China Declares War on Internet Pornography

segphault writes "The Chinese government has shut down nearly 600 pornographic web sites, and arrested over 200 people for distributing "obscene" content. The Chinese government has also started performing covert surveillance of mobile phone text messages in order to crack down on banking fraud and prostitution organized and perpetrated with text messages. Ars Technica has the story: 'With more than 100 million Internet users, China has the second largest population of web content consumers after the United States. Although the Chinese government promotes web use for business, education, and government activity, the communist regime has committed its resources to crushing web sites that challenge government authority, or distribute content that the government considers to be detrimental to society'"

Comments

Communist country? Are you serious?

[Flying pig]

China is not a Communist country. It's an oligarchic dictatorship. The fact that said oligarchy calls itself "communist" is about as relevant as Lebanese militias calling themselves "Christian" or the Provisional IRA calling itself "Trotskyite". You can call yourself what you like. But if you want historical parallels for current Chinese government, the Imperial Roman system or the Venetian Serene Republic are probably closer analogies.

I wouldn't get cross about this misnomenclature except that there have been a very few real attempts at Communist government, notably in India, and they shouldn't be dirtied by association. Let's be clear - if the Chinese people eventually overthrow or modernise their government, it will be the end of the process of the rise and collapse of large scale dictatorships in the 20th Century.