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China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

bloomberg.com

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Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#21

Post by arcticbull »

dontbenebby wrote: post #8
steveooo wrote: post #5

A significant number of the seats in Hong Kong government are voted/belong to "industry/corporations", and these have been able to decide the Government recently. China buying control of the corporations will further subvert the democracy.

Sounds like their cup didn't runneth over with democracy even beforehand... that's bizarre. Like a modern House of Lords that just leans into giving corps a seat in government...

IMO this has to do with Beijing's pushback in the mid 1900s against expanded political freedoms in what I would assume was an anticipation of the end of the 99 year lease on the New Territories [1] and the fact that HK was caught as the middle region in a multi-circle Venn diagram (between China, the UK, the US and other regional powers). They weren't able to really push any one thing too far in any direction without pissing off one of them. So they focused on what they could control: creating an incredibly effective financial center. Corporations in HK don't have nearly as much power in the US as if they pulled to far, someone would come knocking.

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/28/world/asia/china-began-pu...

Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#22

Post by coliveira »

jryle70 wrote: post #19
hanniabu wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A significant number of the seats in Hong Kong government are voted/belong to "industry/corporations" Sounds like they're pulling an America

No, since when America practicing functional constituency [0]? It was invented long before 1997 when HK was still under British rule, nothing to do with China, so I think you can take easy with whataboutism. [0] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Functional_constituency_(Hong_...

The problems of Hong Kong started with colonization by the British. But of course only now the western journalists are worried.

Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#23

Post by dantheman »

coliveira wrote: post #20
steveooo wrote: post #5

A significant number of the seats in Hong Kong government are voted/belong to "industry/corporations", and these have been able to decide the Government recently. China buying control of the corporations will further subvert the democracy.

Companies are buying the American democracy through lobbying and campaign contributions. The disastrous decision of the supreme court called "Citizens United" puts the US in a similar situation as Hong Kong. That's why the flow of foreign money (including Russian money) will not stop to influence US politics in the foreseeable future.

Citizens united was about people not losing their individual rights when they group together.

Do you have a problem with someone writing a book about a presidential candidate?

If not, why would you have a problem with a movie being released?

Do you think newspapers and tv shows should endorse candidates? Or choose which ones to cover and how much to cover?

Citizens united is incredibly misunderstood.

If anything, the problem is that there is so much money being spent by the federal government that it makes sense to try and and get it.

Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#24

Post by ethbro »

dantheman wrote: post #23
coliveira wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Companies are buying the American democracy through lobbying and campaign contributions. The disastrous decision of the supreme court called "Citizens United" puts the US in a similar situation as Hong Kong. That's why the flow of foreign money (including Russian money) will not stop to influence US politics in the foreseeable future.

Citizens united was about people not losing their individual rights when they group together. Do you have a problem with someone writing a book about a presidential candidate? If not, why would you have a problem with a movie being released? Do you think newspapers and tv shows should endorse candidates? Or choose which ones to cover and how much to cover? Citizens united is incredibly misunderstood. If anything, the…

Let's not pretend corporations are groups of people.

Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#26

Post by NeedMoreTea »

steveooo wrote: post #5

A significant number of the seats in Hong Kong government are voted/belong to "industry/corporations", and these have been able to decide the Government recently. China buying control of the corporations will further subvert the democracy.

"recently"?

That's how it was designed by Beijing. Every single Chief Exec since handover has been Beijing's choice, and the legislature balance has always been in Beijing's majority. That's because the proportion of votes to each trade and whether an industry gets a vote at all was decided in proportion of how Beijing sympathetic they were. There's more - Wikipedia has the full absurdity.

That is how you create a show democracy, with show elections, and give the impression there is democracy to subvert.

Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#28

Post by seibelj »

coliveira wrote: post #20
steveooo wrote: post #5

A significant number of the seats in Hong Kong government are voted/belong to "industry/corporations", and these have been able to decide the Government recently. China buying control of the corporations will further subvert the democracy.

Companies are buying the American democracy through lobbying and campaign contributions. The disastrous decision of the supreme court called "Citizens United" puts the US in a similar situation as Hong Kong. That's why the flow of foreign money (including Russian money) will not stop to influence US politics in the foreseeable future.

Citizens United was the an extremely beneficial ruling IMO. Your opinion on it being a “disaster” is not a fact, it is an opinion. Citizens United allows everyone who wants to, whether its corporations or unions or groups of people, to make their case directly to citizens. This is a Good Thing. It also isn’t the case that spending hundreds of millions of dollars guarantees you a victory, as the recent example of billionaire Tom Steyer entering the presidential race and being unable to qualify for the debates despite millions of dollars spent on advertising.

Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#29

Post by mochris »

dantheman wrote: post #23
coliveira wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Companies are buying the American democracy through lobbying and campaign contributions. The disastrous decision of the supreme court called "Citizens United" puts the US in a similar situation as Hong Kong. That's why the flow of foreign money (including Russian money) will not stop to influence US politics in the foreseeable future.

Citizens united was about people not losing their individual rights when they group together. Do you have a problem with someone writing a book about a presidential candidate? If not, why would you have a problem with a movie being released? Do you think newspapers and tv shows should endorse candidates? Or choose which ones to cover and how much to cover? Citizens united is incredibly misunderstood. If anything, the…

Citizens United was a travesty, beloved only by the naive and the fascist, and I do not believe you are naive.

Re: China Seeks to Buy Control of Hong Kong Companies

#30

Post by paganel »

spuz wrote: post #25
popotamonga wrote: post #2

Thats is the obvious move. Can't beat them into submission? Buy them.

Obvious in what way? The protestors are not the same people who run these companies as far as I am aware so not sure what you're referring to.

Not the OP, but I guess that most of those protesters work for said Hong Kong companies and when your new politically-appointed boss tells you that you either fall in line or you can go and look for another job I think most of those protesters will choose to fall in line.
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