Sidewalks glued down as top Chinese official visits Hong Kong

Hope this is in the correct thread, if not, please feel free to move it - it is politically based, but is also about other issues as well.

Hong Kong authorities have been gluing down paving blocks to sidewalks, as police roll out heavy security measures during a visit by a senior Chinese official. Police deployed massive barriers in central Hong Kong, with protests expected during the visit by Zhang Dejiang, who arrived Tuesday. Lawmakers said the bricks were being stuck down to prevent them being thrown as projectiles.

I see this as a sensible precaution, to be honest. However, if people want to protest and throw missiles, they will find a way to obtain projectiles somewhere close at hand. People have a great facility for working their way around obstacles placed in their path, and finding a solution to do what they want to do.

Visits by leaders and politicians are always fraught with tension but this is an example of preventative measures taken to the extreme. Usually routes are planned, itineraries negotiated etc, but now the "authorities" have to remove/deny access to potential weapons, which they are basing (correctly) on prior experience.

Hong Kong authorities have been gluing down paving blocks to sidewalks, as police roll out heavy security measures during a visit by a senior Chinese official. Police deployed massive barriers in central Hong Kong, with protests expected during the visit by Zhang Dejiang, who arrived Tuesday. Lawmakers said the bricks were being stuck down to prevent them being thrown as projectiles.

BLT (Blue Linky Thing)

a reply to: 1984hasarrived

Nothing beats exposing a precaution effort ahead of time that will allow protestors to simply bring their own materials.

a reply to: 1984hasarrived
What are your views on the actual state visit?

a reply to: 1984hasarrived

It is fairly standard practice to glue paving stones and tiles in place, and has been that way for years.

Most paving manufacturers also have very specific standards for the type and strength of adhesives used. They will not sell you the pavers unless you comply with the suggested adhesives and coatings as the pavers become prone to cracking and being dislodged, which reflects negatively on their product.

This just seems to be a bit of uninformed and sensationalist journalism.

a reply to: 0hlord

i don't really have any real opinions or views about it - HK is just a powder keg, and is a weird anomaly for PRC.

a reply to: chr0naut

I was not aware of that, so thanks for the info.

Obviously this is not the case in HK, as they are laid onto sand with nothing in between - something they are now starting to regret it seems.

The city's Highway's Department said that paving blocks were generally laid on sand but in some areas, were being strengthened with cement to seal up the joints -- to make them more stable.

From original article

Building and construction standards in HK are very different from other countries. Bamboo is sill used on some construction sites although I have started to see that recently they are starting to use "proper" scaffolding now (anecdotal from my observations in HK, over the last 25 years).

a reply to: xuenchen

As the old saying goes "Fore warned, is fore armed" which I always like to think of as

"Fore warned, is four armed"

originally posted by: 1984hasarrived
a reply to: chr0naut

I was not aware of that, so thanks for the info.

Obviously this is not the case in HK, as they are laid onto sand with nothing in between - something they are now starting to regret it seems.

The city's Highway's Department said that paving blocks were generally laid on sand but in some areas, were being strengthened with cement to seal up the joints -- to make them more stable.

From original article

Building and construction standards in HK are very different from other countries. Bamboo is sill used on some construction sites although I have started to see that recently they are starting to use "proper" scaffolding now (anecdotal from my observations in HK, over the last 25 years).

Yeah, my local council here in New Zealand chose to use a different coating and adhesive and now the pavers need jet-blasting all the time and are breaking up.

The Paver company has said that they cannot warranty the pavers if the council did not stick to their standards and tried to do things "on the cheap". So the council's only options are to try and clean, re-affix and re-coat or to rip it all up and start again.

OK, Gonna ask a dumb question.

Why not just use concrete.

Or does that have something to do with the movement of your area.

Earthquakes.?

a reply to: crappiekat

I am guessing it is cheaper to do it this way. I have watched guys there laying these stones, and that is how it has been done for many years.

Now that they are gluing them together, they are just making them into bigger projectiles in my opinion.

a reply to: crappiekat

I agree, cost! Nice thread 1984

They have to think of the ecology.

They are putting these chemicals into the ground. It seems to me, that would seep into your fresh water.

I'm not sure exactly what the ingredients are of concrete. But I would think it is less toxic.

There wasting there time. Now in generations to come, they will have to foot the bill on fixing this.

I think it is nuts. Are these people animals that they would destroy there own city. Same crap in Chicago, Il. I just don't get it.