Unpacking Hong Kong’s laws, 25 years after handover: 5 rulings on Basic Law where Beijing, not the city’s courts, had final say in key cases
NPC Standing Committee’s interpretations ‘averted migrant crisis, improved Hongkongers’ understanding of Basic Law’. ⌘ Read more
Syed Saddiq faced ‘pressure’ by Malaysia’s PPBM, his parents say during corruption trial
Parents of the former youth minister, who was sacked from PPBM for objecting to the party’s defection in 2020, say he is a ‘political victim’. ⌘ Read more
Police officer fired and 5 placed under investigation over attack in women in Chinese city of Tangshan
A deputy district commander was dismissed from his post with the others being investigated by the local disciplinary watchdog ⌘ Read more
President Xi Jinping’s ‘deep feelings’ for Hong Kong highlighted by state media as city prepares to mark 25th anniversary of handover
Article, headlined ‘Hong Kong’s development is always close to my heart’ compiles a number of Xi’s past speeches which touched on city. ⌘ Read more
‘We will not give up’: wife of jailed Chinese coal magnate vows to push for new trial after he loses appeal
Zhao Faqi’s 7½-year sentence for bribery and theft of state secrets was upheld in verdict that lasted just a few minutes, according to his wife Cathy Li. ⌘ Read more
Before the storm (2007-2012): Hong Kong’s national pride and a rare political deal in 25 photos
The city weathered the global financial crisis in a relatively calmer period domestically, but the seeds of activism were sowed over the demolition of Queen’s Pier. ⌘ Read more
China’s political party school in Africa takes first students from 6 countries
120 cadres from ruling parties attend workshop at the US$40 million facility in Tanzania funded by the Chinese Communist Party. ⌘ Read more
Satire in Hong Kong: ‘You have to laugh, or you will cry,’ says political cartoonist Harry Harrison
Hong Kong’s satire today takes the shape of internet memes, cartoons, protest props, chants of clever word plays, and derivative works to express opposition. ⌘ Read more
Debate over whether Hong Kong was indeed British colony reflects lack of education on Chinese constitution, lawmakers say
Pro-Beijing legislators say some residents have misunderstandings about history due to lack of education about Basic Law and nation’s constitution. ⌘ Read more
Should Philippines’ Marcos be ‘on guard’ as Sara Duterte is sworn in early, meets China envoy?
The VP-elect’s move to take her oath 11 days early, in a ceremony attended by diplomats including China’s ambassador, shows she remains a ‘force’ beyond her office, analysts say. ⌘ Read more
Coronavirus: hotel quarantine for top Hong Kong officials, advisers and lawmakers cut to 1 day ahead of July 1 celebrations; city logs 1,186 local cases
According to a memo seen by the Post, guests at celebratory events to mark handover will have to undergo seven days of self-management from June 23 to 29. ⌘ Read more
Beijing wants this Guangzhou district to become young Hongkongers ‘new home’, but what will make it work?
Heads of Hong Kong-based associations urge incoming government to support proposal to turn Guangzhou district of Nansha into ‘new home’ for young talent. ⌘ Read more
Rights and wrongs of US-China dispute over the Taiwan Strait
China is correct that the Taiwan Strait is not ‘international waters’. And the US is right that warships and warplanes have the right to pass through. But for the US, exercising that right is a political decision and complicates the issue of the status of Taiwan and the one-China policy. ⌘ Read more
Beijing underlines its jurisdiction and desire for urgent action by laying down targets for incoming Hong Kong leader, analysts say
‘The new team must have the sense of a mission to deliver after taking up their positions in July,’ one expert says. ⌘ Read more
China chalks up success in push to promote favoured candidates on international bodies
The country’s representative has secured another term on a leading UN maritime body that rules on important economic and political disputes. ⌘ Read more
Who will help John Lee run Hong Kong? A quick guide to old and new faces on his governing team
Among 21 key figures, seven are from incumbent administration, two have been promoted from undersecretary, six are serving or recently retired civil servants, and another six are newcomers. ⌘ Read more
China names Han ex-environmental protection officer to head ethnic affairs office
Pan Yue will be the second member of China’s dominant ethnic group to head the office responsible for minorities. ⌘ Read more
Chinese President Xi Jinping says country has won an ‘overwhelming’ victory in corruption battle – but warns more work is needed to tackle problem
In a speech to the Politburo, Xi says he hopes that officials will not even by tempted by corrupt activities. ⌘ Read more
Disappeared Chinese coal tycoon who took on top judge to hear appeal verdict
Case relates to judicial scandal involving lost court papers, a celebrity whistle-blower and a jailed judge who ruled on Zhao’s mining dispute with state firm. ⌘ Read more
Beijing approves Hong Kong Chief Executive-elect John Lee’s cabinet line-up
Long-time bureaucrat Eric Chan becomes chief secretary, Financial Secretary Paul Chan to stay in current post. ⌘ Read more
Is abortion legal in China, how common is it and why is it controversial?
