In the city of Hong Kong, debates over the Chinese influence on the city's democratization is again raging. Want to raise some awareness by showing ppl a chapter of HK's democratization that ended because of Chinese intervention. Today, HK's legislative body is elected by 35 by geographic constituency (western-style proportional democracy) and 30 by functional constituency (rich people who represent companies voting for themselves and employees)

Hong Kong's last governor Baron Patten...

I was on reading something on this forum a few minutes ago (when I started writing at least, 2 weeks + now. was really busy XD) and made an observation. Despite the significance of the Industrial Revolution to the contemporary world, people are not truly familiar with the subject. Yet, people don’t realize that the problems faced by the Industrial Revolution are still being face in developing nations. Forgetting the lessons of the past is a dangerous event. Hence, here is a brief introduction...

As the world modernizes, one must remember that industrialization is a two-edged sword. Long-term benefits abound; but in the short run, living standards drop substantially. This is an lesson that we must learn from history or suffer the consequences. Emperor Taizong of the Tang dynasty taught us that we must use history as a mirror to comprehend the rise and fall of a nation. We should all pray that today's modernization will enrich developing nations and their people instead of further impoverishing...

I initially intended for this post and the previous one regarding idealism & perspective in Renaissance architecture to be a single post. However, on second thought, Alberti deserves his own post and not just included with the a discussion of Renaissance for his unprecedented influence on architectural history that last to this day.

Unlike his predecessor, Filippo Brunelleschi, Alberti does not have significant influential buildings like Brunelleschi’s dome or the Ospedale Degli...

Introduction

The Renaissance marked an intriguing resurrection of the Classical unseen since the disintegration of the Roman Empire through combining art and architecture. Generally speaking, the modus-operandi of Renaissance urban construction was focused upon the aesthetical side of architecture and it orbited around two major characteristics. These were the depiction of art with a manifestation of perspective with a prominent three-dimensional standpoint instead of a mundane...