CHINA’S PARALLEL UNIVERSE

The Chinese government recently issued new rules to strengthen Internet regulations. Most notable is the real-name requirement for micro-blog (Weibo) accounts – China’s equivalent of Twitter. Some Weibo users have attested to an increase in government monitoring and self-censorship by hosting companies. Many are decrying this as China’s further violation of freedom of expression. The reality is far more complicated. More than a decade ago, when China’s Internet was in its infancy with a few million users, the government made it clear that it would exercise political oversight on the nascent cyberspace while allowing it to grow. Many experts then predicted that such efforts were doomed to fail. The Internet, they said, was to be a brave new world that could not be controlled. There were only two possible outcomes: A freely expanding Internet beyond the reach of political authority and subverting it, or an Internet stifled by government control and unable to realize its social and economic benefits. Rupert Murdoch famously proclaimed that advances in communications technology posed an “unambiguous threat to totalitarian regimes everywhere.”

SOPA: Co-sponsors Defect, Backtrack After Blackout

Cockroaches scatter as spotlight is pointed at Internet censorship bill       Lawmakers have begun to jump ship following a day of protest against the draconian internet legislation, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)…

2012 – THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY

“In retrospect, the spark might seem as ominous as a financial crash, as ordinary as a national election, or as trivial as a Tea Party. The catalyst will unfold according to a basic Crisis dynamic…

In West Bank, Israel’s Rule is That of the Jungle

In the hands of this government, which mainly involve moving buildings built on private lands to ‘state lands’, have become instruments to deepen the occupation and obstruct the two-state solution. ******************************** January 02, 2012 “Haartez”…

Will 2012 Bring Tribal War to Libya?

“To date nothing has been achieved by the new government and people are growing very angry.”   The weather in Tripoli this New Year’s weekend is unseasonably bone chilling with heavy rains flooding the streets…

Under the Cover of “Rationality”

The recent financial loss of China resulted from the depreciation of the dollar provoked nationwide criticism of the government decision making process. People questioned the reasonability of decisions on policy making in terms of buying…