Beijing has stuck it up our, well, you know where. That's left the pan-democrats in shocked pain. Our bosses have given us the right to choose our next chief executive but from a list of candidates virtually chosen by them. So you can forget about "Short Hair" Leung Kwok-hung. But at least we get to choose. Who do you want? Leung Chun-ying for another five years? Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee perhaps? Civic Party legislator Ronny Tong Ka-wah found Beijing's jab so painful he cried on television. Other pan-democrats are too macho for that. They want to knee Beijing where it hurts even more than sticking it up, well, you know where. That's fanciful thinking, of course. It is pointless to inflict pain on a recipient that feels no pain. Beijing's message is clear. By only allowing us political reforms that even the most moderate democrats reject as fake democracy, our bosses have told us to go shove it, that Occupy Central doesn't scare them. The pan-democrats had touted the civil disobedience protest as their nuclear weapon of last resort. But do you still press the button when you know the other side is unfazed? What worth is a nuclear weapon if it does great harm to the side that fires it but little to its target? The trouble with the pan-democrats is that they have no endgame. They deluded themselves into believing Beijing would bow to the threat of Occupy Central. Beijing didn't, rendering the nuclear weapon useless. But the pan-democrats say they'll fire it anyway. That means paralysing Central, forcing shops, offices and other businesses to close but getting nothing back in return. At least David knew he could win when he fought Goliath. But our democracy champions are fighting to lose. Our Beijing bosses have given us a choice that sucks. Take a glass that's only a fraction full or an empty one. By taking the empty one we'll kiss all hope of future democracy goodbye. By taking the glass that's only a fraction full we can live to fight another day. Good card players know when to hold and when to fold. Beijing called the pan-democrats' bluff. Do they then hold and fight a losing battle just for the sake of principle? Or should they fold and wear a poker face for the next fight? Public Eye recommends that our pan-democrat fighters read Sun Tzu's .