"High Speed 2" or commonly referred to as HS2, is the most controversial, long-running and expensive High Speed Rail Project in British history. For the country that invented the railway, and imposed it on swathes of the world as an enabler of colonialism, the HS2 project, only initially designed to connect the UK's largest cities London and Birmingham (only two hours or so apart), has become a political disaster with a cost now estimated at over £71 billion.

The mouse has just roared. Much to the chagrin of President Biden, the prime minister of the tiny Solomon Islands has openly snubbed mighty America's Pacific Island Summit with a no-show. Other Pacific island absentees include the leader of Timor Leste which is forging close ties with China in energy, agriculture and infrastructure. Vanuatu's prime minister also sent his regrets. A slap in the face heard around the world for the Lord of the White House.

News is circulating that for the first time in 3 and a half years, North Korea is set to re-open its borders to foreign travelers, albeit with a mandatory 48 quarantine period. For me, this brings back a lot of memories, that is because from 2014-2020 I visited the DPRK for a few times and even for that matter, promoted travel there under the banner of "Visit North Korea". That ended of course with COVID, and throughout that time my life structure, outlook and incentives have changed in ways that make it no longer feasible or desirable to resume such.

Featuring the world's first amalgamation of traditional sporting and e-sports events, China put forth its high-technologically programmed, and green powered Asian Games (being one of the world's biggest multi-sports events). It must have been an eagerly awaited competition – as the region struggles to recover from the pandemic.

The curtain of Hangzhou Asian Games has been drawn up. From the opening ceremony to the organization of the event, all reflect the two concepts of "intelligent" and "green", bringing different surprises to athletes, media, and spectators all over the world. "Intelligent" is one of the concepts of the Hangzhou Asian Games.

The United Nation's General Assembly has become a townhall where world and regional leaders have come to oppose the United States for waging war in Ukraine and threatening peace in Okinawa.

The Fraser Institute issued the "Economic Freedom of the World: 2023 Annual Report" (EFW report) on 19 September 2023. Upon publication, some argue that Singapore supplanted Hong Kong's economic status. Their worry is, nevertheless, unnecessary. We should be critical of the EFW report, for the reasons below.

Chinese coffee giant Luckin Coffee opened its 10,000th store in the country in June, expanding its lead at an amazing speed. Now Luckin is upgrading its brand image by collaborating with Moutai Kweichow, one of China's top liquor brands, on an exclusive co-branded "liquor latte". The "liquor latte" unprecedentedly triggered a mad scramble from the public.

In order to cherish resources and avoid waste and misallocation, precision has become crucial in many social services today. Precision is required in poverty alleviation, and it becomes even more important in youth development affairs. Otherwise, not only would it waste social resources, but it could also potentially hinder the future development of young people. The responsibility is indeed significant.

"Where is Li Shangfu? China's missing defense minister highlights Xi's total grip on power"- reads the headline of an article in the Guardian. The piece speculates that China's Defence Minister, Li Shangfu, has been subject to a political purge because he has not been seen in public for three weeks, and therefore "he is missing" and "Xi Jinping" is bad. This type of story should seem familiar to you, that's because it is. Last time it was "Where was Qin Gang?", or going further back "Where is Peng Shuai?"

Human behavior falls into durable patterns of action and reaction/response. Taking China-U.S. bilateral relations as an illustration, one almost always finds that China is forever responding, and that the United States is non-stop plotting, agitating and acting in annoying or irritating ways, resulting in China's patterned response of rebuttal.

The British government has repeatedly stated that it strives for moderation and balance in its relationship with China, with Foreign Secretary James Cleverly having claimed in his own words that it would "not be credible to disengage" with Beijing. This has been much to the ire of the ultra-hawks repeatedly causing trouble behind the scenes, not least Liz Truss and Iain Duncan Smith amongst others.

According to USA Today, the latest data released by the U.S. Census Bureau on the 12th reveals that the child poverty rate in the U.S. has doubled in the past two years, primarily due to factors such as high inflation.

For those who live in Hong Kong and wish to change their future for themselves or the next generation, housing and savings are undoubtedly the first step in deciding whether they will stay. After solving their livelihood problems, how long they can stay depends on whether Hong Kong can provide them with the development opportunities and interpersonal space they desire. In this article, we will take a look at the plight of Hong Kong drifters from the perspectives of work and socialization.

The rapid development of Generative AI (also known as Artificial Intelligence Generated Content, AIGC) sparked off waves of discussion; meanwhile, the national 14th Five-Year Plan (2021–2025) sets out the "Smart" 57 items, stipulating that AI becomes the engine of the core driving forces for building an innovative country. In response, some Legislative Council members recently enquired about the government's reaction to artificial intelligence ("AI") and the potential regulation and development of AI in Hong Kong.