It would be silly for the Chinese not to be doing this. Extremely low cost [1], low risk, measurable effects, etc.
And the PRC is not a silly government - therefore my prior is very strong that it's taking place on a grand scale.
[1] a cruise missile is ~$2M...you could hire dozens of skilled astroturfers for a year for that, and you can't even use missiles against the US due to MAD...
Yes, this is common in user comments on several otherwise intellectually useful sites. It almost always takes the form of a reasonable take followed by a comparison to China and an insinuation that the US version may be worse. The commenters have the same playbook to work from because the Russians wrote it in the mid 20th century.
>"...followed by a comparison to China and an insinuation that the US version may be worse..."
I do not see insinuation that the US version is worse in this thread. What I see is people being concerned that we are on a dangerous path and building our own version mass surveillance, hence comparing it to China. Instead of shooting the messengers you'd better be concerned about where are we going.
>"The commenters have the same playbook to work from because the Russians wrote it in the mid 20th century"
Sure, I start my day by reading user guide written by Russians on how to fuck up the western world. Check under your bed btw. Maybe couple of them are hiding there.
Thank you - this is exactly what I was referring to. Reasonable take then moving into a comparison to China to bring China up to the same level as the US (or US down to the same level of China). Most individuals don't care or don't have the depth of knowledge to notice what is going on.
I've noticed a lot more recently - probably tied to the strong national spirit coming out of China these days.
This is a common strategy in American politics. If you can get the public to associate something with China/Russia/communism/bad person then you have the American public on your side. So I wouldn't necessarily see it as just people with strong Chinese interests.
> What you say feels to me as Joseph McCarthy has just sprung back to life.
No need to go that far back in the history of the U.S. Government spying on it's own citizens. In the late 1960's, the Nixon Administration used IRS data to spy on Vietnam war protesters, Dr. Martin Luther King, members of the Student's Non-Violent Coordination Committee, and other American citizens critical of the administration's foreign policy[1].
Human behavior being what it is means that eventually someone in the U.S. government will be tempted to use this data for nefarious purposes. Why should US citizens live in a survaillence state contrary to the Bill of Rights?
I feel like equating someone asking why pro-Chinese sentiment seems to be taking place with McCarthyism is dishonest and a quick way to shut down a legitimate question.
Saying a website may have pro-Chinese users pushing a narrative is nowhere equivalent to the accusations of McCarthy which had the backing of the US government and the weight if the law behind them. That is why your comment comes off as dishonest.
"It really feels like there are a lot of people with strong Chinese interests"
Now:
"...website may have pro-Chinese users..."
Progressing from "really feels" to "may have" is of course nice touch. As for McCarthy - government backing or not, the general attitude of labeling opponents as foreign agents puts you on the same wavelength. It is not me being dishonest here.
Am I China government agent / sympathizer? Fucking no. Do I believe that mass surveillance is something that belongs more to China rather than "free" western world - yes.
You are being purposefully dense. “Feels like” and “may have” do not have very different implications. In fact, I’m more convinced you’re being dishonest now than I was just based off of your McCarthy comment.
It also isn’t labeling opponents as foreign agents it is saying that people attempting to equate US credit score, which has to do with the ability to get loans and little else, to Chinas social credit system is fishy especially when accounts that come out in full to defend China are regularly linked to actual Chinese people.
It doesn’t mean everyone doing so is, and it isn’t anyone asking for these people to be arrested or charged, but it does mean that there are pro-Chinese users on most social media and anyone arguing other wise is suspect at least.
I do apologize I should have been specific in saying Peoples Republic of China to clarify that I meant the Government in control of China and not the people who live under their rule.
I don't think you actually know understand what happened in the Joseph McCarthy era but thanks for diluting the terrible nature of what Joseph McCarthy did by conflating it to my idle comment about the increased misinformation around China and US. Your comment feels disingenuous and honestly sounds like its part of the strong national Peoples Republic of China commentary that I was referring to that seems to be spreading around the internet.
>"Your comment feels disingenuous and honestly sounds like its part of the strong national Peoples Republic of China commentary"
Lemme return a favor - your comment feels disingenuous and honestly sounds like it is coming from an agent failing at the job and resorting to labelling anyone who disagrees with the party line as the agents of China.
The original theme - do not do mass surveillance. It looks like we are doing same things as China. You can find this lacking of substance / lie and I respect that. But labeling bearer as China sympathizer is total bollocks. I am not.
