OC no more

I thank God for bestowing on me an intelligent daughter. Over a glass of whisky, we discussed the current situation in Hong Kong, Occupy Central. But it is OC no more. Her analysis outgrows mine. I can rest contended.

The movement, sometimes known internationally as the  Umbrella Revolution, becomes spontaneous. But it is not a revolution. The participants have no wish to overthrow the current regime. They do not want the Central Government to thrust CE candidates down their throats. They want real choices of CE candidates. Only then can universal suffrage be meaningful. Most people of Hong Kong don't want to become rubber stamps.
Anyway, the organizors of Occupy Central are no longer commanders of this movement which spills over to Causeway Bay, Tsim Sha Tsui and Mongkok. Journalists from BBC and CNN come to report it. Information Technology is fully made use of, FaceBook, WhatsApp and Twsitter etc. What about the supply line? People barbecued $12,000 of sausages to feed the protesters in Admiralty out of their own pockets. HKSAR realized that it was a blunder to send in riot police and to teargas the crowd. Now, they take a softy approach, hoping to wear the protesters down. The protesters may not last long, especially when they thin out to different parts of the city.

Of course, there are elements which worry people. Barbecues? It looks like a carnival. At the beginning, the organizers implicitly conjured up the image of Boston Tea Party by calling upon people to "attend a wedding banquet" as a code-name to occupy Central. The party merrying elements remind people of the early phase of June 4 massacre... Now, we see banners hanging over the footbridges declaring that this is not a party.
Moreover, the local TV stations are not truly autonomous in reporting. Some key messages of the OC organizers and student leaders are imperceptibly edited out in their news reports. This is understandable and I hope the IT literacy of the crowd is able to overcome this disadvantage.
Lastly, the shopkeepers and residents are annoyed. They lose business and are sometimes disturbed by the slogan chantings of the crowd. In fact, one of my students whom I enjoy talking on a par intellectually was emotionally disturbed when he saw me wearing a yellow ribbon in school. His father would be unable to seal a $500,000 deal because of the movement! I feel sorry about it. He, among many other honest business men, is an innocent collateral casualty. But who can be immune from suffering under an unfair government? Yesterday, he suffered. Today, you. Tomorrow, your son will! If you choose to suffer silently, it is your choice. But you cannot stop others from voicing their plights and to fight for their better future.

There is a lack of understanding especially among the elderly like me. I received WhatsApp messages, quoting a senior scholar who disagreed pessimistically with what the young people are doing on the ground. He is an admirable armchair historian. Though history almost always repeats itself, we can see a lot of encouraging elements in the movement. Young people collect rubbish on the ground. People are truly peaceful and even stop other from charging against the police. They are rational. When the ambulance services request the crowd to open up a through lane for emergency vehicles, it is done. Hong Kong is well known internationally as a city of demonstrations. We are proud of our peaceful and environmentally friendly demonstrations. We can be exemplars.

I invoked the Archangels on September 29. I will call upon the Guardian Angels tomorrow. And I can see that God is answering our prayers. May God be glorified forever and ever. Amen.