In one of George Orwell's most famous essays he recounts how as a British policeman in Burma he was forced to shoot a rogue elephant. The animal posed no danger at the time, but having called for an elephant gun he feared the ridicule of local residents if he didn't use it. Colonial rulers can withstand their subjects' hatred, but mockery destroys the tacit acceptance of an unjust system. This forces them to do things that are truly ridiculous.

The Chinese empire is relearning this lesson in its newly acquired colony of Hong...