I've seen the real HK world around me ok. Parts of it ain't pretty. It's not a normal sight in some "world city" to see people pushing the recycled paper cart up Wyndham St or along Nathan Rd. Also 100k or ~1.5% of the population living in humiliating cages like dogs. Not even sure if some of the middle income SEA countries have scenes like this. Perhaps high social deference is the problem. Clearly there's no floor against to how low living standards can go in HK