I saw a funny T-shirt for sale online the other day on a MAGA (Make America Great Again) website. It has this printed on the front: “Sorry, I can’t hear you because of the sound of my freedom.” »

This is apparently a parody of “Sorry, but I can’t hear you over the noise about how awesome I am”, a more sinister Internet meme often attributed to a now-defunct American mercenary group called Blackwater , infamous for his murders of civilians during the illegal US occupation of Iraq.

If you listen to how current and retired U.S. officials talk about Hong Kong – and indeed the rest of the world in general – you have to wonder if they are hearing anything other than the sound of their own impressive voices.

Take Gregory May, the American consul general in Hong Kong. He professed his love for the city’s rice dishes and once even took a photo of himself on social media buying boxes of them on the street.

“So tasty and affordable,” he posted on Facebook.

Well, I’m glad there’s at least one thing he likes about the city, although I seriously doubt he actually enjoyed eating it beyond posting it as a PR exercise. I can’t really imagine him eating a two-course box of rice in his no doubt ornate office, and I’m sure Central’s exclusive American Club doesn’t allow outside food.