Quoted post unavailable.
Ah yes, the "Japanese-American relocation centers argument".
It was a criminal state violating human rights back then, and it is a human rights violation today.
In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
51–60 of 484 posts
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#52Like McCarthyism it’s a noble cause, but I can’t help but wonder if these initiatives rather tend to be outsmarted by the real spies. People who are accidentally incriminated by clerical errors and misunderstandings are much lower hanging fruit.
> Like McCarthyism it’s a noble cause I'm unsure if this is sarcasm or not.
It’s not. Why on earth would you want to have a bunch of Soviet or communist Chinese spies running around?
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
Agreed. It seems like the details matter here. Were the affiliations suspect but not reportable? Or were the affiliations unremarkable and not reportable but prosecutors screwed up?
> were the affiliations unremarkable and not reportable but prosecutors screwed up? Yes, the prosecutors royally screwed up. From the article: "Prosecutors had floated the idea of a deferred prosecution agreement, which would have allowed him to return to work and apply for government grants in the future. In return, said his lawyer, Mr. Fisher, he would have to admit to having some ties to China, none of them a viol…
Sounds like a prosecutor was afraid to get sued into oblivion/have his future political ambitions ruined by this affair, and strong-armed the good doctor into signing a document to avoid this going to court, where outcomes are pretty much random.
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Like McCarthyism it’s a noble cause I'm unsure if this is sarcasm or not.
It’s not. Why on earth would you want to have a bunch of Soviet or communist Chinese spies running around?
McCarthyism was about class struggle. Persecuting all communists, socialists and trade unionists made it less likely the working class would rise up against the capitalist ruling class. It worked for the Nazis, after all.
You seem to have internalised this logic, since you're assuming all communists are spies for another nation.
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#55Earlier quoted context omitted.
> Like McCarthyism it’s a noble cause I'm unsure if this is sarcasm or not.
It’s not. Why on earth would you want to have a bunch of Soviet or communist Chinese spies running around?
Iirc McCarthyism is the suppression of socialist ideas full stop, regardless of sympathy to Soviets or China.
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
Agreed. It seems like the details matter here. Were the affiliations suspect but not reportable? Or were the affiliations unremarkable and not reportable but prosecutors screwed up?
> were the affiliations unremarkable and not reportable but prosecutors screwed up? Yes, the prosecutors royally screwed up. From the article: "Prosecutors had floated the idea of a deferred prosecution agreement, which would have allowed him to return to work and apply for government grants in the future. In return, said his lawyer, Mr. Fisher, he would have to admit to having some ties to China, none of them a viol…
Chen has to declare foreign conflicts of interest if he takes federal grants.
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#57Quoted post unavailable.
We cannot marginalize segments of our population based on race, nationality, religion, sex, etc. and expect to remain competitive. This is a basic truth of economics. And it's also wrong to do that to people in the first place. Americans are Americans and we all should be treated equally by our government.
Interesting comment...Other than the statement made about not wanting to speak to his wife in a foreign language, which I took as Gang Chen's perceived fear of racist treatment rather than actual racism. I did not get the opinion that racism had any role in the actions taken by authorities.
I am curious and you obviously do not need to answer, but in an effort for a fair and honest conversation and your seeing racism in this story, do you identify as a visible minority?
I think he was targeted upon returning from China when he refused to turn over device passwords to the DHS agents (Who could have been racist but are definitely authoritarian).
Don't get me wrong this whole situation rings heavily of McCarthyism and worse the offer to confess or take a deal is a disgusting practice that has destroyed many young (Black) men's lives under the guise of justice being served. There is a history of the state making the threat that not confessing's result will be so bad that deals were made and those deals had life long consequences that changed and continue to change the trajectory of lives that otherwise had great potential if not for a corrupt legal system.
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#58Might do good to introduce more diversity in US academia
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've worked in Academia. There are so many Chinese scientists. Trust me that's not a problem in the least.
So we should make it a problem?
It will never be a problem. There are so many Chinese scientists in America. Labs upon labs upon labs that don't hire non-Chinese and don't speak English.
Re: In the end, you're treated like a spy, says MIT scientist
#60Note that the accusations of Dr Chen having ties to China are true. However, Dr Chen wasn’t legally required to disclose them:
> Prosecutors announced that they had received new information indicating that Dr. Chen had not been obliged to disclose those affiliations, undercutting the basis of the case.
In either case I believe ties to China are harmful, they are not a friendly country.