A little review and reflection at the end of 21 years

At the end of December 2021, the weather became colder after the typhoon. In the desperate situation of the dying years, I gather around the fireplace with my friends and talk with each other regardless of position. There are some contents worth thinking about again and again, and I have the right to make a little review and reflection.

1. Hong Kong is really a city that has been stagnant for 20 years. The changes that people can observe are all external. It is not technological innovation, or old things are broken and replaced with new ones. However, the core of society, including community governance and public sentiment, have all been frozen, let alone political development. This problem originated from the fact that the government continued to centralize power after the killing of the Municipal Council, instead of delegating power to the district councils. Until 2019, when citizens were dissatisfied and demanded changes, some "Yellow" district councilors showed citizens how to practice civic awareness and made attempts at community self-governance. In the 1980s, it was often said that there were four little dragons in Asia (namely, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan). After 20 or 30 years, only South Korea and Taiwan have developed better due to democratization. In Singapore, even if it remains largely the same system, the ruling party feels threatened to win over public opinion to a greater extent. Hong Kong, however, fears overturning the results of the 19-year elections, and keeps calling for the withdrawal of power. If society does not advance, it will retreat.

2. Hong Kong gets the worst of both worlds between democracy and autocracy, with both the shortcomings of autocracy and the disadvantages of democracy. Both the British government left behind the civil service and parliamentary systems, which were originally used to divide powers and balances. After 19 years, political checks and balances have been eliminated, and after the centralization of power, bureaucrats only seek rewards from power and do not hold people accountable. Originally, targeting power has become a dictatorship machine, and it is not responsible for mistakes, let alone admit mistakes. It can be seen from the epidemic prevention measures in Hong Kong that even those who support the government cannot breathe. Because the goal that officials are chasing: customs clearance with the country; and requires an impossible method: clearing. When the country also resorted to "dynamic clearing" in response to reality, Hong Kong continued to tighten. With the third needle and stricter travel requirements for peace of mind, even bankers and pilots who used to be guests of honor were not spared. Death after the fight against the epidemic will never have anything to do with the epidemic, but it is revealed that officials entering and exiting the "private sinus" for enjoyment are useless to travel with peace of mind and have no consequences. What kind of injustice should the people complain about? As a result, like Icarus chasing the sun and falling to his death, it is Hong Kong's international status.

3. What kind of Hong Kong did the Northland want to take back? I just realized today that the starting point of the 50 years is not 97, but 80 years ago. Jia Ci often said that he could not see the 2046 deadline. In recent years, he no longer said that because the deadline has been changed to 2030. In the 21st year, Northland finally got what it wanted, returning to an era when Hong Kong people had no chance to participate in politics and could only eat. The natives of Hong Kong, of course, regard it as a failed promise, and some people vote with their feet on any position. However, there is another picture from some Hong Kong drifters and Bei drifters. Some Hong Kong drifters are willing to become Hong Kongers and bear the fate of Hong Kong. They believe that compared with the Northland, Hong Kong still has some free space and development opportunities, and even blame the locals for not cherishing the need to go to other places to be a low-end population. It's not that some people don't know that Beiguo's unbearable retort, but they think that it has been stagnant for 20 years, and the situation of "perfecting" the rules of the game at least make a move! However, when asked what kind of Hong Kong they want and what Hong Kong will look like in the future, the response they get is either sharing the glory of the Greater Bay Area, or some sense that it is good as long as the society is stable. In fact, as long as they can live well, the rest are waiting for the adults, right? Or even the adults in charge of the throne have no clues in their hearts?

4. However, if Hong Kong can still be honored for 20 or 30 years, just like the glory claimed by the Northern Kingdom, what my generation complains about today will be laughed at? As Huang Zihua said with a smile, the post-1997 repatriates regret immigrating because they couldn't return to the brave ones they used to be? What I call the issue of historicism is that the present is not the past without adequate consideration of the circumstances of the day. Does it prove the mistake of today's resistance, just as the traffic light turns on and you must buy every time you are in the middle of it? Just like the way to deal with historicalism, the key is whether our generation can persevere for the sake of "good": insisting on freedom is more important than earning ten times more, insisting on truth is more important than stability, insisting on love is more important than interests, and even paying a heavy price for all of the above regret. However, how many Hong Kong people who have always been practical can do, and how much they regret in the end, can only be known if the struggles today have become history.