anonymous after seeing my SO profile

[cirosantilli]

Motivation

Somebody forwarded your SO profile in a Chinese programmer community months ago. When I firstly saw it, I was very angry at you. I almost wrote to you at that time. But hold back finally, cause I think you're just mad and I don't like wasting much time to do useless things (like try to persuade a mad).

But today I saw you in SO again. Your updated profile mentioned about your girlfriend's mother and "talk to me, so I can gather pro-freedom contacts and better understand China". So I think you're more rational now, and worth to talk with. I wrote this email, hope to help you better understand China and what you're doing.

China's Dictatorship

I agree Chinese government is a dictator. The dictatorship causes some difficulties to people's life, but not very serious to the majority. You probably don't know that many many people are scolding government in the Internet, everyday, everywhere. Tell you how to see those (some non-rational) critiques:

1. open http://news.163.com/mobile/ in a mobile device (the desktop version doesn't show people's comments by default, Of course you can also try browser developer tools to fake as mobile).
2. browse all news (should be less than 10 pieces) under section 今日要闻 (meaning Today's Important News)
3. scroll to bottom to see comments

You can ask your girlfriend to translate. Then you will find for almost all news, people are scolding the government, no matter it's government's fault.

Actually I am very shocked by those people. Scolding the government seems have become a fashion. Luckily, president Xi Jinping has very good reputation among folks. And people can see the improvement of China. A little off-topic here.

Let's continue. The government doesn't ban so many negatives critiques. Do you still think it's an extreme dictator? I think not so much.

Dictatorship over the World

Among critiques towards China from foreign (western) media/people, dictatorship is a majority. But I think most countries are more or less dictator. I believe you have heard about Edward Snowden. Is the US government doing better than China government in this event? And see what other countries did. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Snowden#Asylum_applications), most countries rejected Snowden's asylum application. Finally Russia accepted him. Why? Russia has more feeling of justice? Ridiculous. That's just because most countries are US's friends or don't want to be US's opponent, while Russia is already US's opponent.

Why western like to criticize China? Just because we're catching up with the US. They feel pressure. I understand US acts against China, but I hate they (US and his partners) say China as an evil. We're less evil than the US. I really hate those politics in the name of justice.

GFW (Great Firewall of China)

The mass media is always affected by political power, more or less serve political purposes. In wikipedia, youtube, etc, people can see so many critiques towards China.

I would say China government has done a very stupid thing -- Great Firewall. As you saw in a Chinese SO user's profile: "GFW (Great Firewall of China) is one of the most notorious inventions in the history of Internet. Anyone working for it should be ashamed.". In here, I don't want to talk more about the troubles the wall caused to our daily life. I hate the wall as much as the SO user. What I want to say is, the wall is a big gap between Chinese and people in other countries. The result is we don't know each other well. The wall really cause much misunderstanding. Then why the government insist it? In my opinion, the government is very unconfident. It just try to hide too many things, while failing to stick it's people together and let people really love the country.

Falun Gong

Next, I'm going talk about Falun Gong - the event that enraged you. You have read it on wikipedia. It looks like a "moderate religion which causes no harm to its believers". I haven't carefully read the wiki. But I believe your summary of the wiki. Of course, I believe the wiki is written by its believers. Where is the opposite voice? Inside the Great Firewall. This is another fact that the wall is stupid.

So what's the opposite voice? Have you noticed the paragraph "five people attempted to set themselves ablaze on Tiananmen Square" in the wiki? The wiki has a lot evidence proving that the Tiananmen suicide is fake and forged by China government. You only see evidence from Falun Gong side, of course you would believe it. The evidence from the other side is missing, due to (in my opinion) the government's always-unconfident response to this kind of events. What the government tells Chinese people is that Falun Gong tempt its believers to do this kind of mad behaviors.

Do I believe the government? No, not exactly. Because inside China, we can only hear voice from the government, while the voice from Falun Gong believers is blocked. So I don't completely believe in either side, before I see enough evidence from both. Just like I think you should not completely believe the wiki or youtube or Falun Gong website.

