Thanks to a tip from a commentor; check out these screenshots of an attempt to use the words “human rights,” “democracy,” and “freedom of speech” on a Chinese language MSN Spaces blog.
(Actually, there are generally a lot of good tips in many of my comments sections – more than I can follow up on.)
Thanks for the tip- am now signed up with ‘Global Voices’, ( and no doubt, they are now spying on me too.) haw!
Bawhahah…you bet your rightie-ass ve are vatching you!! Ve will contact(contract) you very,very soon Dave../sarc
On a more serious note ,excellent link Kate.Now I am beggining to understand why our Librano$ govn’t is selling out the oilsands to Chinese commie interests. It’s a win-win situation. The Commies can learn how to subvert a country without having to use overt nasty methods,and the Librano$ can take lessons on how to shut-up any blogging anti-lefties with B.Gates’ help! And hey,what’s a few more spies in the country anyways? Everybody has a right to a job in this great socialist nation,right??
If I were the Chinese, I would use similar words and change them on a regular basis in place of the banned words. They can even use meaningless code words.
It would drive the commies crazy.
6/17/2005
Chinese Bloggers on Censorship, MSN, Etc.
Filed under: China � Rebecca MacKinnon @ 6:52 pm
At CNBlog, Isaac says: �Don�t Use MSN Spaces, � and creates a NoMSN Technorati tag for the boycott movement.
Kaihong posts a screenshot on Flickr showing results similar to what I found: the blog�s title is filtered, but he was able to post sensitive words in the body of the blog.
Wangjianshuo (in English) describes the website registration process. He says his site is �almost legal in China,� and that the process so far has been surprisingly easy.
Chinese bloggers respond to Microsoft�s Robert Scoble:
Beijing-based (registered, blogging on WordPress) Doubleaf says that while Scoble may have met some Chinese who were critical of American style democracy, it�s ridiculous to conclude that the Chinese are anti-free speech. �Chinese people are people too, how could we not like freedom and democracy? The words �freedom� and �democracy� are written in black characters on the white paper of the Constitution of the People�s Republic of China.� He points out that even China�s current governing bodies use the language of democracy. � 毫无疑问，中国人也是人，对民主自由等人类共同的财产有着天生的向往。�Without question, the Chinese people are people too, and have natural aspirations to things like democracy and freedom, which are common human property.� Note that Doubleaf�s blog is legally registered in Beijing, and he is using the terms �freedom� and �democracy� repeatedly on his blog. Note also that it�s possible to use these terms while at the same time not saying anything critical of the current regime – something he does skilfully.
Hopesome (legally registered in Fujian) reprimands Scoble: �China doesn�t have a single law or regulation saying that sensitive words like �democracy� and �freedom� should be forbidden.� He continues: 而且，许许多多的中国人关于民主和自由的理解和世界上其它国家，包括美国，的理解并没有本质的区别。�What�s more, there is no fundamental difference between the way in which many Chinese people comprehend democracy and freedom, and the way in which other people around the world, including Americans, comprehend it.� (Again note that Hopesome is blogging from within China on a Chinese server, on a legally registered blog.)
Li Dan (writing in English) points out that the words �democracy� and �freedom� show up in the State-run news site Xinhuanet quite frequently.
China�s long-time problems with Microsoft:
One thing many people may not realize is that Microsoft has a long history of p.r. problems in China, and that the �anti-Microsoft monopoly� sentiment is very strong both in parts of the Chinese government bureaucracy (who don�t want to be overly dependent on foreign software and thus prefer Linux-based systems for national security reasons) as well as amongst independent Chinese techies and bloggers who are concerned about the concentration of too much power in one foreign software company – which many believe is stifling the emergence of a homegrown software industry.
We are reminded of this context in a long post on Klogs.org (in Chinese, hosted in the U.S.) , which describes how both Chinese bloggers and the Chinese government have had it out for Microsoft for a long time. He points to an article posted on a blogger portal site complaining that MSN Spaces blogging service is illegal, because it hasn�t adhered to the same registration procedures that all other blog-hosting companies have been required to go through.
He then points to the blog, Chinese Center for the Study of Blogs, which also argues that MSN Spaces is illegal My translation of a small excerpt:
The old saying goes: When in Rome do as the Romans do [loose translation of idiom]. If you�re going to play the business game, you must follow the regulations. If MS wants to play the blog game in China, it must follow the rules, right?
But MS has not followed the rules. The Chinese government regulations forbid foreign investors to engage in internet content services, and MS has no right to develop a blog service as an internet content provider (ICP). MS naturally is unwilling, on one hand it wants to get around this regulation by cooperating with a Chinese website; on the other hand it loudly proclaims and promotes MSN blogs, hoping that if it makes an assertive first move and pulls in a lot of web users, it will create a fait accompli. Their logic is just that simple, once it gets a large number of Chinese users, then MS�s negotiating position with the Chinese government will be strengthened.
What does MS say in its negotiations with the Chinese government?
Isn�t it about taking more software market share from Chinese-produced software? Or is it about protecting China�s information security?
Or about bringing down the price of Windows, so that they can make more money off of the labor of the impoverished people? Who knows.
Here is a similar argument written by an organization called the �Blogger Alliance to Oppose Microsoft�s Monopoly� (反微软垄断博客同盟). Here is the group�s statement of purpose. More stuff by the group here and here.
If somebody would like to volunteer to translate these things from Chinese to English in full, I�m sure that would help illuminate the whole context of the MSN Spaces p.r. fiasco.
Don’t mention China and patent rights in the same breath to an Intel employee.
The lowbrow commie dogam rejects responsiblities related to ownership…particularly intellectual property.
The last 3 electronics forms I worked fro wouldn;t allow chinese nationals on the premises unless under escort.
“Iron”ic how Bill Gates has given more to the world than anybody alive…yet can lose so much respect for cowtowing to the Chinese.
Let us sleep tight however.
The Chinese “government” will be as successful at keeping political dissent away from internet users, as the CRTC is at keeping American culture away from Canadians.
There are a few Chinese citizens that can teach a few more how speak freely online, I am sure.
When Gates realizes that the Chinese find it much more enjoyable pirating his software, he will stop this illogical exercise.
Kashar News
Intel advances Wi-Fi chip technology
Earthtimes.org – 4 hours ago
Chip giant Intel unveiled a unified Wi-Fi technology supporting solution this Friday. The technology, designed to support all current and projected Wi-Fi standards, reflects the company�s focus on wireless networking. …
Intel Wi-Fi in a chip p2pnet.net
Intel talks up universal wireless networking Forbes
ZDNet – 24x7updates – TechWhack – MRT (subscription) – all 38 related �
Kashar News
Searching “Deep Web Content”
Kashar News – 49 minutes ago
Washington, June 18 (Kashar News): Yahoo launched beta launch of �Yahoo! Search Subscriptions� called “deep web” millions of access-restricted Web sites containing content that search engines typically cannot access – is now searchable. …
Must come to Microsoft’s defence on this one. $950 MS software packages have been offered for $69.00 Two seperate Email offers like that are in my possession.
Also, I have seen a Chinese National running off documentation all day long for MS products on pay-as-you-go commercial photo-copy equipment.
MS pays employees to work on millions of code modules. Selling their product at 90% off is bad for people’s jobs and both our economies.
It’s easy to hate the big guy. MS is not perfect. Some of their deals with OEMs are a bit too stiff. But no one is perfect. 73s TG