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Comment by SeanDav | Hacker News Reader

China is only trying to be upfront and public about things the US and Western countries have been doing in private for years.

That is not to say I approve, (I do not) but my respect for Chinese authorities just went up a notch. The good thing about this is that it brings debate far more into the open and shines a light on some very shady policies.

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The Chinese government never never really care about counter terrorism, all they care about is keeping their power. To keep their power they need to control their people's mind, to control people's mind they need to control the internet. That's it. It's not about privacy, it's about free speech. Please do not confuse this with the debate (about privacy) happening in the western countries.

Inevitably when you take away privacy you hamper freedom of speech. There have already been polls of journalists who are concerned with reporting on important items because of a lack of privacy.

Same parallels can be drawn for western powers. Counterterrorism is the raison du jour for expanding and securing power. See what we've done and continue to do to the free press when it concerns our military affairs or national security. See the firewalls western countries are building that rival the Great Firewall.

The debate about online privacy vs. the government in the West is largely about free speech vs. governments exercising total control to maintain power, so I'm not sure what distinction you are trying to make.

I'm not saying that there isn't a very large difference in the current state of China vs. the West in this area, but the subject is the same.

Well, you should be saying that there isn't a very large difference. Or maybe there is, but in the opposite way that you are suggesting. The US has the same motivation (proven by the leaks and media reports) of spying on people. More, they are willing to spy on the whole world population (as much as they can get), which the Chinese have little interest in doing it seems. And they have, much more than the Chinese:

- the technical capabilities to implement those policies

- the global presence to interfere in all communications worldwide

- the political influence to force it in lots of places

- the money to implement those policies

Of all that, the Chinese can only dream. The only thing the Chinese have is a huge market that western companies want to tap, and that is what the Chinese government wants to use to get a foothold into your routers.

But, in comparison to what the US wants and can do, this is peanuts.

In China the control over internet is simply control over people, there is absolutely no benefit for the people - if you keep speaking against the government without hiding your identity, you are in trouble. So, there is no debate over whether more control from the government is good or bad.

In the West there is at least still a debate between privacy (potential impact to free speech) and safety against terrorism.

This is what has to happen to raise the bar.

But doing it openly spooks the consumers!

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