The Party fears democracy, because it will break their grip on power and money. Even though the Great Firewall is extensive, it seems vulnerable. That Fang Binxing was shamed off of Weibo suggests that people are aware of the dirty hand that holds them. The rights lawyers though they sit in jail are the most potent activists on the planet. Even in the face of an extensive and corrupt security apparatus, they stand for their rights as human beings.
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The GFW is the worst part of living in China. The sooner it dies the better.
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GFW exists cuz the communist party leadership are cowards. That designer will go down in history one and for all.
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Only 10 comments here so far. Unbelievable!
Is this is a sign of who is reading the Times and who is not?
Is this is a sign of who is reading the Times and who is not?
Yes, not a lot of fun that GFW but have you noticed how fast ‘relevant’ advertising pops up on your screen? In the US they are winding up for a presidential election again and micro processors will pop out full scale information on each registered voter to be used for ‘contact’ in all its forms; not a small factor in the Obama elections where the Dems seemed to have been leading the Reps in technology. Orwell was really uninformed, but thank him for the warning.
Cannot have those "democracy advocates" stirring things up!
Now let's see if the Dem establishment steals the convention for Hillary...just saying.
Now let's see if the Dem establishment steals the convention for Hillary...just saying.
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Such a pleasure to see Mr. Fang cultivating his taste for bitter fruit.
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Witnessing Fang Binxing’s embarrassment over having to resort to unstable VPNs must have been a delightful experience for those in the audience! It is not only Chinese citizens, however, who must put up with Internet firewalls. We have those, too, in the West, and though they may not be as “great” as China’s GFW, they can be damned annoying! I’ve personally experienced Internet blockage based on the location of my computer, so I know what it feels like to scramble for a usable VPN.
It happened a couple of years ago while I was teaching at a college in England. When I learned that a friend in the States was sick, I wanted to purchase a bouquet of flowers for delivery to her home. Imagine my chagrin when I found that I could only order from a florist in the UK! Why should I have to pay all that extra money just to ship a bunch of wilted flowers? Some kind of firewall based on my computer’s location prevented US florists from taking my order. (My credit card was from a US bank.) Fortunately, the savvy tech people at the college showed me how to use a VPN in order to mask my location and place my order with a neighborhood florist near my friend’s home. I'm glad to say that the ruse succeeded. To bad, though, that it was necessary.
It happened a couple of years ago while I was teaching at a college in England. When I learned that a friend in the States was sick, I wanted to purchase a bouquet of flowers for delivery to her home. Imagine my chagrin when I found that I could only order from a florist in the UK! Why should I have to pay all that extra money just to ship a bunch of wilted flowers? Some kind of firewall based on my computer’s location prevented US florists from taking my order. (My credit card was from a US bank.) Fortunately, the savvy tech people at the college showed me how to use a VPN in order to mask my location and place my order with a neighborhood florist near my friend’s home. I'm glad to say that the ruse succeeded. To bad, though, that it was necessary.
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You could have called in the order. Just sayin'.
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Orwell's 1984 also applies to monitoring of people. 1984 greatly focuses on being watched and being monitored by the Big Brother. Yes, we got one too. We are talking about a global dystopian future. Was that Oceania the we are part of?
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Hoisted on his own petard....
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The Orwellian dystopian universe of 1984 and Animal Farm is the reality of Communist China.
Especially as in Animal Farm, where all the farm animals are equal, except the Pigs, who are "more equal" than others.
"Have you seen the bigger piggies
In their starched white shirts?
You will find the bigger piggies
Stirring up the dirt
Always have clean shirts to play around in"
Piggies
George Harrison
1968
Especially as in Animal Farm, where all the farm animals are equal, except the Pigs, who are "more equal" than others.
"Have you seen the bigger piggies
In their starched white shirts?
You will find the bigger piggies
Stirring up the dirt
Always have clean shirts to play around in"
Piggies
George Harrison
1968
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Piggies... a small reminder of how/why that word is applied in the US
Don't call it "Communist China". It ain't Communist, it's Trumpist!
Except that he didn't write that in reference to Communist (not really) China, he wrote it in reference to the upper classes his own British society. Interesting you also reference Orwell since your comment itself seems to include a bit of double speak.
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