timetables, the usual minutiae of life.

However there are two seperate warnings that are often posted that worry me greatly. The first is a constant reminder not to throw objects over the balcony. Each building is 20 floors or so, and at the base is a myriad of playgrounds, bike tracks and other public areas. File under the "bleeding obvious" category.

The second one is worse. It reminds residents the use of pellet guns off one's balcony is not just an offense but also dangerous. Just in case you weren't sure. That's right, no shooting guns off the side of a building. I'm glad they warned us.

Without being able to throw things out the window or shoot anything, what are we going to be able to do for fun?

If you weren't confused before, you will be now. Beijing has helpfully pointed out that patriots can be democrats despite saying for weeks that patriots could not be democrats.

``We have emphasised that the main body of Hong Kong rulers must be patriotic. But we did not say that they [Hong Kong rulers] must not be democrats, nor did we say that democrats cannot be rulers of Hong Kong,'' Xu (Chongde - a drafter of the Basic Law) said...``We did not say that all democrats are unpatriotic. We need to analyse them one by one. There are patriots, as well as non-patriots, in the democratic camp,'' he said.

The legal expert also expounded on a statement made by Deng Xiaoping concerning the composition of Hong Kong's rulers.

In 1984, when the late paramount leader met Hong Kong and Macau compatriots, he said: ``The administrators [in the post-1997 period] will be elected by the people there [Hong Kong]. The principle that patriots should form the main body of Hong Kong rulers, does not strictly require that 100 per cent of them are patriots.''

Asked whether this means that non-patriots could have a role in governing Hong Kong, Xu said: ``Of course, it'd better [if they are] patriots. But, as long as the main body of Hong Kong rulers is assured to be patriots, it won't matter [about the others].''

``Voters should judge who are patriots and who are not,'' Xu said. ``The central government is confident that six million people in Hong Kong can judge by themselves.

I spent the bus trip into work this morning chatting with an Englishman who lives in the same tower as me. He joined the same lift, we walked to the stop, talked about his recent travel and work, his upcoming visit to the Malaysian Grand Prix, his wife Nicky's weekend visits to Manilla and Hanoi, his kids, my kids, my upcoming work travel, his in-laws visiting, my folks and in-laws visiting. We talked the whole journey into town just as we have many times before.

I still have no idea what his name is.

Amongst the usual procession of weekend events we were lucky enough this weekend past to enjoy not one but two separate children birthday parties. These events manage to combine masses of party food with a combination of manic children who veer between sugary highs and distraught lows and adults standing around trying hard to hold a conversation. Funnily enough the people who spend most of the time near the food tables tend to be the parents. Where else can one indulge in chocolate crackles, chips, cakes and fairy bread so innocuously and blamelessly? It makes it all worthwhile.

In completely unrelated news, Misti the wonder dog is already responding to her medication. While this should be a cause of joy, it also means she is far more energetic than before. It's a double edged sword. Not to mention the unpleasant side effects of her medication, which mostly revolve around her drinking copious amounts of water and then expelling it soon after over the apartment floor.

Sometimes the cure is worse than the symptoms.

Society works because of social contracts. These are not written. Rather they are implicit understandings between various elements of society as to how they should relate to each other. They entail obligations and mutual rights. There are plenty of books on the subject.

One example is television. Commercial TV works by putting on shows you watch with the understanding they will be interrupted by commercial breaks. Furthermore it is accepted that those breaks are good times to go to the bathroom, get some ice cream, do some washing up or tend to whatever needs tending to. The breaks last 2 to 3 minutes each and occur at regular and predictable intervals during the show - usually at convenient pauses in the plot or action.

Or so you would think, but not in Hong Kong. Here there is a policy of random advertisement placement. You can go as long as 20 minutes ad-free, before having three sets of ads in 7 minutes (these numbers come from last night's viewing on TVB Pearl). These breaks last anywhere from 30 seconds to 4 minutes without rhyme or reason. Many of the ads are impossible to understand, even if they are in English. Even sadder is TVB Pearl advertising for advertisers during prime time. It's a good way to advertise your lack of paying customers.

Memo to commercial TV: fewer breaks of more uniform length. It says so in the social contract.

To the driver of the Disneyland bus who on Friday night would not let me board despite being stuck in traffic at a red light 10 metres from the stop and despite leaving the stop 2 minutes before the scheduled time, I hope the friggin' door is broken from my constant bashing and may you be stuck in traffic for the rest of your days, you rule-bound, narrow-minded, pathetic stickler. Shrugging your gloved hands does not constitute an appropriate answer, especially when the following bus gladly took on passengers while waiting at the same lights.

