Fake Empire - Pete's Newsletter - Issue #31
Photos of the Month
I continue to be fascinated by the protests in Hong Kong— this should be the biggest story in the world right now. The Atlantic reported this morning that many protestors have been calling for more U.S. support.
For months now, a small but zealous contingent of American flag-waving protesters has been a fixture of the huge demonstrations in Hong Kong, including today, when dozens of people again carried the U.S. flag during a rally held in defiance of a police ban. As the struggle to resist China’s tightening grip on the semiautonomous region has intensified, protesters have appealed to the United States in larger numbers and with greater urgency. Last weekend, tens of thousands of protesters marched near the U.S. consulate in the territory, singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” and carrying signs that urged President Donald Trump to “liberate Hong Kong.”
Recently I came across the work of Photographer Ho Fan who came of age during—and documented—post-war Hong Kong (which was occupied by the Japanese in World War II). His work has been described as "...abstract and humanistic at the same time." It provides a window into the moment in time when Hong Kong embraced the future and developing its own identity, separate from mainland China.
Map of the Month
I have never visited the U.S./Mexico border. To me, like many Americans, it exists as a character in a news story, its reality distorted to fit one's political beliefs.
This map helps to make sense of the cities and population centers along the border, removing abstraction.
Post of the Month
Paul Graham shares his view of the modern world describing the centralization of the 20th century, and sharing his prediction of de-centralization in the 21st.
...all these trends are instances of the same phenomenon. And moreover, that the cause is not some force that's pulling us apart, but rather the erosion of forces that had been pushing us together.
Worse still, for those who worry about these trends, the forces that were pushing us together were an anomaly, a one-time combination of circumstances that's unlikely to be repeated — and indeed, that we would not want to repeat.
The two forces were war (above all World War II), and the rise of large corporations.
Documentary of the Month
I as blown away by the documentary Mistaken for Strangers which tells the story of Tom Beringer, brother of Matt Beringer (lead singer of the band The National). Tom joins the band on tour and is forced to examine the unspoken in his relationship with his brother, and what to do when the winds of circumstance push us apart.