The Intelligence: Leave your umbrella at home

<p>It took more than 20 years for Hong Kong’s legislature to pass Article 23, a sweeping and troublingly ambiguous <a href="https://www.economist.com/china/2024/03/19/hong-kong-passes-a-security-law-that-its-masters-scarcely-need?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">national-security law</a>. Huge protests stymied such legislation in the past; not so anymore. National Guard troops are <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/03/14/is-deploying-soldiers-on-new-yorks-subway-as-mad-as-it-seems?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">out in force</a> on New York City’s subways—because they are cheaper than cops (10:11). And a personal story exploring the <a href="https://www.economist.com/1843/2024/03/07/tinnitus-nearly-drove-me-mad?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">torment of tinnitus</a> (15:31).</p><br /><p><em>Please take a moment to respond to our </em><a href="https://survey.alchemer.eu/s3/90681681/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>listener survey</em></a><em>.</em></p><br /><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=48TlDbL-4vU" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><hr /><p style="color: grey; font-size: 0.75em;"> Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>