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SAR is no role model for Korea
It amuses me how the 'Hong Kong-style solution' is always touted by Chinese scholars and officials every time there are talks about what to do with Taiwan and even Korea, as it was again mentioned in the article ('One step closer to a single Korea?', January 17). 
Really, for Korea? Who's going to have to give up the power? In the case of Hong Kong, it was obvious that six million people were handed to a totalitarian government without much of a say. 'One country, two systems' was a false promise. And look how well it has worked: Hong Kong is approaching the 15th anniversary of the handover and not a year has gone by since that we  haven't seen major missteps from the unrepresentative government. 
Why? Because it cannot make important decisions that truly affect ordinary people's lives.
There are more  protests all the time, and other than the business elite, nobody is happy. 
Our government is totally unable to stand up to the rich and powerful, let alone Beijing.
Both Taiwan and South Korea have been enjoying democracy so I think the Hong Kong example would be a very tough sell to them.
 The ordinary  citizens of North Korea would definitely want it. Their situation cannot get much worse and anything would be better than what they have, but we all know they are not consulted.  As for the elite in the hermit state, they won't buy it either because they are leading a good life that can only be sustained by the status quo - speaking of which, what's happening there sounds ironically like Hong Kong.  
People should stop using the Special Administrative Region  as an example  - it's a white elephant.
Ho Lai-kit, Mid-Levels
Sweeping statements don't help
There have been complaints of late by some Hong Kong commuters that the children of some mainlanders make MTR carriages untidy. 
This is proof that there are conflicts between Hongkongers and mainland visitors. 
People from over the border are accused of being uncultured, discarding rubbish, and of impolite behaviour such as queue jumping. This is a cause of tension and you hear it a lot from people from the post-1980s and post-1990s generations. 
 It has provoked a strong reaction over the border and mainlanders have expressed dissatisfaction when video evidence  surfaced showing Hongkongers arguing with mainlanders on an MTR train. 
 I think this is a severe problem and it could get worse and damage relations between these two groups of citizens.  
 We cannot deny that Hong Kong is now part of China. Even people who have lived most of their lives in this city should not deny their Chinese identity.
 We should not make sweeping statements about these visitors and we should try to ensure these differences do not get worse.  
 There are faults on both sides and the government could produce more advertisements and posters to promote polite behaviour in public places such as forms of transport. 
This could be an effective way of educating visitors from over the border, and our own citizens, too.  
Unnecessary conflict  should be avoided. We should welcome all visitors to our city.  
Keith Cheng, Sheung Shui
Government fears the underclass
My 10-year-old son and I read the report on the new air pollution guidelines and he asked me why the government did not take action to reduce at least the locally produced pollution like nitrogen dioxide ('Challenge leaves us all out of breath', January 19). 
The government tells us it is because of the cost. 
Why then, he argued, could not a rich government like Hong Kong's bear the cost of this? 
The answer is simple, I told him - the administration does not value human life as highly as other  governments do. Sadly, no matter what the rationale is, it comes down to this. 
How is it that an unelected government seriously worries about the effect of a 20 per cent increase in bus fares (Secretary for the Environment, Edward Yau Tang-wah, was quoted in the article as saying  fares could go up by 20 per cent)? This sort of statement is scaremongering. 
The government would be afraid to  allow fare increases even if the costs to the transport companies (remember they are the polluters using outdated vehicles) increased and they demanded it. 
Instead, it uses fear of large fare increases to bully the growing underclass to accept  officials' arguments that their hands are tied. 
In actual fact, such fares could not be imposed without a huge fallout from the middle and lower-income classes. I suspect that the inability of the administration to act in enforceable areas under its purview, like roadside pollution, is directly attributable to its fear of the underclass it has failed. 
The issue of pollution in Hong Kong is tied to income disparity   so glaring that the government would have a problem  approving (even modest) fare hikes and uses the threat of this occurring to justify its inaction on our substandard and deadly air quality.
Catherine LaJeunesse, Sai Kung
Nicotine gum has its own dangers
Given the obvious health hazards caused by smoking, it would be better for everyone to stop, but many people do find it very difficult to quit and they need all the help they can get.  
Some have turned to nicotine replacement therapy in the form of nicotine gum. Because it allows nicotine to enter the bloodstream, it can lead to a reduction of withdrawal symptoms such as irritability, craving tobacco and difficulty concentrating.  However, it does have side-effects and it has been suggested that its long-term use could, for example, lead to gum disease.  
Therefore, I think smokers who are trying to quit should consult a doctor before deciding to take the gum.  
Yoyo Lau Wai-shan, Sha Tin
Cold weather isn't what it used to be
The weather forecast accurately predicted that temperatures would drop over the Lunar New Year.
In my well over half a century living in sub-tropical Hong Kong, the lowest temperatures I recall were about 5 degrees Celsius.
 They are certainly nothing like the 'good old days' of the 19th century. Old European-style houses were built with open fireplaces and chimneys.
That splendid book by botanist G. A. C. Herklots, The Hong Kong Countryside: Throughout the Seasons, first published by the South China Morning Post in 1951 but long out of print, explains that a temperature of 0 deg C (32 degrees Fahrenheit)  was recorded one night at the Royal Observatory in Kowloon, at 103 feet (31.3 metres) above sea level in 1893. 
Herklots mentions an icicle on Mount Kellett  between six inches (15.2cm) and  one foot (30.4cm) long.
During the same cold spell, which lasted several days, two members of the legal profession were spotted making a 'slide' on the ice-covered roadway after it had rained during the night (as I did in my boyhood days in England).
 At the same time, the hills were white with hoar frost.
An information sheet issued by the Observatory a few years ago shows that the 'absolute minimum' temperature at the Royal Observatory, 0 degrees  was recorded on  January 18, 1893.  
Of course, colder temperatures have been recorded on high ground, such as on Tai Mo Shan and  [other parts of] the New Territories.
Dan Waters, Mid-Levels
Orchestra members had their say
 I congratulate most warmly the Hong Kong Philharmonic Society on the appointment of the eminent conductor Jaap van Zweden as its incoming music director. 
In your report  ('Phil's incoming director gets seal of approval', January 17), however, it is suggested that consultation with members of the orchestra in similar music director searches is 'a move  that had not happened before'.   
I was general manager of the Hong Kong Philharmonic between 1979 and 1986.
Between 1981 and 1983, an extensive  search for a musical director was undertaken, leading to the appointment of Kenneth Schermerhorn.  
The general committee and the management of the orchestra not only ensured that orchestra members were consulted regularly on the drawing up of a shortlist, but also on the final decision.  
John Duffus, Sheung Wan



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