Malignant unrestrained power | Lee Yee

The Hong Kong police issued a statement the night before yesterday quoting the Guangdong Provincial Public Security Department’s response to the arrest of the 12 Hongkongers. The short communication was full of loopholes. If these 12 people are still under investigation, how can the authorities be sure that they will be approved by the procuratorate for arrest later? One of the 12 people was the skipper, is he a member of the smuggling organization? If he is indeed part of a smuggling group, why was he escaping to Taiwan? Why was there no mention of the arrest of the skipper? What happened to the speedboat? Did the 12 people buy the boat hence it was confiscated?

It has been more than a month and they still could not spin a better story. The power has become so domineering to the point where they say what they want without regard for whether it is believable or not anymore.

Chinese state media reported that, at the recent Third Central Symposium on Xinjiang Work held in Beijing, Xi Jinping emphasized the need to “uphold efforts to sinicize religion, sinicize Islam and forge the collective consciousness of a common Chinese identity.” Following Xi’s “sinicization of Tibetan Buddhism,” this is another one of his latest sinicization campaigns with requirements explicitly put forward.

Both Tibetan Buddhism and Xinjiang Islam are religions based on beliefs in God or divine inspirations, while in other parts of China, most religious believers just pray to gods and buddhas for blessings. Very few people truly believe in gods, reincarnation, or life after death. If “One China” means China under the dictatorship of the atheist Communist Party, then the “sinicization of religion” denotes a false and bogus religion. A leader who can come up with the idea of sinicization of religion under atheism is enough to show that there is nothing believable about this regime, including the woven tale for the 12 arrested Hongkongers.

In the era of ancient China’s absolute monarchy, although there was no real religious belief, ancient Chinese emperors at least paid respect to ancestors and held ceremonies to worship heaven. Dictatorship began from as early as the Qin dynasty to the Han Dynasty during which Dong Zhongshu proposed the rule to respect the emperor. However, he also proposed to restrict the emperor and respect heaven; the emperor would be called the son of heaven, meaning the heavenly father was watching over. The occurrence of a catastrophic natural disaster would be the wrath of heaven; the emperor would often issue a rescript for penitence, and reflect and review to improve governance.

The atheistic CCP not only does not believe in gods but also disbelieves in heaven. Mao Zedong claimed to be a “monk holding an umbrella,” meaning that he was above the law and above heaven. He also said, “Battling with heaven is endless joy.” Therefore, under the guidance of the idea of “Humans will triumph over the sky,” the Great Leap Forward brought about a situation of “endless suffering” for the Chinese people.

However, the CCP regime before Mao the second at least would not, on the one hand, claim to believe in Marxism-Leninism, and on the other hand, bludgeon itself with such absurd theories as the “sinicization of religion.” Perhaps Mao 2.0 now possesses absolute power such that no one dares to tell the truth, resulting in comments of all illogical nonsense.

Recently, the Chinese education department was so preposterous that it blatantly falsified the Bible. The story of Jesus and the Adulteress from the New Testament was cited in textbooks but the ending of the story was distorted. In the original passage of the Bible, Jesus said to the adulteress, “I, too, do not condemn you; Go and sin no more!” The Chinese textbook, however, presents the story as: “When the crowd disappeared, Jesus stoned the sinner to death saying, ‘I too am a sinner. But if the law could only be executed by men without blemish, the law would be dead.’” Forcing words to justify the Chinese leaders into the mouth of Jesus.

Of course, anyone who enforces the law in any society will not be a flawless person, but in a normal society, at least the law enforcers know that they are either guilty, or that regardless of religion or even non-religion, they believe that “there is a deity watching over them.” In addition to believing that “a deity is watching,” law enforcers are also restrictive in their power by the separation of powers with mutual checks and balances, as well as the supervision of the Fourth Estate. Nearly 300 years ago, the French Enlightenment thinker Montesquieu said, “Every man invested with power is apt to abuse it, and to carry his authority as far as it will go. Power is naturally expansive and has a tendency to turn malignant. As long as there are insufficient restraint and supervision, any power will give rise to corruption. To prevent this abuse, it is necessary from the very nature of things that power should be a check to power.”

