People in Hong Kong have taken to the streets over the last few days in a peaceful demonstration for democracy. Tear gas has been used by the police in an attempt to dissipate the crowds; this has backfired, with many criticizing this action as being overexcessive. Many of the protesters are college students; even high schoolers have joined in.
I am impressed by the civility of these protesters who have taken to cleaning up after themselves, picking up trash and leaving the streets as clean as possible. Some have indicated that it's because they love Hong Kong.
I'm glad for the lack of guns in this country. I can't imagine how much more violent this could be if people were armed with lethal weapons.
I am pessimistic about whether this demonstration will actually make Beijing change their policy regarding free elections. The Chinese have historically shown themselves to be particularly high handed especially when it comes to politics. I don't think this will be any different...but I would love to be proven wrong.