Don't be counting on your lai see next year, buddy.

This didn't take long. Steve Martin makes some comments on Mel Gibson's The Passion. A selection of quotes:

Dear Mel, We love, love the script! The ending works great. You'll be getting a call from us to start negotiations for the book rights...Does it matter which garden? Gethsemane is hard to say, and Eden is a much more recognisable garden. Just thinking out loud...Could he change water into wine in the Last Supper scene? Would be a great moment, and it's legit: history compression is a movie tradition and it could really brighten up the scene. Great trailer moment, too...Could the rabbis be Hispanic? There's lots of hot Latino actors now, could give us a little zing at the box office...Is there someplace where Jesus could be using an iBook? Maybe we start a shot in Heaven with Jesus thoughtfully closing the top...Could the Crucifixion scene involve something else? A Toyota would be wrong, but maybe there's a shape we can copyright, like a wagon wheel?

I was fortunate enough to be in Sydney when the 2000 Olympics were on. The city was truly alive and looked great. A huge amount of effort went into making the city look its very best. The people on the street had that buzz, that sense that something big was going on. Little work was done and most of the day revolved around trekking out to various events or following them on TV. The organisers did a great job in every aspect, from transport to venues to organisation.

It just makes me glad I don't live in Beijing. From the SCMP:

Beijing Mayor Wang Qishan yesterday defended the mass relocation of people for the 2008 Olympic Games, saying it was necessary if the capital was to realise its Olympic dream...

He said problems such as transport and public hygiene were all pressing issues the government must address, along with water and electricity supplies and educating the man on the street not to walk around the city wearing only trousers...

However, he defended the need to change the capital, saying the remake - which will affect more than 350,000 households, or about 1.1 million residents - was necessary because many houses were run-down. "To have a new Beijing and Olympics, it is impossible not to demolish houses," Mr Wang said.

Next time someone tells you China is one of the last Communist nations on Earth, you can mention stories like this that "socialism with Chinese characteristics" is actually "capitalism with the Communist Party in charge."

There is a deafening silence today. That of hubris undone, of pride falling, of hope extinguished. Today, the world loves Ireland more than ever.

Just spent a delightful lunchtime with Mrs M and JC. Went to the doctor to check on Ubul - all looking good on that front. Walking back towards Central Mrs M turned to me and said: "Hong Kong is an assault on your senses. The crowds, the smells, the sights and the sounds."

She's a smart woman, Mrs M is.

Thankfully it's Friday because the stupidity meter is close to breaking.

Just when you thought global mega monolith Citigroup couldn't get any bigger, along comes this, despite repeated assurances over the past few years there would no more large scale takeovers. The usual black humour dominates the office today.

If it happens I hope it goes better than the last big German/US merger.

There are some reality TV formats I can handle, and there are many more I cannot. They range from the inane to the disgusting and they all rely on appealing to the lowest common denominator. A particularly revolting show is Fear Factor, who's purpose seems to revolve around forcing Ken and Barbie Americans into eating and doing disgusting things during prime time. I refuse to watch the show even though Mrs M is partial to it.

So it's good to see that finally someone's fighting back.

The problem with rising stupidity levels is two-fold. Firstly is stupidity tends to be a slowly cumulative disease. It begins with a few stupid questions or comments. But these don't just disappear. They get built upon, slowly but surely, layer upon layer. Eventually you reach the point where the mass of stupidity is such it overwhelms common sense. There's a mathematical formula to represent this situation:

If (Sum [Stupidity]) > Common Sense
then Stupidity ---> infinity exponentially

What is even more disheartening is when Charles, a 3 year veteran in this job, tells me that these are the same stupid questions he's been dealing with since he started. From the same people. Apparently for many education and learning ends as soon as they enter a corporate environment. At first you think you can deal with it. You can be friendly, trying to help others to understand. You can write lengthy emails, hold long conference calls or even travel to various offices to explain in detail. And you will be asked the same question a week later. Three times. By the same person. Regardless of how and how many times you explain it to them. They cannot help it. They're stupid.