But I still have my judge. I think Falun Gong (as least their branch in China) is somewhat a evil cult. Because China government doesn't ban many other religions in China. Like Christian, Buddhism, Taoism, even Muslim (few extreme Muslim have caused riots in China, and killed people of other race) are all allowed in China. So I believe government ban Falun Gong must because of some reasons, maybe they are cult, maybe they have political purposes (e.g. overthrow the government). Anyway, I don't believe Falun Gong is persecuted while they are really peaceful and harmless.

Your Actions

Back to what you are doing now. You goals are to make Chinese programmers:

• mad and demand direct elections, freedom of speech and human rights
  My ans: Chinese programmers are not monkeys enjoying bananas from government. We surely demand all these. It's you don't see our demand. Your action just make programmers that affected by you to hate you, not hate the government.
• talk to me, so I can gather pro-freedom contacts and better understand China.
  My ans: this goal is good, communication is good. And you got it, I'm talking to you. But if the government really ban SO, Chinese programmers all suffer from it. It's totally not worth for this single goal.
• less efficient and work less well for the Dictatorship
  My ans: we work for ourselves, not the Dictatorship or the government. Have you heard from many Chinese people saying that they're working for the government, or they like dictatorship? Even my father -- a civil servant that has been working for government for decades, as well as his colleagues, don't like government.

Assume going back to hundreds years ago. You want to help original locals to resist colonists' outrage and dictatorship, what you're doing now is to try making colonists more cruel, which doesn't help at all. You should give the locals guns. They want to fight, just not able to. What I'm saying is Chinese people don't have the power to resist the government. So, you, or the more powerful US government should borrow your power to Chinese people to stop the dictatorship? Like what US has done in Afghanistan and Iraq? Fxxk the US! They're just invaders, for oil and profits. Damn the US justice. When Maldives and some other islands are sinking, where is the US? US people are driving cars and resistant to reduce carbon consumption. We want to solve our problems in our way, with our own power. It probably will take many years, which is why I cannot stay in China to wait for that day with all my life. But it's not long compared to the long brilliant history of China.

Summary

I hope you to stop waking up Chinese programmers by "slapping" them. They're already awake, your slap just hurt them. How to stop Chinese government's dictatorship? I don't know how to achieve in short time. But your way is definitely useless and harmful. I wish China can become better, and my wish is much much stronger than you.

[cirosantilli]

Among critiques towards China from foreign (western) media/people, dictatorship is a majority. But I think most countries are more or less dictator.

Agreed, the point is that China is more. Snowden was about betraying your secret service, which all countries punish. Censorship is another level.

Like Christian, Buddhism, Taoism, even Muslim (few extreme Muslim have caused riots in China, and killed people of other race) are all allowed in China.

Because the government controls those religions.

Anyway, I don't believe Falun Gong is persecuted while they are really peaceful and harmless.

Taking a train to see your sister sounds peaceful to me. But my mother in law was arrested for it.

The goverment also sees democracy and anyone who opposes it as an evil cult.

My ans: Chinese programmers are not monkeys enjoying bananas from government. We surely demand all these. It's you don't see our demand.

I believe you. Every action is statistical: i only increaese probabilities a little bit. If you have more links to popular demands, give them to me as that interests me very much.

My ans: this goal is good, communication is good. And you got it, I'm talking to you. But if the government really ban SO, Chinese programmers all suffer from it. It's totally not worth for this single goal.

Why does the goverment not ban the entire internet? Because it thinks that would be bad publicity for it. I'm just forcing it to do what it does not want.

So, you, or the more powerful US government should borrow your power to Chinese people to stop the dictatorship?

Although I cannot prove it, I am not an invader, and I really want what is best for you. There are also good people in the world.

Reducing the probability of WW3 is also a good side effect: dictatorships start much more wars.