Spanking Google
From the Financial Times:
I was livid when I heard of Google's decision to placate China for a bigger buck. After canceling my Google ads account, and sending them a letter about it, I sat back and bemoaned my own continuing reliance on such a beautiful search engine.
For that matter, as this UK Sunday Times article points out, bloggers in general are guilty of hypocrisy, even without relying on the Google big block engine.
Point taken--I can still be mad can't I?
Crossposted at Western Washington Unraveled
Google will be called to task in Washington next month following a controversial decision by the internet search engine to launch a China-based version of its website that will censor results to avoid angering the country’s Communist government.
The decision by Chris Smith, a Republican congressman from New Jersey who chairs a House subcommittee on Human Rights, to call for a February 16 hearing to examine the operating procedures of US internet companies in China, represents the first signs of what could become a serious backlash against Google and other internet companies in Washington that are perceived as capitulating to the Chinese government.
I was livid when I heard of Google's decision to placate China for a bigger buck. After canceling my Google ads account, and sending them a letter about it, I sat back and bemoaned my own continuing reliance on such a beautiful search engine.
For that matter, as this UK Sunday Times article points out, bloggers in general are guilty of hypocrisy, even without relying on the Google big block engine.
Many of the bloggers who are most critical of China's human rights policies make their voices heard using Chinese-made PCs. Probably wearing cheap Chinese-made trainers while they're at it.(Cheap trainers? huh? I thought these were pajamas I was wearing!)
Point taken--I can still be mad can't I?
Crossposted at Western Washington Unraveled
posted by Mark at 7:09 PM
What's so wrong about them making China their own version? It's not like we'll be using it.
Can you explain to me what is so bad about this? It is their business to with as they please isn't it? Or am I wrong?
I'm surprised. Perhaps you don't understand the facts...
As I'm sure you know, China has one of the worst records on allowing such basic freedoms as free speech, and freedom of religion to name a couple. One way they enforce this is through censorship of all media outlets--including the Internet. Their attempts to censor content on Google that might in some way reflect bad on the Chinese government or be slightly pro-democracy have resulted in an extremely slow search engine--making it almost not worthwhile.
So Google's answer is to help them suppress free speech--saying "we can do it much more efficiently."
What Google does is certainly their own business, but it is the business of America to not support communist ideals--or overtly promote it abroad. Google has taken something of a treasonous attitude by placating a country that names the U.S. as their number 1 enemy. We are the only thing that stands between them and being militant and aggressive toward regional rivals.
If you still don't understand, then I don't know what we would agree on.
Okay it makes more sense now that you explained it to me.
Really you don't have get to up tight it was just question. Honestly I didn't mean to get you so upset.
Sorry...it wasn't my intention...my last sentence was completely unnecessary.
Don't worry about it.
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