FutureVigil (r) » China

GOOGLE’S OUTAGES IN CHINA–THE END?

Jeffrey Newman — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 20:01:28 +0000

on Tuesday of this week, Google’s search engine site in China stopped working. Users in China received error messages for Google searches. Google also said that its mobile services were being partially blocked and that the Chinese government was definitely behind it. Beijing has expressed anger at Google for refusing to censors the site. Is this the beginning of the end for Google in China? If so, the company should be lauded for its courage and ultimately if other companies stood up to the goliath in the same way, it would change more quickly. The average modern chinese citizen wants to be more part of the modern world and the economic incentives for this abound. This is why I think the government will finally evolve on human rights and censorship issues–but no without prodding by such great companies as Google.

WHEN CHINA RULES THE WORLD By MARTIN JACQUES

Jeffrey Newman — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:44:17 +0000

Soon I will be traveling to Kungming China with my daughter, who will spend six months studying the Chinese culture and the Chinese public health system. I figured I’d better read some books about China since I know dangerously little and what little I do know comes from our news media. Martin Jacques, a Professor, founder of a think tank and journalist wrote an interesting book theorizing that China will soon rule the world and it won’t be the same. By conservative estimates, by 2027, the Chinese economy will overtake ours as the world’s largest economy and by 2050 it will be twice as large as the U.S. economy. Jacques, who bases his theories upon his studies of Chinese history, says that China will come to control the world economy and will hold a strong hierarchical view of things which views itself as a superior civilization to all others. Mandarin, now spoken by twice as many people in the world than those speaking English, will become a primary language. Chinese Universities will, over the next two decades come to occupy positions within the top ten universities in the world, attracting scholars from around the world. China will take a more proactive and interventionist role in international financial affairs, Shanghai will become a global financial center, all of which will be hastened by the global crises we are now facing. This large book, filled with history, data and extrapolations, is not an easy read but it is a worthwhile read. The world is changing so quickly and in such fundamental ways that we need to reach out for well informed information in our daily lives. When I am in China, I will report daily on my observations and the translations of my daughter, who is 20 and fluent in Mandarin.

Beluga Whale Saves Free Diver in China

Jeffrey Newman — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 15:33:06 +0000

In July 2009, a Beluga whale named Mila saved 26-year-old Yang Yun when her legs froze up during a free dive competition in Mila’s arctic aquarium home. When Yang tried to surface, she realized that she couldn’t move her legs and she began sinking. She thought “that was it for me – I was dead, until I felt this incredible force under me driving me to the surface.” The incredible force was Mila, a Beluga whale who had sensed Yun’s distress. Using her sensitive dolphin-like nose, Mila guided Yun safely to the surface gently carrying one of Yun’s legs in her mouth.

Experts say Beluga whales have facial muscles that allow them to smile. They were among the first whales to interact with humans.

THE HACK ATTACK ON GOOGLE-WE SEE THE FUTURE

Jeffrey Newman — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 08:36:55 +0000

The hackers which penetrated Google’s defenses recently demonstrated a level of sophistication which paints a frightening picture of just how vulnerable the internet is. The hackers used a combination of encryption, stealth programing and found an unknown hole in internet Explorer. A dozen or more pieces of malware and numerous lawyers of encryption allowed the hackers to bore deeply into company networks and hide their presence as stealthy aliens. The hackers stole intellectual property and gained access to the Gmail accounts of human rights activists and the attacks originated from China. The attacks which targeted 34 companies in the technology, financial and defense sectors was dubbed “Operation Aurora” as this was the name the hackers used for their mission and the name was on the computer of one of the hackers. The initial piece of code was shell code encrypted three times and then was activatedt to penetrate. One malicious code opened a remote backdoor to the computer established by an encrypted secret shannel hiding as an SSL connection to avoid detection. This allowed ongoing access to a computer which afforded the hackers entry to other parts of the network in order to search for login credentials and other data.

Google: Glimmer of a Soul?

Jeffrey Newman — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 15:36:58 +0000

Following on the heels of Google’s announcement that it may pull out of China, Joe Schoendorf, a Partner at Accel Partners, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm told the New York Times “Google has Microsoft on the ropes, and China is arguably the world’s most important market outside of the U.S. You don’t walk away from that on principle.” Mr. Schoendorf may be missing a critical point in long term corporate strategy. If Google is bold enough to take a stand now and close its operations in China, it will serve the establish the company as a leader on the world stage, placing it ahead of any other company in helping to formulate policies dealing with human rights and other legal issues. China, with its expanding role as a global economic power, has had few challenges by corporations or government intervention. Here we have the first glimmer of Google’s soul–what the company is at its heart. This will not be lost on consumers long term. Even publicly traded corporations cannot make decisions based solely on the best interests of its stockholders. Google would go a long way in establishing itself as the visionary company of our time if it pulls out of China. Other companies would do well to watch and do the same. The global arena of nations and companies cannot allow China to breach internation laws and human rights as it wishes. Th e long term ramifications to this are unthinkable, as China gains further strength. If Google wants to take its place as the greatest company in the world, surpassing Microsoft, it should stake its moral ground now.