The procedure is legal and widely available across the country but it is also used as a means of population and social control. ⌘ Read more
Will Indonesia’s Jokowi start his own political party to cement his legacy?
The president’s lobby group Projo says it may register as a political party as talk swirls of officials mulling a constitutional change to allow third terms. ⌘ Read more
Chinese firm’s hopes of resolving royalties row at massive DR Congo copper and cobalt mine hits political hurdle
Chinese mining company denies that court-appointed administrator has taken control of operation. ⌘ Read more
Chinese disciplinary watchdog to investigate after bank protesters flagged as health risk
The Zhengzhou commission for discipline inspection says it has started a probe into why angry depositors found their health codes had suddenly turned red. ⌘ Read more
Singapore’s Pink Dot gay pride rally returns, as MP from ruling party attends for first time – and in a pink T-shirt
After two years of Covid postponements, LGBT event returns, with excitement that archaic colonial-era Section 377A Penal Code law criminalising sex between men will soon be repealed. ⌘ Read more
Greater Bay Area: can China ‘integrate’ Hong Kong into its southern economic powerhouse?
Some Hongkongers are trying their luck on the mainland and excited about the opportunities, but for others the idea of integration is ‘unconvincing’. ⌘ Read more
Huge blaze at Shanghai Sinopec plant kills one
Roaring fire at one of China’s biggest refining and petrochemicals plants started around 4am. ⌘ Read more
Why Singapore may be edging closer to scrapping Section 377A criminalising gay sex – and what would happen if it did
Surveys show growing support for abolishing the colonial-era law that makes sex between men illegal, but other policies could be tightened to appease the city state’s conservatives if it is scrapped. ⌘ Read more
Incoming Hong Kong leader John Lee finalises cabinet line-up, submits list to Beijing for consideration
John Lee pledges to announce the list once it receives the green light from Beijing. ⌘ Read more
Malaysian lawyers’ ‘walk for judicial independence’ gets off on the wrong foot
Hundreds of lawyers, angry about ‘anti-corruption’ probe into judge who convicted former PM Najib Razak in 1MDB scandal, were unable to begin protest walk as police blocked two car park exits. ⌘ Read more
Candidates running for Hong Kong arts body will need to get nominations from powerful Election Committee to ensure ‘national security elements’ addressed
Change will bring the Arts Development Council poll in line with others held under Beijing’s ‘patriots-only’ electoral shake-up, the Home Affairs Bureau says. ⌘ Read more
Tangshan restaurant attack suspect was wanted by Chinese authorities over previous crimes
One of the man accused of attacking women in a restaurant was named as a fugitive in court records over a previous assault. ⌘ Read more
Malaysia’s economic challenge shows how politics has become a bottleneck for growth
Even as emerging market economies like Malaysia grapple with the repercussions of the pandemic and Ukraine war, they tend to put off the more difficult structural adjustments necessary for growth. In Malaysia, meagre private-sector investments stems from a lack of confidence in government policies. ⌘ Read more
New railway completes 2,700km loop of Taklamakan Desert in move to integrate Xinjiang with rest of China
China State Railway Group says new 825km Hotan-Ruoqiang railway will ‘play a role in boosting ethnic unity, strengthening national defence’. ⌘ Read more
South Korea and Japan look to move forward and ‘normalise’ information-sharing by keeping their tense history in the past
South Korea’s Foreign Minister Park Jin wants to settle old disputes and revive a military information agreement thought to have lost steam under Seoul’s previous government. ⌘ Read more
Hong Kong’s biggest health crisis in 25 years: why did city stumble over Covid-19? Experts say it was too slow to change tactics, inflexible, put politics first
Insistence on ‘zero infections’ left authorities unable to act swiftly when Omicron variant of coronavirus arrived, experts say. ⌘ Read more
Who can fill the shoes of China’s Iron Lady Sun Chunlan on Politburo?
