China adds to the Great Firewall with new Internet controls
posted at 11:01 am on December 28, 2012 by Erika Johnsen
The Chinese communist regime works uncommonly hard to maintain the veneer of a prosperous, free, and morally sound society, using the channels of education and state-run media for their active brainwashing campaign and demonstrating a remarkable disdain for freedom of speech and the rule of law when things don’t go their way. The Chinese “constitution” is nothing but a farcical, bass-ackwards attempt at a governing document, since the well-entrenched Chinese plutocracy does pretty much what it wants, when it wants, and as it suits their needs.
For instance, that “freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly” the Chinese constitution insists its citizens enjoy? Heh, that’s a good one. Chinese authorities and companies have long since monitored Internet activity, including blocking access to Western social and information-sharing sites like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, but the latest installment of plutocrats is getting increasingly wary of keeping a tight lid on any dissent in the growing digital age:
China unveiled tighter Internet controls on Friday, legalizing the deletion of posts or pages which are deemed to contain “illegal” information and requiring service providers to hand over such information to the authorities for punishment.
The rules signal that the new leadership headed by Communist Party chief Xi Jinping will continue muzzling the often scathing, raucous online chatter in a country where the Internet offers a rare opportunity for debate. …
Chinese authorities and Internet companies such as Sina Corp have long since closely monitored and censored what people say online, but the government has now put measures such as deleting posts into law. …
The restrictions follow a series of corruption scandals amongst lower-level officials exposed by Internet users, something the government has said it is trying to encourage.
Yes, I’m sure the Chinese regime is all too happy for citizen journalists to expose the many incidents of flagrant corruption and oppression that seem to plague all totalitarian regimes, everywhere. As Bloomberg notes, there’s no income disparity quite like communist income disparity, and the grand illusion of equality and moral righteousness is getting harder to maintain all the time:
They are the result of a conscious decision by the former paramount leader Deng Xiaoping and some of his closest associates — the so-called Eight Immortals — to safeguard the primacy of the Communist Party by putting their families in charge of opening up China’s economy.
As Bloomberg News documents, what resulted was an enormous concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a few. …
Robber barons and power elites are nothing new. Nor are they necessarily unhealthy — unless, that is, your society professes to be egalitarian. And notwithstanding the Communist Party’s protestations, China increasingly isn’t. …
China has tried to keep a lid on popular discontent over corruption and privilege by controlling its media. Bloomberg.com has been blocked in China since it published its story on Xi in June. But the best way to curb corruption is public accountability, and as we have argued, outsiders can help by supporting efforts to punch more holes in China’s Great Firewall.
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Just offer them a chest full of basketballs.
BobMbx on April 9, 2013 at 6:03 PM
who to believe…..
PappyD61 on April 9, 2013 at 6:04 PM
If you want something done right, send Susan Rice.
steebo77 on April 9, 2013 at 6:04 PM
……….an government with a charismatic leader that lies or….
PappyD61 on April 9, 2013 at 6:05 PM
Barack will blink. He’ll offer something of substance behind closed doors. No way this escalates to war.
BKeyser on April 9, 2013 at 6:07 PM
Send Obama over there; maybe he’ll bore him to sleep with his speeches.
squint on April 9, 2013 at 6:08 PM
and they say Palin is dumb. Allah when is the last time we had troops in NORTH korea?
unseen on April 9, 2013 at 6:08 PM
It’s tomorrow in North Korea right now…
Seven Percent Solution on April 9, 2013 at 6:10 PM
North Korea didn’t go for a comprehensive common sense balanced approach to not bombing anybody?
Apparently the Obama Campaign needs a better focus group consultant in North Korea.
forest on April 9, 2013 at 6:11 PM
Did you even click on the link. He was quoting Chuck Hagel.
RickB on April 9, 2013 at 6:12 PM
the difference between Korea and Iraq and Afgan is we have a treaty with SK and we would be the defenders not the attackers. the public is weary of empire building in far off corners of the world. empire building done poorly and for no reason it seems. A korean conflict is about defending an ally and friend.
unseen on April 9, 2013 at 6:12 PM
It’s a good thing Obowma has that party tonight…
Seven Percent Solution on April 9, 2013 at 6:12 PM
no I didn’t and I didn’t see any quotes around it either.
unseen on April 9, 2013 at 6:13 PM
There’s a key distinction in the public opinion I think between Yes South Korea should be defended as an ally of the US and No the US should not keep nearly 30,000 troops along the DMZ trip wire for 60 years as little more than cannon fodder while the ROK goes from war-ravaged refugee to economic mini-superpower more than capable of meeting the great majority of its military/security needs.
Sacramento on April 9, 2013 at 6:13 PM
It would seem more likely that China would intervene on the NorKs’ side if we did simply leave South Korea to defend for themselves, our presence may give China second thoughts about intervening.
fourdeucer on April 9, 2013 at 6:13 PM
ok clicked the link still didn’t see where it mentioned pulling troops out of north korea.
unseen on April 9, 2013 at 6:15 PM
Must have delivered it to the wrong general. How’d that work out for ya?
jake49 on April 9, 2013 at 6:16 PM
We should pull all of our troops out of Korea and most other countries across the world, and then when someone attacks us our response should be BARBARIC. That’s what military policy should be.
thphilli on April 9, 2013 at 6:23 PM
I guess the wording wasn’t sufficiently stern, or something.
msmveritas on April 9, 2013 at 6:25 PM
Distinction in public opinion or not, the US keeps 30,000 troops on the DMZ because the US is still at War with North Korea.
