-In 2011, Google, Facebook and YouTube announce their return to the Chinese market -- but the news is censored, so no one finds out- Han Han Chinese Blogger making a point.
Back in the Middle Ages, if you said something bad about the Royal family, Nobles or the religion, you got hanged, burned alive or beheaded. It was a form of "extreme" censorship. As a civilized and free thinking continent it is difficult to imagine not having the freedom to read, write, speak and also view anything, any subject we want. Why is a communist country so afraid to let its people see what is out there and how people from other countries live. Are they afraid their people will want to change? Certainly democracy can be appealing to some who have been yearning to break free from the very strict rules of communism but with the right information they should also realise that democracy brings other problems they may not want to face. In a democratic country you get a certain independence such as have credit that can get you into deep financial trouble and simply ruin your life. China does not let that happen and if you are not poor, and you have a job you can make it through life without too much worries. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade my freedom for a communist regime but there is something appealing to the fact that big brother is not letting you get into financial trouble.
Coming back to Google and the censorship of the search engine/websites, how can the leadership of a country so big can be so naive? Unless they know that they have control of the minds by limiting their learning. Having the Chinese people live in a bubble not aware of what is happening around the world is asking for trouble because when the monster awakes (i.e. they finally get free), they will not know how to behave with other countries that have become civilized and conflict is a likely outcome. Isn't it what's happening with Afghanistan? They were asleep for 100s of years and woke up with some technology but no knowledge of how to use it properly and behave among themselves and other nations. They are still in the Middle Ages but with cell phones big bombs and Toyota Corollas instead of messengers, swords and horses. We are now stuck with trying to teach them some manners and hope they eventually get smart and stop trying to kill themselves and the people trying to help.
Chuck
1 comment:
Interesting comments. I think the chinese people can probably go further than their governement thinks on the web. But you are right about the Afgans. Bad mix.
Dino
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