The power we face and its extension in Hong Kong may be the most extreme power in human history. It has no restraints nor any checks and balances, and without the constraints of “heaven” from the dark ages of ancient China and the Western Middle Ages. Its “expansion and malignancy” can exceed all human imagination. Therefore, normal people can only completely and absolutely distrust this absolute power.

【香港大學學生會無懼國安法聲明｜Statement that the Hong Kong University Students’ Union fears not of the National Security Law】

(Please scroll for English version)

《中華人民共和國香港特別行政區維護國家安全法》（下稱國安法）於六月三十日晚上十一時生效，同日公佈實際條文。七月一日，首次有抗爭者因高舉旗幟被捕。自政權明目張膽地打壓「光復香港，時代革命」、「香港獨立，唯一出路」兩句口號起，言論自由蕩然無存，青山綠水不再依舊，昔日美好的香港不復存在。

香港大學應為香港而立。如今香港禮崩樂壞，我校亦未能倖免。國安法中文版本指名「加強監督和管理學校」，七月五日更於英文版本加插「大學（University）」一字。校方隨即剷除連儂牆上的字句，屈服於強權之下。香港大學百年基業有賴院校自主、學術自由，國安法卻將之毀於一旦。

「世界有陰影，但亮光在對比下顯得更強。」香港人綻放了令人驚心動魄的亮光，這股光芒帶給我們希望，而他將永久照耀這片土地。縱使前路一片漆黑，我們定必團結抵抗邪惡。

我等在此呼籲各位切勿自我審查，屈服於政權的白色恐怖之下。香港大學學生會勢必與香港人同行，守護屬於我們的香港，共同迎來香港的黎明。

香港大學學生會
二零二零年七月八日

“The Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region” (National Security Law) took effect at 11:00 p.m. June 30. Actual provisions of the law were published on the same day. The first arrest was made in holding flags on July 1. Ever since the regime blatantly suppressed the slogans of “Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Time” and “Hong Kong Independence is the Only Way Out”, freedom of expression has been quashed. Everything has changed. The good old Hong Kong no longer exists.

The University of Hong Kong is to be for Hong Kong. Now that Hong Kong was devastated, our institute is certainly no exception. The Chinese version of the National Security Law specifies strengthening “supervision and regulation of schools”. The word “universities” was even inserted into the English version on July 5. Subsequently, the University demolished words on the Lennon wall, submitting to tyranny. Institutional autonomy and academic freedom had been the foundation of achievements of the University of Hong Kong for more than a century. The National Security Law, however, dealt a blow to such.

There are dark shadows on the earth, but its lights are stronger in the contrast. Hongkongers has shined out bright and brought hope to the city. Such lights shall last forever. Albeit darkness ahead, we shall fight against malignancy.

Do not yield and bow to white terror of the regime by self-censorship. The Hong Kong University Students’ Union shall walk alongside Hongkongers to safeguard our Hong Kong until the dawn comes.

The Hong Kong University Students’ Union
July 8, 2020

跨年最擔心的病友之一:

