China's Priorities

Okay, I know this is old news, but the article is interesting. A demonstration of how China operates, and what it values.

The short version:
Reporter A reveals that China sent troops to Vietnam. He receives a jail sentence of 15 years.

Reporter B reveals the contents of a Jiang Zemin's report one week before its scheduled to be released. He receives a jail sentence of life imprisonment.


Like the author states: "who would have thought that revealing military secrets were less severe than some report".
Hmm...

Medical Tourism

Medical tourism is something new to me. I've heard stories of Mainlanders coming to Hong Kong for quality medical treatment, and I've heard of Hong Kongers going to China for cheap medical treatment. However, this is the first time I've heard of people actually trying to promote "medical tourism" as a selling point.

Basically, Mainland Chinese will come to Hong Kong for medical treatment at private hospitals as tourists. They will be allowed an extended stay for their treatment. I guess running a hospital has long become a business rather than a service; I just didn't realize it.

Are private hospitals in financial trouble? Do they need patients from China to fill beds? Kwong Kwok-hay, assistant medical superintendent of the Hong Kong Sanatorium and Hospital said that the hospital is in short supply of nurses, and it is already at 90% capacity. He also brought up a very good point: what are they to do in the case of an emergency? They cannot send the "vacation patients" to a government hospital.

It is a shame that China cannot even take care of its own people's medical needs. Every time I see this type of incompetence from the Mainland, I think of all those people boasting about how great Shanghai is, and how it has overtaken Hong Kong in wealth and modernity. My response to that is, so what? China has such a poor infrastructure and social system. Crime and corruption is rampant. The rich are too rich, and the poor are too poor. Those rich have to come to Hong Kong for health care on a traveler's visa because their own government can't take care of them.

China's "free" Tours

Recently, there have been more and more reports on "zero fee" or low cost tour package groups visiting Hong Kong from China. The problem with these tours is that they are low cost, so tour agencies must make their money through commission from local shops that they take the tourists to. If the tourists make no purchases, the agency makes no money.

This policy has caused much confusion and unpleasant behavior among the tour groups visiting Hong Kong. A tour of Hong Kong has now evolved into one big shopping trip. Tour buses bypass famous landmarks, instead making stops only at overpriced jewelry and electronic shops. The trouble starts when tourists decide that they don't want to spend money.

A prominent case is when a tour group was forced to wait for 3 hours on the street for their tour bus, this was supposedly in retaliation for the group not making enough purchases at designated shops. Some opted to return to the hotel on their own, only to find out their hotel room key cards no longer worked. Naturally, arguments ensued and police got involved.
As it turns out, this type of behavior has happened many times already. Tour agencies threaten to confiscate hotel rooms if tourists don't spend enough money. The designated shops often jack up product prices in order to make enough for themselves and the tour agency. There have been many cases of tourists discovering their purchases are fake or not as promised.

As travel agencies in the Mainland continue to use "zero fee" as a selling point, Hong Kong agencies are getting fed up with having to deal with tour groups that don't make any money. Both sides are at fault. China tour groups should not keep pushing "zero fee" tours. Hong Kong agencies should not even accept this type of business unless it is absolutely clear that the tourists know the "rules" of the tour. They are wrong to put all the blame on agencies in China. The unwritten policies now are unethical and dishonest. The term "zero fee" is false advertising.

Get rid of the ambiguity, and people will start loving Hong Kong again.

He walks the walk... and that's about it

I'm beginning to wonder who is worse: Donald Tsang or George W. Bush. At least Bush doesn't bow down to communists.

Last night's "Lights Out" protest was considered a failure. I personally consider it a success, because it clearly showed us who really cares about the environment, and who does not. The result? The general public does, and the big corporations do not. Oh, and despite his claims to support the environment and clean air policies, Donald Tsang actually does not care about the environment.

Like the ignorant chunk of Hong Kong, he only cares about his own future and economic prosperity, blah blah. I can't believe this guy's approval rating actually went up 0.8%. Oh wait, I just realized that its from all the talking he's done in the past year. People support him because they're anxiously waiting for him to actually do something.

"I am determined to ensure that this standard will be complied with by the power companies. It is important".

This was Tsang's claim about a week ago. Hong Kong saw one of its worst weeks of poor air quality. So the good ol' crowd pleaser comes out to talk the talk as he usually does. However, when it came down to when it really mattered, Tsang refused to participate in the protest. He even went as far as refusing to postpone a light show scheduled for last night.