The second and more worrying aspect is how infectious stupidity is. No one is immune. It spreads quickly and quietly. If you receive a stupid question early there's a good chance the day will be full of them (like today). Inevitably it sometimes reaches down the phone and infects you too. Your frustration levels rise and silly mistakes creep in. There's nothing you can do. Having enough patience to deal with it all is not enough. Having a sense of humour is vital but not enough.

Having a voodoo doll with noose and pins is essential. Alcohol too.

Today's image of the day in the extended entry comes courtesy of this article on the spread of democracy. The article itself is muddled, arguing that the push to "export" democracy has been suffering recent set-backs in Haiti and Iraq. However looking at the map if anything it looks like it has been a successful story - look at South America and Eastern Europe.

Most interesting is the area titled "Middle East". Note how there's a tiny sliver of "democratic" green in a sea of "not free" orange, hard up against the Mediterranean. Israel.

Click the map to expand to full size.

Mel Gibson's new movie The Passion has got people worked up. As a kind service the Guardian has compiled an important linguistic guide for those seeing or commenting on the movie. "Een, Yuudaayaa naa, ellaa b-haw yawmaa laa hweeth ba-mdeetaa."

Another day, another overreaction by Beijing. A couple of democrat politicians decide they want to go to the US Senate and testify to the Foreign Relations Committee. Never one to miss a chance to stick it to China in an election year, this testimony has been upgraded from a sub-committee to the full board. Instead our favourite Vice-Minister for Commerce, An Min, has come out with this:

branding those who ``beg foreign forces for favours'' as ``clowns''.

He made it clear that Hong Kong's affairs should be solved within the ``big family'' of China and warned that Beijing will brook no interference in the policy of ``one country, two systems''.

Many mainland officials and pro-Beijing politicians were also quick to join in the attack, with Lee Choi-jat, a Standing Committee member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), describing those who urge foreign forces to interfere in the internal affairs of Hong Kong as ``traitors''.

For those looking for a summary of this issue here's a few of my previous posts on the topic...
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven

Suddenly spammers face a problem. Their potential market has been cut in half. The killer quote from chick author Kathy Lette:

"It's just a question of when men will cotton on. To please a woman in bed, all a man has to do is a poetry course. They also have to learn that the Kama Sutra is not an Indian takeaway and that the mutual orgasm is not an insurance company."

Pfizer nevertheless insisted that the search would go on for a female Viagra. "Pfizer has made a number of major contributions to the emerging science of female sexuality," says Feczko. "We now have a better understanding of the biochemical and physiological factors involved in female sexual function."

Lette advised Pfizer not to bother: "A cheap and widely available tablet to restore the female sex drive already exists. It's called paracetamol."

I don't know why but today has seen an all time record number of stupid questions being asked by the various people I deal with. Usually the number is at a reasonably bearable level and I've been told my threshold for stupidity is high, but today that level has been reached. And yet the stupid questions keep coming.

Where's my eject button?

I don't know why it is but clearly for men triffling things such as instruction manuals or maps just get in the way, whereas for women asking for help is completely acceptable. Why can't us men just admit we're stupid rather than plunging in head first despite having no experience whatsoever with whatever we are dealing with?

Male pride. Preventing quick solutions since caveman times.

I work in an open office. There are very few offices and even those with offices spend much of their day out of them. The rest of us work in rows. Each row has 6 people in it, grouped in twos. Each workstation has computer screens (from 2 up to 6), keyboards, phone system, handsets, wires, photos, flags - the usual paraphernalia of a workplace. It takes some getting used to being in such an open environment. There is no such thing as privacy. There is a certain etiquette but there is very little that isn't overheard. That makes for a particularly open workplace where there are few secrets, including the personal. It means that like it or not you have to get along with the people you sit with. You don't have to be best friends but you need to be able to get along. It means that rows tend to become close and share a bond, the common bond of work. I spend more time with these people with my family and even though I like these guys, I love my family. And the rules of behaviour are very different between work and home. That's for another time.

A co-worker resigned yesterday. She is a great person, very sweet and helpful. As a local her knowledge was invaluable in helping the expats in our row. She always offers to be the interlocutor in personal dealings with non-English speakers. She is a bright and friendly lady - in the daily banter she never said much (given much of the drivel that goes back and forwards that is a sign of intelligence) but she is diligent and competent. She is well respected and well liked. That's saying something if you think about it.

It was not a huge surprise that she resigned. Office politics being what they are, and the fact she had spent almost 10 years in the company meant it was time for a move. But such a move rips the fabric of the row. The row is out of balance and will take time to find again. Looking at her chair today, without its red cardigan, its blank screens, its clean desk brings a touch of melancholy. The row seems a little quieter today. There was no chirpy "Jo sun" (good morning in Cantonese).

