Hong Kong is headed for political gridlock after a huge rally on Dec. 4 in favor of greater democracy for the city. The unexpectedly big turnout”250,000 claimed by the organizers, 63,000 by the authorities”has hardened the positions of both the pro-democracy camp and the Chinese leadership in Beijing. The democrats are emboldened, and more determined than ever to push for “universal suffrage”: a Chief Executive chosen by the people and not a narrow electoral college; and for a fully elected legislature, not the mixed bag of members currently chosen by either popular vote or professional groups. Beijing, for its part, refuses to be swayed by what it regards as “mob rule,” and is resolute in its intention to delay democracy in the former British colony.