Yup, go ahead Tsang, just go do what you normally do. Go back to China and kiss some more communist ass. Hong Kong doesn't need you around to make false claims and put on a fucking show.

The King Responds

After not finding "grill marks" on my airport burger, I wrote a complaint to the company that franchised Burger King in Hong Kong. What I got was a prompt and detailed response. Let me share that here with all five of my readers.

The response was sincere, and I have no reason to doubt that BK does char-broil their patties, except for the fact that my burger lacked grill marks twice already. I believe that their airport branch is simply too busy at times, and they have a bit of a quality control issue. I have taken up on Sammy's meal voucher offer, and I hope to give BK a favorable report next time. Below are the photos (click to enlarge) that came with the email.

Give me grill marks!

I am a frequent airport visitor, so naturally I have tried all the restaurants at the Hong Kong International Airport. One exception would be Popeye's Chicken, because my fried chicken eating days are over. The food is all overpriced, as expected. The biggest disappointment however, is that Burger King's burgers are not char-broiled.

How is this possible? My impression was that BK prided themselves on serving their meat with grill marks. That tasty burnt carcinogenic flavor just goes well with beef. They basically took away the only reason anyone would choose BK over McDonald's. Oh well.

On to the price. I recognize that its airport prices, but lets just take a look at how outrageous they actually are:

McDonald's Double Cheeseburger = $8.00
Burger King Double Cheeseburger = $29.00

My regular MD meal consists of two double cheeseburgers and an order of corn = $29.00. At the airport, my meal is cut in half, plus I get no veggies. I feel bad for the people who work there and half to make this overpriced junk their daily intake.

(click to enlarge at your own risk)

The New Cool

I have to admit that stepping into the theater, I had lowered expectations for Miami Vice. The theatrical trailer made it look like an MTV style action flick full of unintentional cheesy dialogue. Well... after seeing it, all I can say is that this film went beyond my expectations. I thoroughly enjoyed it! Before we get into what I liked about Vice, lets set a few rules for watching it:

1. Try your best to ignore the plot. Why? Because its not all there. These days its hard to create an original cop story, and writers sometimes try to get too creative. I enjoyed the plot, but I can totally see how people would get confused or feel cheated by all the "unanswers".
   
2. Do your homework. If you're not already a fan of the original Don Johnson/Philip Michael Thomas hit TV series, do yourself a favor and get to know the background. The movie doesn't explain how Crockett and Tubbs became agents, and for good reason! I am very happy that this movie isn't three hours long.
3. Treat all the drugs, money, and reasons for the "mission" as MacGuffins. It is a bit confusing, and it is ultimately unimportant. In some movies you just have to ignore certain plot devices that move the story forward. I hate it when critics overemphasize on story and plot in action thrillers.
   

Okay. I liked the new Vice because it was beautiful, the action was exciting, and it was so damn cool. I haven't seen a movie this cool in a long time. I have seen Jamie Foxx in Any Given Sunday, and he was not cool. However, in this movie he is the epitome of cool. Despite the 80s hair style, Colin Farrell plays a very smooth Sonny Crockett.

It must be said though that Vice is very much a man's wet dream. From the fights, to the gun fights, to the cars, planes, boats, and "hard" dialogue, I can see how men would enjoy this film right off the bat. A lot of the "coolness" comes from material objects. Everything from the condos, to the man toys, to the clothes, all look expensive. Women may have to look for appeal elsewhere, such as in the actors, or the beauty of each scene.

Speaking of beauty, Michael Mann and his crew did an excellent job of making each and every scene just exquisite. Whether its a scene with action, actors and dialogue, supercars racing on the street, or racing boats cruising at top speed in open water, they all look fantastic. They really know how to make something good look even better.

The music in the film is well done. I'm sure Mann was trying to keep with the formula that made Vice successful in the first place: the MTV style. Back in the day, it was Jan Hammer's opening theme, and background music by various hit bands that made the TV series so popular. Mann did a decent job of compiling a good soundtrack and inserting those tracks at the right moments in the film. Two disappointments: 1) Jan Hammer was not invited to do a track or two, 2) Mann made no effort to recreate the most famous scene from the TV series, despite putting a modern cover of the Phil Colins song, that was integral to that scene, in the end credits. Missed opportunities.

Perhaps what I enjoyed the most was that it was a darker, higher budget version of the 80s TV series. Not only did it bring back memories, but the movie did an even better job of portraying how slick Vice was. I feel I've said enough. If you go see this movie, watch it for what it is, and perhaps you'll enjoy it too.