When she announced yesterday she was leaving she did it in her typically understated style. She quietly sidled up to my partner and my desk and told us in a soft voice that she was going. She was crying. She explained her reasons, not that they needed much explaining. After that there wasn't much to say. A beer will be had in the next few days. But in banking once you resign you leave the office. Straight away. There's no working out 4 weeks notice. You leave because they don't want you telling your clients or having anything to do with the bank. It makes perfect sense but it means that goodbyes are hurried and seemingly incomplete. There's no closure. Simply one moment the person is here and the next they are gone. There's no time to get used to the idea. It's just a gap in the row.

For most even though we work in such close proximity for long periods of time you tend to lose contact once they leave the firm. Despite sharing so much, knowing so much about them, unless you become particularly close you are unlikely to speak to them again unless you happen to bump into them at a function or in the street. Others you may drop occasional emails to or even rare phone calls. But out of sight usually means out of mind. Yet every person I've me through my working life, regardless of whether I've liked them or loathed them, I've learnt from. I've been fortunate enough that most of the time the people I've worked with have been relatively normal - different enough from one another to be interesting but similar enough to not start World War 3 every day. I still speak to many of them and each one has had some kind of influence on me.

That's why I'm going to miss you, Sammy. Good luck.

While I should really post this as an email to Ask Jen, instead I'm going to open it up to all of you.

Domestically the world of the kitchen has long been seen as the domain of the woman, rightly or wrongly. However the world of gastronomy is for the most part dominated by men, especially in the restaurant game. Why?

This is an amazing story. Goes to show how DNA testing is helping justice be done in all sorts of ways.

There's nothing interesting going on in the world. My personal life is in a worrying happy state of equilibrium. The people at work haven't said anything stupid all morning. Work's been busy.

Looks like it's time to break the glass and raid the "rainy-day" ideas pile.

I'll be back.

The unlinkable SCMP has gone and looked at Deng Xiapong's full comments on democracy in Hong Kong. The details are in the extended entry. Interestingly enough it seems ol' Deng wasn't quite the anti-democrat his compatriots and Xinhua are making him out to be. That's the problem for China - they keep twisting until facts fit the ideology.

I am going to do an extremely dangerous and difficult blogging trick*. I am going to link together several disparate subjects in one post with some deeper meaning driving the whole entry. Or it could be a cheap way to jam a couple of ideas together. Whatever.

Open the extended entry and behold...

It is a cliché that we live in a disposable society. Hong Kong is particularly prone to this. Being on the border of China and yet one of the richest places on Earth means there is a constant flow of good quality yet cheap products hitting the market here. For example DVD players. We have purchased a couple of Chinese made players that have worked perfectly and cost less than US$100 each. However recently one of them has had trouble loading DVDs. It is still under warranty. So I rang the company in question (Shinco) and was told to take the offending player to their service centre in Ngau Tau Kok. I had never heard of Ngau Tau Kok. I did what all expats do in this situation and asked my local co-workers where it was. It is in Kowloon, just past the bay and is an MTR (train) stop.

This meant I faced a three pronged problem:
1. Will I be able to get the DVD player fixed or replaced under warranty without hassle?
2. Will I be able to find the service centre?
3. Will I be bothered at all?

The issue in point 1 is simple. Hong Kong service can vary wildly. Often communication can be a big barrier but beyond that sometimes the idea that the customer can be right does not always apply. There may well be extra charges for labour or servicing, even if it is under warranty. The issue in 2 is simpler. Even though we've been here a year there are vast areas of Hong Kong we haven't been to. Nor would we ever visit them unless there was a particular reason. It's a big city and many parts of the city are simply industrial, commercial or residential with little reason to visit. These places can be difficult to navigate with their canyons of high rises and myriad laneways. And asking for directions can be a hit-and-miss affair, even if you can find someone who can understand you.

