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Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

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Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#641

Post by vonmoltke »

nickthemagicman wrote: post #188
zwaps wrote: post #139

Then we have to boycott Hearthstone. While the current case is neither surprising nor substantially important, it is important because of principle. Blizzard is not responsible for what players say in interviews. In our society, it still matters that people can tolerate other opinions. The Chinese government tries to make it a new normal that entire people can have their "feelings hurt" (what?) by mere non-insulting…

So far I've noticed: 1> New Top Gun Movie removed a patch on Tom Cruises jacketdue to Chinese funding. 2> NBA issued an apology for an owner showing Hong Kong support and China stopped NBA broadcasts. 3> Blizzard 4> Apple Hides Taiwans Flag emoji Sounds trivial but they're the tip of the iceberg for censoring freedom of expression based on a DICTATOR's whim. Xi "Winnie The Poop" is an autocrat and once he sealed his…

> 2> NBA issued an apology for an owner showing Hong Kong support and China stopped NBA broadcasts.

The NBA has not issued an apology to China: https://chicago.suntimes.com/2019/10/8/20904593/nba-china-co...

Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#642

Post by papreclip »

megous wrote: post #309
xenocratus wrote: post #132

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Matt Stoller has been doing some coverage on just how much control China has built in Western economies. Quite scary. https://mattstoller.substack.com/p/how-joe-biden-empowered-c...

It's called trade. US americans send $ to China for cheap goods and manufacturing, Now, Chinese have $ to spend in the US. Not really scary. It's better for superpowers to have intertwined economies, rather than be isolated. Less incentives for conquest and war.

This is conquest. The chinese are gradually accumulating wealth and control in our country. Their laws prohibit foreigners from doing the same in their country.

I can have a chinese landlord gouging me for west coast rent but can never be a landlord in china.

Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#644

Post by treis »

zwaps wrote: post #139

Then we have to boycott Hearthstone. While the current case is neither surprising nor substantially important, it is important because of principle. Blizzard is not responsible for what players say in interviews. In our society, it still matters that people can tolerate other opinions. The Chinese government tries to make it a new normal that entire people can have their "feelings hurt" (what?) by mere non-insulting…

>Blizzard is not responsible for what players say in interviews. In our society, it still matters that people can tolerate other opinions.

I think Blizzard has a legitimate "time and place" argument here. They shouldn't regulate competitors speech across the board but I think it's reasonable to mandate that interviews associated with official events focus on Hearthstone and stay away from controversial topics.

Of course Blizzard really stepped into it by citing the "brings you into public disrepute" rule. That makes them look like their taking China's side. And this is a full on Streisand effect. The banning brought way more attention (at least in the West) than the initial interview did. Few of us would have even known it happened without hte banning.

Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#645

Post by reroute1 »

zentiggr wrote: post #601
mbesto wrote: post #532

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It's not worth the Chinese influence on our society. US shareholders probably disagree.

Then US shareholders need to be reminded of the fact that they are moral agents as well as financial ones. The reality is that while a "shareholder" title means you want dividends from your holdings, that title attaches to a real human being or entity run by human beings, and the moral or immoral consequences of your policy as shareholder DOES affect the world. It's time for shareholders to put their money where thei…

That could be a big conflict of interest though. What if the intelligent financial decision is not in line with your morals?

I am all for people running away from investing in these companies, but in reality that is a conflicting request of an investor and not something anyone who is focusing on returns will have much patience for or interest in. I just don't think it's going to convince real investors.

Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#646

Post by selimthegrim »

whatshisface wrote: post #470
echelon wrote: post #451

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If we're going to repeat the same cycle with Vietnam and India, we'd do well to encourage democracy this go-around. If we elevate authoritarian countries to our level, democracy may be in for a rough future. We should be learning a lot from the China situation. Modern China proves that authoritarian capitalism works and that you don't need freedom or liberty for your citizens. And that's incredibly scary. Imagine if…

India actually has a functioning democracy. Many Indian intellectuals are unhappy with their current PM, but plenty of American intellectuals are unhappy with their president, and America will still have an election next year (the point being, the system still works even if your favorite person doesn't get elected, which is stronger evidence of systemic health than the system working when your favorite person does ge…

Right to internet access was recently construed as fundamental under articles 21 and 21 A of the constitution of India by Kerala high court but is currently not extended to all “integral parts of India”

https://thewire.in/government/home-ministry-believes-in-inte...

Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#648

Post by papreclip »

deadbunny wrote: post #251
enriquto wrote: post #23

People should start boycotting western companies that perform this kind of humiliating bowing to China, Saudi Arabia, etc. Yet of course, most companies are doing that...

I thought Western companies had to pursue profits at all costs? China is a big juicy market.

They do, which is why we consumers have to resort to boycott. It's the only way to make bowing to china a poor financial decision

Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#649

Post by _rrnv »

leppr wrote: post #211
_rrnv wrote: post #47

People seem to be really surprised that capitalism doesn’t equal freedom. Time to wake up. Free world is in decline. Democracies of today are mostly facades to a more-less controlled societies. Sure, people can vote, but what happens after that? The accountability and controlling mechanisms have been in erosion for years now. Even the EU legislation, once a model of democracy, is now so far from the individual citize…

Allow me to indulge in the slightly spammy repost of relevant comments I made yesterday: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21180623 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21180714 It's important that we clarify what the word "Democracy" means in our language, and whether to accept or reject the fact that its current use is tragically removed from its original meaning: it used to describe a concept, it's now simply a…

Well put!

Re: Blizzard Suspends Professional Hearthstone Player for Hong Kong Comments

#650

Post by josteink »

streb-lo wrote: post #432
trentnix wrote: post #234

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is hard to tell, that is true. And that reality is exploited to silence opposition and control others. That’s why language policing, hate speech laws, Twitter mobs, and bully-the-bully efforts are abominations. So really, the answer is easy: everyone has the right to offend, and has no right not to be offended. Your simple rule doesn’t go far enough.

Hate-speech laws exist because people are programmable. Try and tell me your opinions are your own and the books and media you consume do not own some portion of them. Hate-speech laws exist to prevent the programming of people to systematically hate and exterminate other people, a lesson that has been learned many times over in history.

> Hate-speech laws exist because people are programmable.

And some people would like to have us programmed with their opinion unchallenged, rather than have their view face opposing arguments in a fair and open debate.

Once you compromise on free speech for some views, it’s all a slippery down-hill slope from there.

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