Chinese Reactions To Google Leaving China

I Don't Believe in Imaginary Property writes "Most people have already heard western media reactions to Google leaving China proper and redirecting search traffic to its Hong Kong branch, but ChinaSMACK has translated comments from average Chinese internet users so that non-Chinese can understand how the Chinese public feels. While many of them are supportive of the government on some level, they were able to obtain many comments by those critical of the government before they could be 'harmonized' (deleted) and translated those as well. The deleted comments often complain about the wumao (50 cent party), government employees who are paid 50 cents RMB per post supporting the government, and worry that the Chinese Internet will become a Chinese LAN."

Comments

What is the atmosphere inside China?

[BadAnalogyGuy]

It's fine to get reports of what's going on inside China from bloggers and news sources that have a vested interest in painting China in the worst light possible. But from my experience with mainland Chinese, they are for the most part satisfied with their government's actions.

If all you are ever fed is McDonald's and no one ever tells you about anything else, your view of food is severely limited. This works both ways in the case of China.

Re:What is the atmosphere inside China?

[francium de neobie]

Opinion about the government is not a singular YES/NO boolean flag. It's entirely possible that the Chinese people generally likes the economic progress the government has brought, but doesn't like the censorship so much.

Re:What is the atmosphere inside China?

[BadAnalogyGuy]

As hard as it may seem to grasp this concept, there are people who hold their beliefs very closely yet hold beliefs that are diametrically opposed to you.

Take the U.S. as a prime example. For what many Europeans take as incomprehensible, the nearly violent antipathy of many Americans towards national health care, these Americans feel strongly that it is in their (and their country's) best interest to not have such a system.

In China, the censorship is perhaps seen as a good thing, to "protect the children" or other public policy reason. With only the Western "freedom is everything" cultural viewpoint fed to us, how can we really form a valid opinion either way?

Re:What is the atmosphere inside China?

[Anonymous Coward]

>>But from my experience with mainland Chinese, they are for the most part satisfied with their government's actions.

Indeed. My wife (who is Chinese) was born and raised in Hong Kong, and so has no love for mainland China. Probably had something to do with her grandpa getting tortured during the cultural revolution...

She refuses to visit mainland China, so I went by myself. People there are actually very happy with their government, in a sort of "Yeah it's a dictatorship but everything is moving in the right direction" way. They actually like that shit gets done there. Got a shitty village in the way of the interstate? Move. No pissy little lawsuits there to slow things down. And then the interstate is done... in a tenth of the time it would take in America. They actually mocked our gridlock in America.

Anyhow, her aunt and uncle still live in China, and recently moved to mainland China. They're Christian missionaries... oh wait, that's illegal... they're Christians, and they do charity work. If anyone would hate China, it'd be them - father tortured, they could possibly be executed for being Christian... and they approve of the government. Not just "oh well, it's better than Zimbabwe", but they actually think the country is doing well, and will do even better in the future. Sure, there's a few problems, they say, but they'll be fixed in the future.

While most of the Chinese people I talked to were rather ignorant about news (nationally and internationally), pretty much all of them liked the government.

Re:What is the atmosphere inside China?

[DNS-and-BIND]

What you're missing is the "wrong" and "right" of the situation. Europeans are right, Americans and Chinese are wrong, in addition to being vulgar and uncivilized. Heck, there are people who call the results of legitimate elections "wrong" because the people voted the "incorrect" way. I wish I was kidding.

Although I am happy to see yet another thread about a totally unrelated subject get turned into the standard "Europeans consider Americans as inexplicably stupid" argument though.

Re:What is the atmosphere inside China?

[mike2R]

That reminds me of something a Chinese friend of mine said once. He said that there is little demand for democracy among ordinary Chinese, but there is a huge wish for accountability. He said people loath corrupt party officials and the like and there is real pressure for reform in that area, but that democracy isn't really seen as relevant to that debate.

That, and a real fear that democracy would lead to instability and even the possibility of civil war, means (according to one affluent, western educated Chinese) that the push for democracy within China is far less than a Westerner might suppose.

Re:What is the atmosphere inside China?

[Pharmboy]

The problem is Manifest Destiny. Many American Christians truly believe that God® has commissioned us here in the land of milk and honey to spread democracy to the rest of the world. This is why so many have been missionaries over the years, and why our foreign policy is so phucked up. I understand why we might prefer to do business with countries that have some form of representative government, but we can't force China/Cuba/etc to become "democratic" at the end of a gun barrel or by giving them bibles.

If the US would focus more on "freedom" and less on delivering it to other countries, we would be a stronger country. Right now, our freedoms are eroding, our jobs are at risk, our manufacturing base is rusting away, half of our allies stay pissed at us, all due a national self-rightousness that arrogantly assumes that ALL countries should have a form of government just like ours. And yes, I was in the military, as was my father, so I'm not an isolationist or pacifist. I want us to have a strong defense, but the American delusion of Manifest Destiny undermines it.

Re:What is the atmosphere inside China?

[YesDinosaursDidExist]

North Koreans like their government too.

Re:Yes, yes, the title.

[maxwell demon]

Hey, maybe when the Chinese internet turns into the Chinese LAN, they can have huge Chinese LAN parties! Of course, these LAN parties will have to be harmonized by the government and consist of 72 hours of back to back dota, counter-strike, and wow. Coincidentally, the Chinese government is also interested in recruiting new operators for their virtual soldiers.

The Chinese cannot have LAN parties because there's only one party allowed, the communist party.

Interesting

[sonicmerlin]

You know it's weird. I'm actually in Japan right now, living in a dorm with a lot of Chinese foreign students. One of them told me how his father was actually one of the students at Tiananmen Square, and after the incident burned a book filled with writings of his classmates so that the government wouldn't find it and record his previous affiliations on his resume.

This guy also tells me how shocked he was after he came to Japan and was finally able to see the Tiananmen videos on Youtube (blocked in China of course), and how it's changed his views of his government. According to him, a lot of Chinese youth are extremely nationalistic, and are "brainwashed" by the government. The government hires people to parrot their views of events as if they're normal citizens telling their own personal viewpoints.

He told me he himself used to like his life in China, but now that he's realized the truth about his government, he'd prefer not to go back to China after his study period in Japan is over.

Not entirely on-topic, and mod me down if you must, but I just thought it was interesting how this Chinese guy has become disconnected from his country and his own people, who seem to be influenced so heavily by their government.

Instead of google.com.hk

[quickgold192]

If Google *really* wanted to rock the boat, it should have redirected Chinese visitors to www.google.com.tw.