The last issue is a reflection of the start of this post: that we live in a disposable society. Despite having a reasonably complicated piece of technology that wasn't working it was not immediately obvious that it would be worth fixing. A replacement DVD player can be had for US$50 or less - not an insubstantial sum but not going to break the bank either. Indeed several co-workers, including some locals, told me not to bother schlepping out to the service centre and just buy a new one instead. However having only bought the player 6 months ago and being a quiet day at work I figured it would be part adventure and part right thing to do. The people from Shinco had told me they would fix it for free if I could take it to the service centre. While that still wasn't a guarantee that when I got to the service centre they would - it's been known in Hong Kong to arrive at a service centre, told it will cost a certain fee to fix, and faced with either carrying a worthless paperweight home or paying the fee to the place you've just schlepped out to, you're going to pay the fee - it was worth a chance.

I planned the trip. Hong Kong really has its public transport worked out. I got onto the internet, looked up the MTR (train) network to find the best way to get there. I walked into the station - clean, spacious, well lit. I used my Octopus card to walk through the turnstile. These are stored value cards which work on all modes of transport plus in many shops and vending machines to boot. The display on the turnstile tells me exactly how much value is left stored on the card. Otherwise I could quickly pump some more money onto the card using a recharging machine in the station. While the station was busy there were no queues. Walking past the free internet access I made my way to the well labelled platform. The display told me the train would arrive in two minutes. Sure enough, in two minutes the train arrived. The doors opened and I entered the clean, spacious and well lit train. I had to make a connection at another train station. I walked out of the train, across a platform and straight into a waiting train on the new line. Each station was announced on approach and the maps flashed with the approaching stop and its connections. I got off at the appropriate station and exited, being told exactly how much my Octopus was being debited and how much was remaining. It was a pleasingly small sum. I made my way to the appropriate exit. Exits at train stations tend to be labelled by letters, with posters telling you which main landmarks or buildings can be found at each exit. My exit was B6. A block later I was at the service centre. That's public transport in Hong Kong: cheap, easy, quick, efficient, integrated, clean, and frequent. It makes me wonder why so many other big cities struggle with public transport.

The service centre was in an office building. I entered the office feeling the start of the adrenalin building, gearing up for a confrontation. I explained the problem with the DVD player to the receptionist. She asked for the warranty card but I only had the receipt from the store. I expected my first road block. Instead she simply took the receipt, looked at the DVD player, entered the details on the computer, asked me to sign a receipt for the work and told me they would call in a week for me to come and pick it up. I asked what the cost would be. No cost, was the answer, it was still under warranty. The whole process took less than 5 minutes. I left the office with a curious mix of relief and disappointment. The lady was friendly, spoke perfect English and served me quickly and efficiently. On returning to work in Central, the CBD, the whole exercise had taken only an hour and a half from the second I left to the second I returned. Where was I going to get a story to blog about from that experience?

Turns out I did.

_{*WARNING: please do not attempt to do this at home. Leave it to the professionals.}

I very clearly remember the first day I saw Misti, the wonder dog. She was a present from Mrs M's family for Mrs M's 30th birthday. We trekked out to the kennel and saw assorted Cocker Spaniel puppies. We had even settled on one before we came across the enclosure with Misti and her brother and sister. The brother and sister were already destined for other places but Misti was potentially available. One look and we knew she was the one. The absolutely cutest little ball of fluff and personality you can imagine. She's been a great dog and a member of the family for more than 4 years now.

However I've a question. Why do pets not come with warning labels? In this modern era of litigation everything has a warning label on it. Careful, the coffee's hot. Careful, these knives can cut. Careful, this chainsaw can cut things in half. But you don't get anything on pets. You get no warning that they can do their business inside, they can get sick, they have moods, they can always find a way to be underfoot, they snore. Don't tell me it's obvious. All warnings are obvious. There's such a huge potential legal minefield here it boggles the mind.

"Your honour, all I saw when I purchase the said pet was a cute ball of fluff."
"What?! No warning signs? No disclaimer? No 3-part video?"
"No your honour. Nothing. Just two cute puppies eyes staring longingly."
"Why that almost amounts to entrapment to boot."
"I know your honour. It's a good job we have courts to protect us from this kind of thing."
"You mean thinking for yourself and taking responsibility for your own actions."
"Ummm, yes."
"I agree. I find the defendant guilty of massive fraud. I find the plaintiff a fine, upstanding fellow and fully worthy of the protection of this court from himself."

This all came to me last night as I cleaned yet another Misti pish off our floor. Her new medicine is having unpleasant side effects. As I mumbled to myself wondering if the warranty was still good on our dog I realised we'd been duped. No warning. No labels. Nothing. Outrage, I know.

Pets. Taking advantage of humans since domestication.

Knew it! Another Government conspiracy to placacte the public while copmuters take over our lives.

