Eric Loh

I see the current situation in Hong Kong quite similar to 1997. As 1997 approached, citizens were quite apprehensive and actually quite fearful of what's going to happen after the hand-over. Hong Kong citizens were descendants of Chinese immigrants from China in the 60s and saw the killings during the Cultural Revolution when the educated and rich were singled out and massacred. There was a feeling that something similar will happen when the UK handover Hong Kong. Many leave for Canada and Australia and SEA countries, mostly those who can afford to leave. The 1997 handover was peaceful and there were no deterioration of social activities nor economy and subsequently citizens returned. It will likely to be the same this time when the better sense prevailed and the demonstrations fizzled out. Trump is just playing his China card for his domestic supporters. US will not follow through with all those threats. 

9 minutes ago, yuyiinthesky said:

What a pity that you're backing out. I was looking forward to your answer about CCP’s preferred and supported president.

Look no further; Biden will work with other allies to confront China which is something Trump unable to do. 

1 minute ago, heybruce said:

When that's the best you've got, well....

Actually quite apt if either it symbolized fiddler on the roof metaphor for surviving in Trump's life of uncertainty or Nero metaphor on fiddling while US pandemic raged. 

2 minutes ago, yuyiinthesky said:

So you’re saying that the CCP supports Biden but does not support Trump?

Or in other words, the US should make Biden the next president to get the support and masks of the CCP coming in?

Really doesn't matter any which way as Biden will be the next POTUS. You need to pace yourself till November. The old ticker may not handle this well. 

2 minutes ago, yuyiinthesky said:

How about Biden, the CCP will supply him? Dies he have to get on his knees too?

Biden will have everything ship shaped before the pandemic strike. He has more energy than Trump moving up and down the ramp.

4 minutes ago, yuyiinthesky said:

I’m sure your friends at the CCP will happily supply them. 

Only if Trump gets on his knees. 

Someone dropped the ball again. The Strategic National Stockpile is still short of 30 million N95 masks. After 5 months of pandemic, Trump administration still behind the curve. 

Better keep Ms Maxwell safe and have guards watching her 24/7. Something is building up with the usual unscrupulous characters in the fray. SDNY deputy attorney Audrey Strauss was involved in Maxwell arrest just a week after Bill Barr Friday night massacre. I am sure Trump will be tweeting on this and hang out a pardon carrot soon. 

2 hours ago, Isaan sailor said:

So, would the Chinese bullet train (75% of which will be built by the Chinese) qualify as an infrastructure improvement?  Not sure how that could help Thailand.

 

 

Not really a bullet train but rather a high-speed train network; part of the road & belt project. Politics aside, it is a good project for the land-locked Indo-China hinterland as well as the provinces in South West China as it provides trading opportunities and movement of goods and services. There is another train project between Thailand and Mynmar which has been stalled numerous times. I think due to series of government changes in Thailand. This will benefit immensely for both countries as Mynmar deep sea ports are few. I feel that Thailand can play an key role being the center of commerce and trading hub for hinterland countries just like Singapore in the 60s which was the center of trade for Malaysia and Indonesia. Just need good visionaires in the government who recognize the potential and do something about it. Not this junta government unfortunately. Too much self interest and corruption.                                                 

11 minutes ago, looking on the bright side said:

Why should Russians want US out of Afghanistan? They experienced bad times there, US helped to be so, and now they can see US is having trouble there. Talibans are controlling  a huge portion of Afghanistan, US is spending millions or billions to keep its strong influence ,what for? Russians now can only have satisfaction to see it is not really going well for US there. But, Russians are correct and wise ,so they refused  to sell any kind of arms to Talibans when they asked for . Russians don't like Talibans, ISIS and whatever comes as an extremist group. They are happy to cooperate with US army.

Geo-politics dominance. Now that Putin got his lifetime presidency, he will pursue his ambition to have bigger clout in strategic regions such as the Middle East and North Africa. Weakening of NATO is falling into place. Afghanistan is strategic as the country front Russia's southern border and the presence of American soldiers is a threat. ISIL is a threat too and Afghanistan is key to Russia security. 

5 hours ago, tonbridgebrit said:

Yes, helping the people of Hong Kong would be great. Offering residency to the pre 97 BNO's ???

Well, I myself don't have a problem with the British government doing this. But will the government actually allow roughly 3 million Hong Kong Chinese to enter and work in Britain ? I really doubt it. Lots of people in Britain simply don't want anymore coloureds to come into Britain. I mean, if people don't want lots of Eastern Europeans to come into Britain, and them Eastern Europeans are actually white, well, they're certainly not going to want a load of coloureds to come in.

On the other hand, UK is way down the list of preferred immigration destination. Hong Kong citizens don't feel vibrancy and opportunity in UK's economy. 

11 minutes ago, looking on the bright side said:

It couldn't be more stupid, the dumbest of all. Why should Russians pay Talibans to kill US troops? Talibans have been enthusiastically doing it for years!  Russians don't need to waste their money. This anti-Trump group is desperate to remove him. But if he is such a bad president, the anti-Trumpers just should wait for the elections, what's the problem?  I'd say he is not  bad at all, and he has a great support  , and it scares the so-called leftist or whatever their brand is, only now it is more and more clear who really they are

Just saying. American soldiers are well trained and armed and thus hard to kill and adversary risk life and limp to beg one. A financial incentive may motivate them. Russia want US out of Afghanistan and deaths of American soldiers are sensitive to the general US public and can hasten the withdrawal. 

