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Censorship Your Rights Online

China Cracks Down on Non-Compliant Internet Bars 31

Posted by timothy from the whole-new-cultural-revolution dept.
phreak404 writes: "According to this article on CNN.com, over 197 bars were closed for apparently violating licensing laws that require bars to censor content."
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China Cracks Down on Non-Compliant Internet Bars More

China Cracks Down on Non-Compliant Internet Bars

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  • sad (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Vodak ( 119225 )
    Many people would be angered about this story because China is screwing it's people and blocking things they don't feel good for thier people. At least in China they aren't bitching about freedom of speech \and at the same time writting crap like DMCA/CIPA/LOL/CPA/PATRIOT. Understand I still don't think this content blocking is good or correct I'm just lossing faith in all governments as of late.
  • Someday the dictators of the world will realize that saying "don't look at this" just draws people like flies. Or perhaps like moths, since totalitarian governments normally just kill those who disobey. If your style of government is to mute all objectors by killing them, why restrict speech and make it "cool" to have access to it?

    Perhaps the goal is to identify those who are dangerous by leaking just enough that only those who would like basic human rights for the citizens access it so you can send out the death squads more effectively? Makes you wonder how many people no longer exist due to weblogs...

    • <I> Someday the dictators of the world will realize that saying "don't look at this" just draws people like flies.</I>

      Yes, but you have to _know_ that the content has been forbidden.

      From what I've read about the Chinese 'megafilters' is that they don't return a page that says <B>Access Denied</B> but more along the lines of <B>Connection timed out...</B>

      The Internet in countries in opressive countries doesn't spark off the free speech thing as much as people expect... the people have to <i>realise</I> that they're being fed horse dung first.

  • It's too bad that China's official government is so fearful of alternative ideas. Everyday Chinese have got to figure out sooner or later that the reasons for this are no more complicated than the government has no inherently optimal basis for existence - the existing government just wants to retain power and control whatever the case.

    Dissidents will have to go to greater measures to communicate with one another. Let the Internet Bars install official blocking software that is probably as porous as a moquito net. Then, communicate via a commercial and politically-correct sounding language.

    "Enemies of the people" could refer to the government of China. Etc. Turn their own doublespeak back on them.

    • Bear in mind that the current government was huge improvement over the KMT (Kuomintang a.k.a the Nationalists led by Jinag Jieshi (Chinag Chi-Shek)). In its early years the PRC was a great boon to the peasants. The KMT had been massively corrupt and the economy was in shambles. After the October Revolution the CCP was able to turn both of those issues around. Because of these beginnings, the Chinese have been very supportive of their government on the whole. Combine this with constant misinformation and propaganda and it explains why the CCP still maintains power despite its policies.
  • ... is Chinese, living in Beijing. He claims that his internet access is not blocked in any way (he's got a computer at home, so doesn't use Internet Cafe's, and he doesn't drink so doesn't go to 'bars'). I think he is probably very niave. He pretty much sucks up the party line; to him, Falong Gong is a subversive, dangerous mob, just like the boss wants him to think. I haven't conversed with him about the crack-down on non-complying internet cafe's yet, but I suspect he think's their, at best, in the wrong and, at worst, criminals. Hey, he's been steeped in this stuff all his life, I'd be kinda surprized if he took an opposing [the government] view. It's taken quite a number of years to get my wife to see her old government's policies as anything other than benevolent.

  • doh (Score:3, Funny)

    by Lord Omlette ( 124579 ) on Monday May 06, 2002 @04:23PM (#3472324) Homepage
    I wonder if this has anything to do with me responding to every spam I get from a .cn domain with: "The weapons you paid for are on their way. I'm more than happy to support the Falun Gong. Free Tibet!"
  • There's no such thing as human rights in China? This is breaking news!

    - A.P.

  • Well I'm shocked...not (Score:3, Insightful)

    by psicic ( 171000 ) on Monday May 06, 2002 @06:47PM (#3473455) Homepage Journal
    Errr... it is actually the law, you know. The places that were shut down were unlicenced. It's seems like a non-story. CNN - in a typical display of its 'unbiased' reporting - seems to have melded a few facts together.

    Look at it this way: In most of the US you can't brew and serve alcoholic drink publicly without some sort of licence. In the Republic of Ireland you have to have a licence to own a TV. In China, you need a licence to run an internet cafe.

    In the US you don't need a TV licence if the TV is for private use. In the Republic of Ireland you can brew alcohol if it's for private use(maybe you can in the US as well - I don't know). In Ireland and the US, most internet cafes aren't required by law to restrict access to sites. But a good few places - whether by law or by a policy mandate - do restrict access to porno sites and certains sites with a 'speciality' interest(aren't US libraries required to restrict access to certain sites?). In China, all public internet terminals(including internet cafes) are required to have filtering software. From what I've heard on the 'net, the myth of 'the Yellow Firewall' is just that - a myth. Chinese PC users can access the entire internet from their homes.

    8)
    • you can brew your here in the good ole us of a. not a problem. you can't distill your own, um "moonshine", although distillers can be purchased legally, but only for to home-distill your own drinking water. not that anyone really does that.

      there's been alot of huff about wether or not it's legal or not to censor various things (aside from porn, like pro-animal abuse, KKK, ect.). schools have the right to censor their web access, i think they're required to do so. public librarys shouldn't but do so anyways alot of the time.
    • I was in my old man's summer flat in southern China a few weeks ago. Couldn't get onto bbc.co.uk from there. Access to /. was however okay.

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