People say the Chinese Communist Party has no sense of humour. They are wrong. From the SCMP today:

Beijing issued a stinging report yesterday censuring the United States for crime and racism at home and "military aggression around the world" after Washington criticised China's human rights record. The 61-page document said Washington "acted as `the world human rights police' " and distorted conditions in its annual State Department world survey of human rights issued last week. The US report accused Beijing of "backsliding" on rights, citing arrests of political activists and a crackdown on internet dissent.

Beijing's response said US leaders "turned a blind eye" to the problems of working Americans, leading to growing numbers suffering hunger and homelessness. It accused Washington of failing to protect the rights of women, children and the elderly.

It was the fifth straight year that the mainland has issued such a report on US conditions in response to the State Department survey. This year, the report said it was intended "to help the United States repair the American human rights record".

"The United States has long been a violent, crime-ridden society with a severe infringement of the people's rights by law enforcement," said the report, based on US news reports and government statistics.

It faulted the US for failing to ensure racial equality, noting discrimination against blacks and Hispanics in housing, education and incarceration. "Racial discrimination ... has permeated into every aspect of society," it said.

In an even bigger outrage, Ocean Park is clearly gearing up for the approach of Hong Kong Disneyland by making itself into a luxury theme party. Hense this disgusting attack on Mainland tourists and Hong Kong families. For shame, Alan Zeman, for shame. I've a good mind to continue using my annual pass as often as possible to extract every last cent of value out of your park.

What do you call a car that has no bonnet, doesn't need washing and has special headrest ports for women's ponytails? All for a modest $6 million? Apparently a "huge step forward not just for the car industry but for society in general". Or perhaps bloody stupid.

Courtesy of Paul

We live in an age where technology constantly works to make our lives better. There have been advances ranging from the simple to the most fiendishly complex in aid of this. Think of the dishwasher, the telephone, the car, the computer, the mobile phone. Everything is becoming automated, electronic, digital. Look at music. First it was those old fashioned record players, then the wireless, then tapes, the arrival of CDs and now the rise of MP3 players and iPods.

So why in God's name do electric shavers suck so badly compared to blades? That guy from Remington once said "As close as your regular blade or your money back" and "I liked the razor so much I bought the company" but anyone who has ever used both knows there is no electric as good as a blade. The electric shaver was invented in the 1930s and it seems like the last technological leap was in 1975. That's almost 30 years ago. Don't they have an R&D department?

He might be dead but he's got a lot to answer for.

Mrs M is an organised person. Which is just as well. Although I sometimes tease her about her endless lists and notes, the reality is she is always on top of what needs doing, who gave what when, what goes where and how it all fits. She's also a reality TV addict but that's another story. What all of this means is often things are arranged in a particular manner. If things are not replaced in the precise spot they are meant to go the whole edifice falls apart.

Where this really comes into its own is the kitchen and in particular the fridge. We have a collection of pots, pans, plastic containers and assorted other jars. They are all different shapes and sizes and happen to be PB's favourite toy. A quick kitchen raid by PB and there's lids and jars all over the apartment. Being a family of two adults, two kids (one on the way) and a dog means even our large size fridge can often get full. Very full. A few days worth of leftovers, milk, orange juice, nail polish (don't ask), milk, beer, vegies, milk, dog medicines, eggs, milk and some milk can make a heavily burdened set of shelving. This requires delicate balancing. The right set of containers must be used to balance between the available space and the required storage. Then the entire jigsaw must be put together in a delicate mosaic of Tupperware, glass and plastic. Removing any one piece of the puzzle is similar to that game with the wooden blocks, where pulling one piece out may or may not bring the whole thing down.

Enter the male of the house. In a typically male trying to be a helpful and sensitive new age father I insert myself into the kitchen. Yes, this means I get in the way. But it means I feel I am helping and can assuage my patriarchal guilt a little (that's thousands of years of male oppression I'm making up for). So I go near the fridge. In a typically male cack-handed way I simply pulling what I need out and worry about the cascading tumble of containers as they fall. Hence my good juggling skills. The real problem comes when returning said container to the fridge. This process usually takes several minutes of to-ing and fro-ing, rearranging and considering before some kind of balance is restored. Balance being the operative word. The next person to open the fridge is likely to topple the teetering temple of Tupperware. But that's not my concern. All I care about is getting that fridge door shut. And you can't cheat with our fridge. In what some bright spark in the whitegoods maker decided the fridge should beep if the door is left open too long. That sucks.

