tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8533171043031843199.post8447696410970538133..comments2024-01-30T05:43:28.525-08:00Comments on the capital in the north: A few thoughts on China and the internetJi Xianghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03406727999722525339noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8533171043031843199.post-5125780914635343252015-02-09T17:43:33.865-08:002015-02-09T17:43:33.865-08:00@FOARP:
I can't imagine how the Chinese gover...@FOARP:<br /><br />I can't imagine how the Chinese government could determine if private citizens are "unfriendly". I doubt they have the ability or the will to pour through people's old blog posts and comments on internet forums.<br /><br />In general, I think there are two different pull factors at work. On the one hand, the Chinese government want to impede the spread of ideas which undermine their prized "stability" and their hold on power by any means necessary.<br /><br />On the other hand, they have to make sure that the middle and upper classes who generally support them don't feel that they are being repressed (which they currently don't). It would be impossible to completely eliminate the awareness of "Western values" (by which they mean freedom of speech, multiparty elections, separation of powers etc...) without sealing the country off again, preventing people from travelling abroad, watching American TV shows, reading foreign books etc... I can't believe that China could go back to that nowadays. If it did, public support for the regime would probably collapse. Ji Xianghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03406727999722525339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8533171043031843199.post-25332775439591224662015-02-08T03:01:21.709-08:002015-02-08T03:01:21.709-08:00I think it's important to recognise the trend ...I think it's important to recognise the trend that the Chinese government is following here: where something is disapproved of, it will eventually be forbidden as soon as it is possible to do so. If the Chinese government could eliminate VPNs, it would, and eventually it will try to. If the Chinese government could completely eliminate "western values" from the Chinese public sphere without causing excessive harm it would, and eventually it will try to. <br /><br />I'm beginning to think that we may one day be faced with a situation where not only "unfriendly" academics, artists, and actors may be forbidden to travel to China, but even private citizens.Gilman Grundyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06607416440240634159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8533171043031843199.post-6153194653735080402015-01-27T18:19:29.095-08:002015-01-27T18:19:29.095-08:00@Jr: most people are fairly apolitical everywhere....@Jr: most people are fairly apolitical everywhere. As long as problems don't touch them personally, they might as well not exist.<br /><br />At the same time, in most countries in Europe and Asia most people (at least young people) would consider it a problem if they found themselves unable to access the world's most popular websites.<br /><br />Only in a country as big and insular as China could most people be unaware. As long as they can use Baidu, Weibo and Youku, they are fine without Google, Facebook and Youtube. Ji Xianghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03406727999722525339noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8533171043031843199.post-39998557079287731572015-01-27T06:35:50.618-08:002015-01-27T06:35:50.618-08:00most Chinese couldn't really care less
That&#...<i>most Chinese couldn't really care less</i><br /><br />That's a trend indeed, and not only in China. I realize that when taking a look at what is actually sought and read (among my blog posts in English and German), and what isn't.<br /><br />Fashion and pop culture matter a lot. Politics doesn't matter a great deal. And outside-the-mainstream political journalism will hardly be noticed.JRhttps://justrecently.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.com