For two years she has ruled the country’s Covid-19 response with an iron fist, but at 72 the vice-premier is expected to step down at this year’s party congress. ⌘ Read more
Western-style democracy behind wars, chaos and human misery, Chinese president tells top officials
Some Western nations use democracy and human rights as a pretext to meddle overseas, Xi Jinping told Politburo study session in February. ⌘ Read more
Incoming Hong Kong leader John Lee relies mostly on incumbent officials to fill ranks of his governing team
Among 21 principal officials tipped to be recruited by Lee, only six not from current administration. ⌘ Read more
Chinese shipyard ready to launch Type 003 aircraft carrier, satellite images show
The dry dock has been flooded so the vessel can be floated, and banners with political slogans and flags can be seen on the warship. ⌘ Read more
Senior state officials laud ‘one country, two systems’ policy for Hong Kong, voice confidence in city’s prosperity and ‘quality democracy’
Huang Liuquan, HKMAO deputy director, says anyone betting on demise of city has ‘never won’. ⌘ Read more
‘No basis’ for attack fears in China’s new rules for PLA activities
Regulation covers PLA missions from disaster relief to humanitarian aid and peacekeeping, as well as its response to political crises at home and overseas. ⌘ Read more
China’s party congress promotions to emphasise political security
Appointments are expected to sharpen focus on potential threats to the state and draw a line under the corruption scandals of recent years. ⌘ Read more
Sanctioned hardline former Xinjiang chief Chen Quanguo moves to rural affairs role for ‘last job before retirement’
Chen Quanguo, the most senior official sanctioned by the US over alleged human rights abuses, is expected to spearhead a crackdown on rural gangs in his new post. ⌘ Read more
Can Joe Biden’s proposed Middle East trip unite fractured region by aligning militaries against Iran?
The US President will visit Saudi Arabia in mid-July for a scheduled summit, where he is expected to table a “national security programme” for Israel and eight Arab states, to integrate their militaries into an alliance against Iran. ⌘ Read more
Veteran Chinese human rights lawyers expected to face trial soon
Xu Zhiyong and Ding Jiaxi were both arrested after attending a meeting to discuss the development of civil society and charged with subverting state power ⌘ Read more
Why Hong Kong may need to discuss whether all its judges should be Chinese nationals ahead of 2047: city’s first chief justice Andrew Li
City needs to be prepared should fewer non-permanent, overseas judges be available to serve in next 10 years, he says. ⌘ Read more
lw karma political compass
to fend off possible accusations of bias: good leftist humor was /r/liftcommunism, /leftypol/ was great too sometimes, and I liked the political catgirl comics. Existential Comics is not funny (except the Beetle in the Box comic), although some of the old comics were indeed existenital. I don’t have a strong opinion on /r/COMPLETEANARCHY and /r/FULLCOMMUNISM.
@adi@twtxt.net Also, I noticed you followed me on Twitter, but you might enjoy @anths if you want techie stuff instead of Oregon politics. 🤣
Conservative leadership race turns nasty between Poilievre and Brown
Scomo’s Political Trainwreck ⌘ Read more
After the decline of traditional faith, the ensuing churn of political religions makes me believe that total religiosity is largely conserved; we’ve just been shuffling it around between better or worse vessels. The Theory of Displacement Value
»In an apparently non-political case of imitation of Quảng Đức, the young son of an American officer based at the U.S. Embassy in Saigon doused himself with gasoline and set himself on fire. He was seriously burned before the fire was extinguished and later could only offer the explanation that “I wanted to see what it was like.”« lmao
Maybe I should write down my political views and thoughts in extra posts on my German blog in the future, instead of putting them in the monthly review and then translating them as well. English readers probably won’t get much out of it… Sorry! ✌️ ⌘ Read more
‘Trump filed a lawsuit Monday in DC District Court against the House select committee investigating the January 6 insurrection and the National Archives in an effort to keep records from his presidency secret by claiming executive privilege.’ — CNN Politics
That only increases one’s curiosity about what’s in them.
Traffic Jam’s on Highway’s and Roads emerge from users, not highway or roads infrastructure. #sarcasm href=”https://txt.sour.is/search?q=%23disinfo”>#disinfo** ⌘ Read more
Germany’s Far-Right Political Party, the AfD, Is Dominating Facebook This Election – The Markup ⌘ Read more
I was on a call this evening discussing various redistricting proposals. Some dude seriously asserted that over-representation by Multnomah county in regional politics might lead to… genocide. 😳
On the blog: Age Cohorts, Ruining Things, and Apocalypses https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2021/08/15/generations.html #rant #politics
On the blog: Free Culture Book Club — Typhoon, Part 2 https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2021/08/14/typhoon2.html Generations in a Nutshell https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2021/08/15/generations.html #rant #politics
identity politics defection from class warfare, maybe?
@niplav@niplav.github.io “Markov” sounds more like meaningless babble (maybe from a political opponent). See also: “duckspeak”.
