China Wants US-Owned Hotels to Censor Internet

jp_papin writes "The Chinese government is demanding that US-owned hotels there filter Internet service during the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing, US Senator Sam Brownback has alleged. The Chinese government is requiring US-owned hotels to install Internet filters to 'monitor and restrict information coming in and out of China,' Brownback said Thursday. 'This is an insult to the spirit of the games and an affront to American businesses,' he said. 'I call on China to immediately rescind this demand.' US State Department spokesman Tom Casey said he wasn't aware of those specific requests from the Chinese government, but Brownback said he got the information on Internet filtering from 'two different reliable but confidential sources.' The State Department is apparently continuing dialog with China about freedom of expression."

Comments

I want a pony!

[hostyle]

First! Give me a pony and i'll give you your censorship.

Re:welcome to the multi-valued world

[querist]

Tom,

You are right on target. What we are seeing is the typical US Government arrogance. They expect to be able to require everyone for conform to the USA's rules. They try to force DMCA and RIAA/MIAA-approved copyright laws down the WTO's collective throat. They try to force their own version of "religious freedom" (which is not really religious freedom if you really look at it*) down every other country's throat. This is just another example of the US Government's arrogance.

*religious freedom: yes, in theory people in the USA have "freedom of religion", but in how many ways does that actually mean "freedom to attend any Christian denomination that is considered acceptable."? Why did they make such a big deal on the news when that congressperson or senator from Hawai'i was elected? The news did not discuss the person's qualifications. The big news item was that he or she (i don't remember) was the first Buddhist elected to a federal office. That's pathetic! Why should it matter if the person is a Buddhist? From what I know about Buddhism, I'd much rather a Buddhist president than someone from most other religions.

When was the last time a Muslim was elected to a federal office? How about someone who practices Shintoism? If I remember correctly, it was the intent of the Founding Fathers that the "freedom of religion" only applied to "Christian" beliefs. Granted, you cannot completely fault them for that because they were acting in accordance with their religious beliefs, but in this supposedly more enlightened age one would like to think that we could do better now.

Re:The Original Press Release

[sm62704]

Sam Brownback doesn't exist. If he did, there would be an uncyclopedia article about him.

Oh wait, he does exist, here is the entry on the honorable Senator Browbakc from Kansas

Approved by the Kansas State Board of Education.
This page meets all criteria and requirements for use as teaching material within the State of Kansas public school system. It consists of facts, not of theories, and students are encouraged to believe it uncritically, and to approach alternatives critically.

"Kansas. All it is is dust in the wind." ~ Oscar Wilde on Kansas

In 1865 it was discovered that there was in fact, a single hill in the entire state. The legislature determined that this hill (for reasons unknown but entirely unrelated to altitude referred to as Mount Oread) was the ideal location to send its best and brightest, and founded the University of Kansas on the hill. The primary subjects taught were post-hole digging, wheat planting, and the concept of the "hill," previously unfamiliar to most Kansans. It is said that the original building on campus was blown down seven times before designers realized that the wind from the west came straight from the Rocky Mountains without any obstructions. Their response was to built a concrete monstrosity, known as Wescoe Hall. The building stood for 120 years before sliding down the hill and collapsing, killing seventy cattle and one freshman philosophy major. This disaster (the hall, not the collapse) spurred the creation of a School of Architecture at the University. The university mascot is the Jayhawk, a bird native to Kansas that inexplicably killed hundreds of people in neighboring Missouri during the American Civil War.

"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore." ~ Dorothy on noticing a school teaching actual science