So the man of the house stuffs everything into the fridge. It may not be pretty but it works. After a fashion. Despite years of watching Mrs M performing the same task in a matter of seconds and with perfect arrangements I will never get the hang of it. It's just not part of my genetic make-up. There have been times after a particularly stressful re-arrangement of the fridge that I stand back and gaze in wonder at what I've created. It may sound sad but I challenge anyone to do the same. Except Mrs M. She's the expert.

That said I mounted a full-length mirror on the bedroom door on my own. On the right side. Perfectly straight and in the middle. First time. Of course Mrs M could have done it too. Makes you wonder what we need men for.

Our weekend was busy but for the first time in a few weeks it was just us. We didn't do anything particularly exciting: went swimming, caught a movie (yes, it was heavy) that I highly recommend called 21 Grams*, had brunch and dinner with friends, mounted our artworks, backed up the photos on the computer (that's the problem with digital cameras. You've gotta backup the photos every now and again or you could lose 'em forever). What was nice was just to do it on our own. It was great to be on holidays; it was fun to have guests stay with us. But it's also nice to get back into the routine again. Just being a family doing family things. Catching up with our not-so-new Hong Kong lives. This week marked a year since the family got here. Quite a bit's happened. Like this, and this, and most importantly this. Oh, except this.

It's slowly getting hotter and stickier here as the fog rolls in for spring. Winter's gone. Nine months of dehumidifiers running around the clock to go. And due to Mrs M's "condition" we're not going anywhere for the summer. You're likely to here much more about swimming in the months ahead. Better start that diet seriously now.

_{* Note it is not a comedy, nor is a particularly good date movie, given it mainly deals with death and its aftermath.}

I rarely indulge in that blogging habit of pointing out the weird methods that people use to reach this site, e.g. Google searching for Godfather 4 or from Yahoo looking for Swedish girls (I knew that title would get some traffic). But then I stumble across this little group, all harking back to one of my first entries on this Munu blog. I can't quite follow the thread's logic but it's nice to be talked about, even if in obscure parts of the net.

That said, this is an obscure part of the net too. Funny how things work.

Workwear tip no 1: hand-knitted pink "Hello Kitty" jumpers (sweaters to you Sepos) are not appropriate for the workplace. And get that flippin' hampster off your screensaver.

You know the drill: eat well, exercise regularly and clean living and you'll live a good long life. Apparently not.

From the world of law we bring you these breaking stories: heh. And heh heh.

The lesson: sometimes there's too much of a good thing.

In its continuing educational series on how democracy with Chinese characteristics works by Xinhua, China's news agency, today's instalment comes courtesy of a drafter of Hong Kong's Basic Law. He endorses the idea of one man, one vote - so long as that one man is living in Beijing and running the CCP. This new article is actually quite interesting, as it now appears drafters of the Basic Law have a side in channelling Deng Xiapong's thoughts:

When designing the political system Hong Kong would be under after China resumed its exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong in 1997, Deng said in 1987 that Hong Kong should not adopt a totally Westernized system, copying the Western one, and called for a system based on the actual situation of Hong Kong.

Deng also said Hong Kong should be governed by the people of Hong Kong with patriots as its main body. Patriots, according to Deng, refers to those who respect his or her own nation, wholeheartedly support China's resumption of the exercise of sovereignty over Hong Kong, and do no harm to the region's prosperity and stability.

Under the Basic Law, Hong Kong is simply an administrative region under the direct jurisdiction of the central government, and the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, authorizes the region to practice a high degree of autonomy, said the professor.

In his Xinhua article, Xu also quoted late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping as saying he did not believe universal suffrage would necessarily be beneficial to Hong Kong.

Xu wrote that Deng's comments are still valid today and that direct elections have resulted in ``anti-central government'' activists and supporters of Taiwan independence being elected....``From Hong Kong's perspective, will universal suffrage be favourable? I don't believe this,'' Deng was quoted as saying. ``For example, Hong Kong affairs must be managed by Hong Kong people themselves in the future. Would it be feasible if these people were elected through universal suffrage? ``People who manage Hong Kong should be Hong Kong people who love our motherland and love Hong Kong. Will universal suffrage result in this kind of people being elected?'' Deng asked.

That sound is the door slamming shut. This is all going to inspire Taiwan to really embrace the "one country, two systems" formula in the future too.