15 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

She probably hopes he loses. From seeing her on the tv I'd say she hates it all. I'd hate it all, most people would hate it all. I'm sure his children hate it all.

What exactly is Ivanka's role who is listed in the  'A' team do in the White House. "A" team gets the highest pay among all staffs. Seen any of her policies? 

The government must spend big domestically and generate jobs. Take this lull period to move Bangkok out with big scale infrastructure spending. Thailand has to re-model their economy to be less dependent on export. We have a big population that can generate a good domestic economy. Invest on infrastructure that can bolster internal spending and introduce policies to improve the wages of workers. For a start, abolish the minimum wage and allow market forces to dictate wages. Allow those sunset labour intensive industries to fade away or mechanised their operation to be less dependent on cheap labour or move them to poorer provinces. Focus trading with the Indo-China countries which are fast developing and develop the required infrastructures to tap their potential. This government unfortunately has been wrecked by in-fighting and power struggle and have very little talent nor vision. I sincerely think they don't have the competency nor ability to help the economy.   

1 minute ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Now that Trump has doubled down on his denials and called the whole thing a hoax, he has no reason at all to withhold witnesses called to give testimony before the Intelligence Committees. 

Even his denial is incoherent and hard to believe. First he said he didn't see the intelligence brief then pivot to the intelligent report didn't amount to a sufficient credibility and now it's a hoax. 

13 minutes ago, GinBoy2 said:

The horrible reality is that there is little or nothing the outside world can do to stop this.

 

The security law, and what I think is often often lost in that, is the establishment of a mainland security force in HK, is essentially the end of One Country Two Systems.

 

So the US will end the special privileges it gives HK. The EU will make some mealy mouth statement that they are 'concerned'. The UK which is supposed to guarantee the agreement is basically powerless. The days of them sending a couple of gunboats up the river are over!

 

So what do we do. The only thing we can do, try to help as many people as possible.

 

Kudos to the British for offering residency to pre 97 BNO's, although they should have done that back in 97, but thats good.

In the US there are bipartisan bills in Congress to give refugee status to Hong Kongers, similar to the Chinese Student Protection Act back in 1992 after Tiananmen, of which I have a very good friend who benefited from it after being part of the student protests

In Taiwan, with the delicate balance they have to walk, have set up a 'special office' for those at political risk. Which in double speak means that they will probably give an RoC passport to anyone who shows up

Hong Kong citizens have been migrating abroad throughout its history. In 1967 to the mid-1970s, social instability resulted in many richer citizens to leave. The Tiananmen Square incident triggered mass migration up to the 1990s. Strangely after 1997, some Hong Kong born emigrants returned to Hong Kong with foreign citizenship. With this current pro-democracy movement and China's security law, almost 50,000 people emigrated in the last 2 years. The citizens are free to emigrate but unlikely to be in the scale of the 'boat people' of Vietnam. 

1 hour ago, Damual Travesty said:

Now he wants Americans to wear masks. Yet I distinctly remember them saying don't wear masks it's safe to ride the packed to the gills NY subway and trains to NJ without masks. Go to hell  Fauci - all this clown is trying to do now is cover his ass. They have all been nothing more then mealy mouth worms who give nothing concrete . It's up to the herd to protect itself old style now - build up immunity and get strong.

 

No economy can survive a prolonged lock-down, the people are now confused. They are confused because the medical leadership of the USA - and for that matter - most of Europe - and the USA got conflicting advice from the medical professionals on what do do - they also failed to prepare - failed to sound alarms - failed in every way. The President, politicians - etc - all turned to these clowns and they simply spit garbage day after day. Time for them to simply step aside and shut their mouths. They are no longer relevant.

 

I am sure that in every closed door meeting him and that other woman whatever her name was left everyone at the table confused with their double sideways incomprehensible medical CYA speeches! Get lost!

Seem a convenient topic to get at Dr. Fauci from the Trumpers if taken out of context. Fauci was concerned at that time when personal protective equipment like masks including the N95 and surgical masks were in short supply and needed by the front line workers and emergency personnel and thus made that statement that masks not recommended to the general public as it was needed by the first responders. Around that time in April, the National Strategic Stockpile was depleted thanks to Trump.

The medical leadership was the best thing that was and is still happening when the nation leadership was and is still spouting non science nonsense and making false assumptions. The economic meltdown is being prolonged because of poor leader like Trump who surrendered his responsibilities to state governors to make decision rather than a federal policies. Every states were doing their own version of re-opening with some following CDC guidelines and some totally ignore. 

34 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

While Fauci rants on about the cases there is no mention of the substantial drop in mortality rates. 

 

Nor is there any mention of what one can do to build up their immune system. Diet. Exercise. Attitude. Just the same stuff we have been hearing for months now. 

This was what Dr. Fauci said about drop in covid 19 mortality rates in case you missed it.

An important point to keep in mind is that it takes time before people infected with the coronavirus get sick enough to die. “Deaths always lag considerably behind cases,” Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infectious disease specialist, said at a congressional hearing last week. A month ago, there were fewer COVID-19 cases per day, so death rates now could be reflecting those numbers. Some experts expect death rates will rise over the next month to reflect the current surge in cases,