L 先生 5 年前手術診斷是乳突型甲狀腺惡性腫瘤 (papillary thyroid cancer), 復發腫瘤右頸腫脹快速生長且肺部快速轉移惡化, 白血球急速上升而血色素快速下降, 病患呈現右頸疼痛及缺氧情形.
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上星期五(12/27)門診來了一位 62歲的 L 先生, 病歷上記載近三個月前在我們醫院耳鼻喉科C醫師門診就診, 影像檢查顯示其右側頸部硬塊 5-6公分, C 醫師安排住院並且切片診斷是類肉瘤式惡性腫瘤 (sarcomatoid malignancy), 因為病患曾經在其他醫學中心治療過甲狀腺癌, 於是乎他再由陳代謝科醫師輾轉來到我的門診, 詢問過去治療史只知道是乳突癌, 曾接受俗稱電療的頸部照射20餘次及2次隔離住院的放射碘治療, 治療後的追蹤從原本負責手術的一般外科 C 醫師轉到該院的新陳代謝科 H 醫師追蹤, H 醫師平常對於L先生的血糖控制比較有注意, 對於攸關甲狀腺癌的甲狀球蛋白並未多說明. 我的直覺是他的右頸腫瘤其實和當初的甲狀腺癌有關, 尤其經過頸部體外輻射照射後的甲狀腺癌其實有機會轉變成類肉瘤式惡性腫瘤, 也就是未分化型甲狀腺惡性腫瘤(anaplastic thyroid cancer), 這類腫瘤進展快速, 通常幾個月就布滿全身, 白血球急速上升而血色素快速下降是其典型的惡化徵兆.

L 先生右頸腫脹且呼吸困難, 在周末經胸腔內科急診收住院, 會診我取得原醫學中心的部分病歷, 確認L 先生在 2014.08.20手術, 病理報告為右葉乳突癌, 高細胞變異 (tall cell variant), 腫瘤 6 cm, 甲狀腺外延展 (extra-thyroid extension) 至鄰近肌肉 (strap muscle), 中央區淋巴侵犯 (3/3), 側頸淋巴侵犯 (7/18), 依照第七版AJCC (2017前) 年之TNM 分期為 pT3N1bMx, 第IVA期, [註: 如果依照現行第八版AJCC之TNM 分期為 pT3bN1bMx, 第II期], L 先生也自費做了bRAF基因檢測發現為 V600E 突變, 兩次隔離住院的放射碘治療分別在 2014.10 及2015.12 進行, 各接受 120 毫居里 (累計 240毫居里), 依其記錄第一次的碘131治療後影像其實發現肺部轉移, 故其分期應該是 cT3N1bM1, 第IVC期. 又根據家屬自述曾接受頸部體外輻射照射約數週, 但因為病患受不了而缺席了2~3 次.

乳突癌併高細胞變異屬於較惡性的甲狀腺惡性腫瘤, 除了手術切除外, 放射碘治療劑量一定要足夠, 而且發現肺部轉移必須特別留意接續放射碘治療之急迫性(通常在幾個月內就可以再進行)和劑量增加至少 150 毫居里, 尤其bRAF基因檢測發現為 V600E 突變必須留意腫瘤細胞可能會逐漸失去放射碘吸收能力而使放射碘治療無效. 個人對頸部體外輻射照射之使用通常有所保留, 就是擔心腫瘤如未完全控制可能累積更多突變而衍生成新腫瘤.

L 先生從12/27 到昨日 (12/31), 白血球急速上升從12830 -> 37640 -> 51420 -> 56500而血色素快速下降從 13.4 -> 11.6 -> 10.5 -> 9.2; 這些典型的未分化型甲狀腺惡性腫瘤惡化徵兆說明了快速生長的癌細胞已經大量嗜虐正常組織. 過去未分化型甲狀腺惡性腫瘤只能以化療治療延長生命, 效果通常有限而且副作用很強烈, 目前的標靶藥物或是免疫療法或許還有些希望, 只是標靶藥物最好是根據基因檢測做選擇, 最新的文獻報告bRAF基因V600E 突變的未分化型甲狀腺惡性腫瘤可以嘗試使用dabrafenib 及 trametinib (中文:泰伏樂及麥欣霓),
Fazeli 等人在 J Investig Med High Impact Case Rep. (2019 doi: 10.1177/2324709619890942.) 發表了不錯的成果. 希望 L 先生也能因為此藥受惠而逃過一劫.

乳突癌的病友還是得多多關心自己啊!