1 October 2008

Hello from Hong Kong,

One of the peculiarities of living a timeless life in the ever present NOW is that finishing tasks others consider important can take an eternity. Ending every extended foreign adventure means once again facing the avalanche of deferred opportunities and obligations which have accumulated in my absence. Piles of mail, crisis communications, friends entreaties and invitations all grow into overwhelming proportions demanding the protection of another cocoon for a while. Eventually, life slips back into the old easy patterns and I let people know I am once again speaking English safely back home in my native land.

Reaching Cathay Pacific Airline anywhere in Xining turned out to be impossible so I found myself dashing east to Shenzhen across the border from Hong Kong in order to be nearer my departure airport, if it came to that. The least expensive flight took me through Xi'an with a nine hour layover. Recalling the extravagant buffet lunches at the Bell Tower Hotel I used during my previous visits, I ran into downtown Xi'an from the airport for a leisurely $10 luncheon feast complete with a liter of local beer. After lunch, still with time to spare I found my favorite Wongba and worked for a couple hours on unfinished postcard drafts. After that I caught the limousine back to the airport with plenty of time for the onward flight.

We landed at the Shenzhen airport after dark. I'd hoped to find a hotel at the airport, but failing that ended up going on into Shenzhen City proper that night. The bus terminal in the city is next to the Railway Station Hotel. It looks pretty seedy from the outside, but traveling the back roads of Africa taught me I can tolerate almost anything for a single night. As it turned out the place is an excellent value at $30, not luxurious, but with all the features of a four star hotel, very comfortable and conveniently located immediately adjacent to the Hong Kong border crossing gate. The next morning I lingered a while searching for a way to contact Cathay Pacific Airline in order to reschedule my departure to a later date. No luck, so clearing customs I walked into the railroad station and caught the next train to downtown Hong Kong. After two train changes I found myself in the new cavernous International Airport and located the Cathay Pacific reservation counter. As luck would have it, they had an available seat on a flight out that very day. I am now typing away on my cozy computer in the Big Bear Lake mountains.

A friend sent me a link to a recent article by Frank Schaeffer, explaining why he rejected his previous extreme fundamentalist Christian beliefs. It reminded me of the earlier example of the Evangelist, Marjo who made an exposé film documenting how he worked with his father as a child evangelist until his late teens and then became disillusioned. Some of my fundamentalist Christian friends up here in the very conservative Big Bear Lake community like to remind me that many famous scientists have believed in God including several notorious cases of former atheists becoming devout Christians. I am now interested in trying to pull together all these examples of former extremists on both sides of the divide to see what lessons they collectively offer the rest of us about religious extremism in general. I am concerned that a continuation of the current impasse between radically extreme Muslim and Christian-Jewish factions will inevitably lead to all out world war. Focusing on efforts to keep nuclear weapons out of the hands of the belligerents ignores the fundamental issues and only delays the inevitable.

Today is 25 October 2008 and all attention is divided between the Worldwide economic meltdown and the American presidential elections a mere ten days away. During the past month I have watched in horror as forty percent of my retirement savings have evaporated in the stock market. Much of the election rhetoric irritates and confuses anyone longing for clarity. Yesterday, the New York Times editorial board, which previously endorsed candidates Clinton and McCain in the primaries, justified their choice of Barack Obama for president. With my first choice of Clinton out of the race, I have focused on the  deficiencies of both party's candidates... and they are formidable. However, until computer technology produces an infallible artificial intelligence, we are stuck with flesh and blood. If abundant past experience is any guide, neither candidate will be as bad as their detractors fear... nor as wonderful as their promoters promise, the current incumbent excluded. Our new government will be... well, human. The NYT endorsement editorial captures this reality as well as anything I have seen in this election. Pro or Con, it is worth reading.

Peace

Fred L Bellomy

 

Shenzhen: One of the exhibits on display in the large plaza at the entrance to the immigration gate for Hong Kong.

Shenzhen: Entrance to the $30 Railway Station Hotel next to the border with Hong Kong.

Shenzhen: One of the exhibits on display in the large plaza at the entrance to the immigration gate for Hong Kong.

Shenzhen: One of the exhibits on display in the large plaza at the entrance to the immigration gate for Hong Kong.

Shenzhen: One of the exhibits on display in the large plaza at the entrance to the immigration gate for Hong Kong.