Onrrueny
Alexis de Toqu eville On American Independence Day, July 4, American historian Dr Richard L Johnson from California State Polytechnic University gave a luncheon talk on Alexis de Toqueville (18051859), the French social philosopher whose book Democracy in America details the US brand of democracy. Excerpts from his address.
MaGlrlin Sean Kennedy, the business editor of Hong Kong iMail, remembers a friend
suspect that anyone who's been a journalist in Hong Kong's Englishlanguage media for any time has an anecdote about Simon Macklin. \4hile Simon has been known to rub people up the wrons wa¡ I will remember him for his generosity and support to a young journalist just off a plane from Australia and looking for work in Hong Kong. I ended up meeting tÌne South China Morning Post's editor of special reports, Bosworth Dewey, for an interview at Dan Ryan's in Pacific Place. Torvards the end of the interview, I mentioned to Bosworth that I'd
like to meet some Hong Kong journalists to get an idea of where the opportunities were. "You're in luck," he said. "I'll introduce you to a couple of Po.sljournos. " The journos wereJames Rile¡ about to join the new Technology Post, and Simon Macklin. They ended up putting me up in their place for nine weeks. During this time, Simon gave me invaluable advice about who to talk to and who not to bother with, what to ask for as a freelance writer. He briefed me on the big issues in
Hong Kong, and took me out to meet people in Hong Kong for a fast-track introduction to just about everyone who was anyone. I'm not the only person who Simon took under his wing, but that side of him isn't generally known. He was always ready to give advice, tips, and freelance contacts to people chancing their arm in Hong Kong. The award-winning series of articles he wrote on the plight of the Vietnamese boat people is a matrer of record. What's less well known is his unwillingness
to let go. Britain's former Foreign Office Minister for Hong Kong, Lord Caithness, will remember Simon. Simon grilled him during a press conference at which Lord Caithness slithered and wriggled and avoided the issues. Simon continually asked him to clarify a 24
ou have a certain sympathetic link to Alexis de Toqueville as a foreign correspondent trying to understand a country other than your own. And from my conversations with the people up here at the front table,
key point. The Government Information Service transcript of the press conference ran to hve pages
most of it was Simon cross-examining Caithness about where exactly Britain stood. The press conference was eventually closed down, because of Simon, who refused to let a government minister off the hook.
I ended up working with Simon for a while at the South Chi,na Morning Post in the mid-1990s and we got on like a house on fire. One of the things that struck me was his elephantine memory. \Arhen I was planning
you may
have
Albany fìrst? That evening...
come to that foreign country
(they) were deposited on the dock. They had wanted to go to West Point, but the evening of July 3rd, they
at an early age like
Toqueville, who came to America at the age of 25. (He wrote what) is still considered one of the best interpretations of American
a story on money laundering
in Hong Kong, I checked with Simon to make sure I wasn't stepping on the news
democracy.
desk's toes.
that today
"We ran a piece on that in the Sunday newspaper two months ago on page 5, and followed it up two days later with a piece by such-and-such on page seven of the
main pape¡" he replied instantly off the top of his head. So that was that.
'll
also remember Simon's single-mindedness.
Once he decided to do the Maclehose Trail, he he'd sprint up the went into serious training stairs of his apartment block, all 20 or 30 floors.
Then he went out and did the trail
all
100
kilometres of it. Then he went back to-his usual
unhealthy journo lifestyle: enjoying a drink and a cigarette, having proved his point. Simon was a professional, who needed a challenge, a great story to tackle. "Simon's bored when there isn't a crisis," one of his former colleagues remarked to me recently. Simon would probably have enjoyed the Obseraer's colourful story, headlined "Snakehead threats to death fall journalist", that followed his untimely death. He was making headlines even after he died. A newsman all the way. I THE CORRESPONDENT AUGUST:SEPTEMBER
2OOO
soon the cliffs of West Point receded in the distance. Toqueville and Gustav de Beaumont realised that they were experiencing America at first hand, as their steamboat had entered a race with another steamboat. Forget about the passengers...Who is going to get to
I
On Freedom of the Press
"I think that freedom of the press is perhaps the
am specially honoured is
July 4th for
a
number of reasons this is the celebration
most important factor
of the Declaration of Independence in the United States on July 4th, 7776. -lhat particular event plays a very important role in the story that I am about to tell you. I would like to
for democracy. More than anything else freedom of the press
take you back 169 years, to
cures most of the ills
the year 1831, and first begin with July 3rd, and
of democtacy.')
then move toJuly 4th. Alexis de Toqueville and his companion Gustav de
Alexis de Tbcqunille Democraq in America,
Beaumon t arrived in
America in May of 1831 and
spent some time around
New York and Boston. On July 3rd of that yea¡ they were travelling north on the Hudson River on a steamboat. Their destination was West Point...but as they approached it, the steamboat picked up speed and THF, CORRF,SPONDENT AUGUST:SEPTEMBER
2OOO
were now in Albany.
During that time on the steamboat, Toqueville
thought about this how that experience steamboat, in some ways, epitomised what America seemed to represent to him. That...the captain and his crew (were) all excited about being hrst,
about winning the race, about doing whatever it took. And, of course, the stories about steamboats blowing up because the
boilers took too much pressure were quite common in America. It seemed to matter not to Americans. They wanted to be fìrst. They wanted to get there. For Toqueville, the
surging power of that
steamboat in some ways represented the surging America. The foolish recklessness of that of power American crew and captain also seemed to indicate to him something about Americans. He had come to
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