The People’s Republic of China is having some trouble digesting Hong Kong, which is a good thing for all involved.

It is certainly beneficial to the former British colony, which since 1997 has subsisted nervously under Deng Xiaoping’s old formulation of “one country, two systems.” It’s good for Beijing as well: The Chinese economy has exploded in the past two decades, not by subjugating Hong Kong but by imitating its success. To abrogate the terms of Hong Kong’s reunification with the mainland would not just injure China’s current prosperity but slow down its goal of global competitiveness, if not dominance.