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U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

reuters.com

191–200 of 226 posts

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#191
post #149
post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have been to China and have family from there. I can confirm that what he is saying is correct. China plays by a different set of rules.

Correct? How so? I can assure you that most Chinese citizens are not systematically disappeared, tortured, and/or killed (and enfranchisement is not as valued there as it is here). The regime has been objectively _good_ for the overwhelming majority of Chinese people. The economic growth and societal stability is what's unprecedented. This is not an excuse for the wrongs they are perpetrating, it's an acknowledgement…

> most Chinese citizens are not systematically disappeared, tortured, and/or killed

So some being systematically disappeared, tortured, and or killed is okay?

Here are a few recent examples of human rights abuses in China.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/a-sp...

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/china-forcefully-harvests...

In China there is no freedom of speech. Foreign companies can have their IP taken from them.

In China you can go to prison for years for simply saying what I am saying right now. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-52765838#:~:text=U....

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel the same as you. I am also an immigrant that came to the USA escaping a country where people were suffering after decades of oppression and a string of socialist dictatorships. Seeing the actions of the CCP being normalized and defended in the USA concerns me a lot.

I didn't immigrate to the US, my parents did. From Syria. I lived there for a few years, and it's absolutely infuriating how some Americans equate their government with Assad, CCP, Khamenei, Putin, Kim, Duterte, etc.

Exactly its not as if we do not have issue in the USA and we did have a dark history (slavery for example). I think many Americans do not know how good we have it. In some ways our worst enemy is ourselves.

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#193
post #153

I'm not sure any major company has either 1) not done business with China or 2) not seriously tried to do business with China. The massive emerging market there was too much of a $$$ opportunity for them to ignore. Yes, there's a difference between, say, a fast food chain that tries to get a foot hold in China and a technology company that helps provide tools used to limit rights of free speech etc. However, this is…

The profit made from every Big Mac is money that leaves China and goes into the pocket of a foreign investor. This is infinitely more valuable than McDonalds making a tweet that supports Hong Kong. China knows this, which is why it's so hard for a foreign company to do business there even if you don't consider all the censorship laws.

Is believe MacDonald's China its owned by China, they sold all their assets a few years ago because their business model is largely real estate and you can only lease hold land for 99 years in China.

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#194
post #121

I'm not sure any major company has either 1) not done business with China or 2) not seriously tried to do business with China. The massive emerging market there was too much of a $$$ opportunity for them to ignore. Yes, there's a difference between, say, a fast food chain that tries to get a foot hold in China and a technology company that helps provide tools used to limit rights of free speech etc. However, this is…

> However, this is a matter of degree, not kind. But it sounds like you think that the bad things about China (you specified limiting free speech) differ not in degree but in kind from bad things about other countries. Is that the case?

I wasn't at all making a comment on bad things done by other countries. The topic of "bad things that countries do" is a bit too broad to tackle in a single comment.

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#195

I'm not sure any major company has either 1) not done business with China or 2) not seriously tried to do business with China. The massive emerging market there was too much of a $$$ opportunity for them to ignore. Yes, there's a difference between, say, a fast food chain that tries to get a foot hold in China and a technology company that helps provide tools used to limit rights of free speech etc. However, this is…

>Yes, there's a difference between, say, a fast food chain that tries to get a foot hold in China and a technology company that helps provide tools used to limit rights of free speech etc. However, this is a matter of degree, not kind. I disagree. Giving bad people money in exchange for hamburgers is different in kind than giving them the tools they need to continue doing bad things. Hamburgers are a commodity they c…

It's not buying hamburgers that's the problem. It's the company itself giving China a bit of control over itself even outside the borders of China. It allows China to impose it's authoritarian actions outside of China.

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#196
post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

Robin Hood isn’t exactly in line with American principles either. Guy against the law robs from the rich to give to the poor. I feel like Peter Pan is the replacement figure. Cultural manipulation is a little woolly, does it have other names you like?

Robin Hood is actually quite aligned with American values. Standing up to, or outright rejecting unjust laws/taxation was a major factor in the birth of the country. It also embraces aspects of the American psyche that value the act and social contribution of the subversive. always had a place near and dear to the American cultural heart, in spite of what the law and order crowd would have you believe.

It has, however, aged poorly, as the arm of the law has lengthened, the voice of the town crier become nigh-unignorable, and the medium of the truly successful in the sense of magnitude of value extracted vs. value provided by has become far harder to assail since it is generally a private individual doing it instead of an authority figure.

Then again, timea are a changin'.

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#197

Funny how Barr doesn't mention Russia. https://www.theguardian.com/news/2017/nov/05/russia-funded-f...

Indeed. It seems pretty clear that Russia will want another Crimea style victory, and with an extraordinarily strong ally in the Whitehouse it makes sense to lay the groundwork for that now. (I'm not exactly sure how this will work since this time both sides have strategic nukes.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sino-Soviet_border_conflict

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#198
post #181
post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Lol, intelligence from CIA sources is an opinion piece? Let me guess, Trump is the best president of your lifetime? I notice you failed to address manafort, stone, and Flynn. None of which was “allegedly”.

It’s an opinion piece from one person who worked at the CIA and just is “don’t bother working with Russia, they aren’t interest”. Clear proof of Trumps collusion with Russia! Let me guess, you think the secret Russian dossier is real?

Third time not addressing the arrests, convenient.

Also have yet to explain why the president is asking the CIA to share intel with an enemy.

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#199
post #112
post #2

Original title: "Attorney General Barr accuses Hollywood, Big Tech of collaborating with China"

I reverted it, but then reverted my reversion. The submitted title is marginally less baity, so I'm thinking ilamont did a good job of following the guideline: " Please use the original title, unless it is misleading or linkbait; don't editorialize. " https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Hmm, perhaps the URL title would be better?

> Attorney General Barr Takes Aim at Hollywood, Disney For Censoring Films to Appease China

Re: U.S. attorney general: Hollywood, tech companies “pawns of Chinese influence”

#200
post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Encouraging the adoption of democracy is never a true goal to any geopolitical decision. It's only used to deflect criticism from naysayers. The US has used the same justification to bomb nations and install fascist dictators. "You oppose going to war with Iraq? So you hate democracy then?"

In China's case, "spreading democracy" just meant "remove from Soviet sphere." We broadly used the same term at the same time to open trade with China and fight the Vietnam War.

the sino-soviet split happened long before we started off shoring to china
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