Reading : Army of fake fans boosts China’s messaging on Twitter ⌘ Read more…
On the blog: Winning the Twenty-First Century https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2021/05/30/winning.html #rant #politics
The Problems with Utilitarianism
I originally wrote this essay in 2014 or 2015 in a Chinese buffet in Athens, Georgia. I’ve changed some of it and am re-adding it here. I talk about the issues with Utilitarianism and a bad book by Sam Harris.
At a dumb intuitive level, the “ethical” idea of Utilitarianism in principle gets pretty close to what most people reflexively want from social-political affairs: the greatest good for the greatest number of people—who … ⌘ Read more
Yay! Biden admin drops IP protection on Covid-19 vaccine patents. #TRIPSwaiver ⌘ Read more…
Peter Saint-Andre: Politically Independent ⌘ Read more…
On the blog: Asian Women in Fiction https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2021/03/21/asian.html #politics #harm #media
On the blog: Explaining Gender to the Biased https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2021/02/28/genders.html #quora #rant #politics
Acting as if one is Already Free: David Graeber’s Political Economy and the Strategic Impasse of the Left ⌘ Read more…
On the blog: An Unexpected Case for Reparations https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/02/14/reparations.html #politics #rant #community
Ad Watch by Persuasion Lab - Political ad spending Belgium Dashboard ⌘ https://ad.watch/country/belgium.html
On the blog: Loving It and/or Leaving It and What “It” Might Be https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/11/15/love-leave.html #rant #politics #media
I’m not particularly interested in foreign politics, never have been, but this is fucking gold https://imgur.com/uFQx4Ca
On the blog: Post-Election Reconciliation https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/11/08/reconciliation.html #politics #rant
My Neighbor Joined NXIVM Sex Cult; It Explains a Lot About Trump’s America ⌘ https://medium.com/politically-speaking/my-neighbor-joined-a-sex-cult-it-explains-a-lot-about-trumps-america-6b53697ddf41?_branch_match_id=850021123196509299
On the blog: Politics in Art and Technology https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/10/18/stories.html #politics #art #software #rant
On the blog: Free Culture Book Club — Where Are the Joneses? Part 4 https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/10/17/joneses4.html Politics in Art and Technology https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/10/18/stories.html #
On the blog: Voting as a Communal Activity https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/10/11/vote.html #politics #voting #rant
On the blog: The Fight of the Century (and The Last Century) https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/09/06/enlight.html #quora #freedom #philosophy #politics #rant
On the blog: Of Course Political Parties Don’t Reflect You! https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/08/30/parties.html #rant #politics
On the blog: Fiction — Grandfathers, Butterflies, and Patient Minus-One https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/08/16/butterfly.html #freeculture #creativecommons #politics
What devotees of sadomasochism do to their bodies is nothing compared to the torments that those addicted to the news and political commentary inflict on their minds almost every hour of the day. Ask HN: Is it just me? why is “news” so addictive? | Hacker News
Diversity at all costs: except diversity of opinion. Politically-correct witch-hunt is killing free speech | Hacker News
Politics matters most to slaves. ⌘
Why do I so rarely talk about politics on my channel? ⌘
On the blog: Re-Imagining Law Enforcement https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/05/31/police.html #history #philosophy #politics
Posted to Entropy Arbitrage: On Electability and Complicity https://john.colagioia.net/blog/2020/03/01/electability.html #politics #rant #voting
just finished the ‘It Could Happen Here’ podcast… i highly recommend it, required listening for the current political climate https://www.itcouldhappenherepod.com/
The Politics of Dr Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUxtQX9XSJs
Random link from the archives: http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/summer_movies/2006/06/watching_the_detectives.html originally archived Thu Aug 2 07:50:49 EDT 2018
The Politics of UFOs https://longreads.com/2019/04/11/the-politics-of-ufos/
Random link from the archives: https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/11/9/16614672/ideology-liberal-conservatives originally archived Fri Nov 10 08:36:31 EST 2017
I could never become a politician. They’d have to swear me in on a copy of the Principia Discordia, and I suspect swearing people in on the Principia might be the cause of our current political situation…
Robert Heinlein and the Harsh Politics of Science Fiction | Leaping Robot Blog | Patrick McCray http://www.patrickmccray.com/2013/09/12/robert-heinlein-and-the-harsh-politics-of-science-fiction/
All worldbuilding, without exception, is political | columns | Hindustan Times https://www.hindustantimes.com/columns/all-worldbuilding-without-exception-is-political/story-iE1Gc0R4ULSq8khLaJ1dEO.html
Campus political correctness: Data paints a different picture - Vox https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/12/17100496/political-correctness-data