In a recent televised talk show, the host posed this question to two guest economic professors: Why have economists in China become so maligned by the public when they should have been revered as champions of the nation's economic success?
The fear of becoming irrelevant has crept into Hong Kong's psyche. In the past month, two of Hong Kong's paramount leaders, Chief Secretary Raphael Hui and Monetary Authority's Chief Executive Joseph Yam, separately warned that Hong Kong could be rendered irrelevant by the rapid development of various mainland cities in neighbouring Guangdong and beyond.
"The future of Hong Kong lies in serving the mainland's economic development." People who are interested in Hong Kong, and there are many on the mainland and around the world, must have heard this line many times.
Last weekend, a friend who grew up in Beijing took it upon herself to introduce me to the almost mystic world of traditional "small foods," or snacks, that have been the favourites of the capital city's natives for centuries. I have read about these delicacies in many Chinese novels, including the world famous Dream of the Red Chamber, and heard them mentioned in numerous historical dramas. Although I have been living in Beijing on and off for nearly two years, I've only had a chance to eat a few of the vast variety of traditional Beijing snacks.
The flurry of public protests and negative press reports in Hong Kong seems to have stunned many opinion leaders and social commentators.
Politicians in Hong Kong can get upset about almost anything. We can understand the reasons behind some of their objections, but for others, we simply don't have the faintest clue. Such illogic is best exemplified in the protest against the government's plan to build a new home for itself at the old naval dockyard site, Tamar, on the waterfront.
Not so long ago when the Hong Kong economy was mired in a recession and the government budget steeped in red, many loud-mouthed politicians and self-proclaimed economic gurus were feverishly calling for what they considered the much-needed reform of the medical system.
Supporters of the proposal to introduce a new sales tax in Hong Kong believe that it can broaden the tax base, which, in its present form, is widely believed to be too narrow to cope with rising public aspirations.
In a popular television talk show on business strategy, a panellist picked the acquisition of Thompson by TCL to illustrate the culture clash that usually poses the most daunting challenge to Chinese buyers of foreign companies.
The Hong Kong government budget has been widely labelled as "unimaginative" or "lacking of vision" by the local press. Many economists and social analysts have expressed their disappointment at the small tax concession to the middle class when the economy is showing definite signs of a sustained recovery.
The publishing of the latest report by the Commission on Strategic Development has raised the curtain for the great debate on Hong Kong's role in China's future progress after 25 years of rapid economic growth.
One of Hong Kong's most cherished traditions, the close working relationship between government and big business, is coming under increased public scrutiny.
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