Good morning,

Happy Monday. Tired? How about putting this glorious track of the legendary Itzhak Perlman playing Beetoven’s Violin Concerto to jam to on your commute? Seriously, do it. You’ll feel more awake and really sophisticated, I swear.

For those of you who have felt that their Shakespeare obsession hasn’t been quite fulfilled, here’s the banging playlist of the songs in the cult classic musical, ‘Shakespeare Rocks!’ Also feel free to enjoy this Tide-unaffiliated recording of the production by some random primary school.

-Charlotte

On Today’s Tide

1. Breaking | RAT tests for everyone

2. COVID | almost at the 10k mark…

3. Education | Will in-person classes be suspended?

4. Politics | Honorary chair James Tien quits Liberal Party

5. Events

Behind the paywall:

1. Economy | Selling the HK dollar amid US interest increases

2. Society | Advocacy group calls for ban on subdivided flats

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RAT tests galore

As of Sunday, August 28th (someone’s birthday out there, hbd!) the new RAT test measure has officially come into action. What measure, you ask? RAT tests are now mandatory for groups of more than 8 people at eateries too (we stan inclusivity). A photo of a negative RAT test taken up to 24 hours before entry must be presented for these groups.

The new policy was first announced on Friday, causing many to withdraw their reservations at restaurants. Restaurateur testimonies have mentioned the predicted loss in sales due to this, and have asked customers to conduct their own tests at home for convenience and safety.

For the alternate route, one could also use a text message of a negative PCR test issued within T-minus 48 hours to dining.

Chief Secretary Eric Chan said: “We need to strike a balance between people’s livelihood and anti-epidemic needs…We hope that when the infection number decreases, we can relax the rules.”

COVID in Hong Kong

Hong Kong SAR Government News @newsgovhk

The Centre for Health Protection says it is investigating 9,495 additional locally acquired #COVID19 cases, of which 2,930 were directly identified through nucleic acid tests and 6,565 via verified rapid antigen tests

news.gov.hkLocal COVID-19 cases exceed 9kThe Centre for Health Protection says it is investigating 9,495 additional locally acquired COVID-19 cases, of which 2,930 were directly identified through nucleic acid tests and 6,565 via verified rapid antigen tests.

1:08 PM ∙ Aug 28, 2022

• New cases: 9,708 (213 imported)

• Total cases: 1,483,319

• New deaths: 10

• Total deaths: 9,664

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Ok, Zoomers (please no)

School authorities are advocating for full-day classes to continue following the Secretary of Education’s warning on Saturday. We are drawing dangerously close to the highlighted 10,000 daily caseload mark, and the threat of in-person classes being suspended looms darkly.

On Sunday, Education Minister Christine Choi said that the government had informed schools that half-day face-to-face classes would be seen as the minimum for the coming academic year. But after three years of unstable class schedules and intermittent online learning, faculty, parents, and students have had enough. (I’m totally not biased)

However, the chairwoman of the Wong Tai Sin District Secondary School Heads Association had some words of hope to offer: “When the daily caseload reaches more than 10,000, if a majority of the infections are found at schools, there may be a need to suspend full-day [in-person] classes. But at the moment, we don’t see a lot of cases coming from schools.”

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James Tien quits Liberal Party

The co-founder of the Liberal Party resigned this month after more than 30 years as part of the pro-establishment political camp. James Tien resigned before its leadership could take away his position as an honorary chair.

His fellow Liberal Party members Selina Chow (left) and Miriam Lau (right) also stepped down after learning that Tommy Cheung and the rest of the party leadership planned to scrap the position of honorary co-chairs.

Tien said, “This is something they think they must do to please Beijing, a way they work in the hope of retaining their jobs in public office.” Not hesitating to further spill the tea, Tien also stated, “There is no future in all political parties. Beijing’s electoral overhaul is diminishing the role of parties and eliminating differences in opinion.”

Events and deals

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