SWalker on April 9, 2013 at 6:29 PM
Why give anything to Barky, it’s not as if he will respond back forcefully; the norks have his number just as everyone else does.
Bishop on April 9, 2013 at 6:30 PM
This just goes to prove the demo-rat socialists running our nation into the ground now believe everyone (including the NORKS) are just as stupid as the low information voters that got Obummer elected not once, but twice!
Problem with BS talking point spinners (like most demo-rats are) is they eventually start to believe their own BS spin…problem with that is doing so in such a delicate foreign affairs situation like we now find ourselves in with the NORKS BS spin can get us and South Korea blowed up!
SMART POWER INDEED!!
Liberty or Death on April 9, 2013 at 6:35 PM
The GOP has Bark’s number?
Cudda fooled me.
Bruno Strozek on April 9, 2013 at 6:35 PM
Why in the world did they not try the reset button Hillary carries around??
HotAirian on April 9, 2013 at 6:37 PM
Maxwell Smart Power!
Bet they met in the cone of silence.
Marcola on April 9, 2013 at 6:43 PM
Fortunately there are no Muslims involved front and center to paralyze you into submission. It’s all up to leftard common sense and how they feel about social justice.
BL@KBIRD on April 9, 2013 at 6:47 PM
It got busted during that Benghazi dust-up.
antipc on April 9, 2013 at 6:48 PM
Should have sent Dennis Rodman. He talked to Li’l Kim and his wife personally. Sheesh.
Philly on April 9, 2013 at 6:49 PM
Says ‘South’ now; corrected?
Midas on April 9, 2013 at 6:59 PM
Jeez, the libertarians are ‘slow’. We have an international treaty with South Korea. We always honor our treaties. Period. Financial pointyheads will always complain. Thats in their nature. Lol.
tommy71 on April 9, 2013 at 7:01 PM
Isn’t that a contradiction?
JetBoy on April 9, 2013 at 7:08 PM
For nearly two decades the U.S. stalwartly fought for the six party talks. The bipartisan consensus in the foreign policy establishment is and was that bilateral talks would quickly turn into pure blackmail sessions, and the potential for crises (and danger to the world) would grow larger. America fought for those talks for twenty years, un Democrat and GOP administrations, precisely because the alternative would endanger alliances and, potentially, populations.
So in come the Obama smarty-pants. And look where we are: they give in, and commence bilateral talks (even if they aren’t calling them that formally). The Japanese are scared out of their minds, because the Americans have been secretly negotiating with their craziest enemies, and the NORKS are threatening world peace.
There is no imbecility too far off the balance-beam for these Democrats.
MTF on April 9, 2013 at 7:12 PM
North Korea is full of it, they aren’t going to do anything more than try to test a few missiles (that might get shot out of the sky by Japan, assuming they make it that far), and irradiate their own lands. I gotta say, Obama is actually handling a foreign ‘crisis’ pretty well for once. China has been flexing its muscle against a lot of our allies in the region lately, particularly against Japan over the Senkakus. Obama is using the North’s belligerence as cover for bolstering the defenses of our Pacific allies, and calling out the Kim regime as a bunch of blowhards in the process.
Lawdawg86 on April 9, 2013 at 7:17 PM
I’m betting Obama sent an IPod with all his speeches and a box of DVDs that only work in the US.
Should have sent him your recipe for Getman Shepard Soufflé, you limpd!ck jug eared jackhat.
RovesChins on April 9, 2013 at 7:22 PM
…no food…no peace
KOOLAID2 on April 9, 2013 at 7:53 PM
How about offering them Dennis Rodman and a player to be named later?
Happy Nomad on April 9, 2013 at 8:29 PM
yes.
Just pointing out how easy it is to get them “confused” when talking about the conflict. not trying to say Allah thought there were troops in North korea.
unseen on April 9, 2013 at 8:33 PM
Not sure I can follow this let the South do it…blah blah twice as many people, blah blah 40X larger wallet. Would the South want to risk what they built or would they make a sweet sweet deal with China as their new protector? My bet, the latter. Smart power indeed, inside The Great Wall.
Limerick on April 9, 2013 at 8:53 PM
Hmm.
slickwillie2001 on April 9, 2013 at 9:13 PM
A North Korea crisis might be a good thing. It will collapse like a house-of-cards, and perhaps the “international community” (of hypocrites) can get off their backsides and end the NK concentration camps.
NK as a society does not have far to fall, so I recommend kicking away the stool and letting them hang.
The Norks are not completely nuts. Nobody has done anything to provoke them. They hope to get some freebies to keep their pantomime on the road. They can probably launch a few missiles but I doubt they can hit anything. A first launch with a nuke would be instant death for them, they have to know that. And Obama would love to be credited with saving the free world, so he’ll be ready with his finger on the buzzer.
The only thing we know they have done for sure is to fire at some SK fishing boats and worry some islands, so I don’t think nuclear is the next stage (even if they can do it). They probably need gas money for the launching trucks.
virgo on April 9, 2013 at 10:20 PM
good point.
unseen on April 9, 2013 at 10:27 PM
Deterrent
Fry the little bastard. No one will really care.
Unite the peninsula into one Korea under the flag of South Korea.
Give the infrastructure reconstruction contracts to China.
China will kiss off Lil Kim, the Koreas will again be united.
The World will be at ease and no one will mess with us for a long time to come.
jpcpt03 on April 10, 2013 at 2:01 AM