If You Think Facebook Is BAD, Watch Out For Chinese Social Media! (1984-Style)

in #news7 years ago

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...it practically makes Facebook look a "patriot bar", circa 1765.

China is pioneering a social control plan right out of 1983 (before things really heated up in 1984,) and I fear it might know exactly how to market it to Millennials - wrap it in a veneer of social media egomania.

China plans to begin attributing "values" to all citizens by launching a social media network that will carefully collect data points on every individual, put this information through an impersonal algorithm, and spit out a "Citizen Rating" on the other side. This rating is not unlike a credit score, and effectively boils down your entire existence to one single, 3-digit number.

Like a US FICO credit score, only even more sinister.

The Wall Street Journal obtained and released documents detailing the proposed inputs for this rating system, and although they maintain the veneer of relative appropriateness, I'm here to tell you this is an Orwellian nightmare

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I highlighted the contributing factors above, color-coding them into relative levels of personal disdain.

I'm sorry, but that is horrifying.

The ones I highlighted in green, most people can be sort of OK with.

Yellow is getting questionable. Effectively, we're deciding human value at the yellow level by rating you on your ability to repay loans (make long-term, complex financial decisions) and your ability to conform to fascist dictates about how many children you are allowed to have and when.

At Red, we veer directly into the text of "Animal Farm". We start rating people on their "family devotion", "shopping habits", "wrong-think opinions" and what online trolls say about them. This is so subjective it's practically a handbook for oppression.

As you can see above, they fully intend to cut you off from most forms of credit, the internet, and social services themselves if they decide that you belong in the undesirable category. Naturally, they have left a massive amount of "judgment" in the determining of who is engaging in "wrong-think/speak", so they'll find a way to put you there if they want you there.

Sure seems like a great way to close budget deficits that will likely be ballooning very soon - simply declare any undesirables to be in violation of your "Social policy", then cut them all off from all tax-funded services.

I daresay China has just invented a new, shinier way of disenfranchising hobos and the lower classes until they actually just go crawl in a hole and die!

Nicely done, China, you totalitarian hellhole of conformism.

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I sort of forced myself to include this after my opening line.

I have almost nothing but reservations about this plan. I am already a staunch advocate against almost all forms of social media. All social media really accomplishes is creating entitled, egotistical users who are rendered almost completely without an attention span or the ability to form thoughts more complex than "I'm hungry," after prolonged exposure.

Of course, that description lines up most closely with Facebook, however I can't imagine that combining all the crackdowns of the Gestapo with the ability to update your status to "held extra-judicially by corrupt Chinese Communists" is going to produce anything other than the worst social media nightmare imaginable.

I wonder what kind of rating Kim Kardashian would get?

Maybe a...D?

PS - Taiwan is Real China, China is a Ruskie Commie Outpost.

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Sources: Google, Wall Street Journal, 1984, Animal Farm
Copyright: Wall Street Journal, China, Tommytoy.Typepad.com, George Orwell, IASIP

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I always repeat: Whatever the US does, Russia and China do the same and more.

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PS - Taiwan is Real China, China is a Ruskie Commie Outpost.

This is historically accurate. Also Taiwan is free, it has a great economy and great culture. Many Chinese people would killing to be in Taiwan. The Taxes are are also low.

You won't be able to buy or sell without the mark....

The second anything like this comes close to being a reality/requirement here, I'm getting off ALL platforms. It pays now to learn how to live without technology. One day, you may not be "allowed" to and that is the moment you'll need it the most.

This is scary as hell! And nobody seems to care or notice what is actually going on."they"might try and do this in western countries in the not to distant future.if "they" do i will be leaving the UK for a slightly free-er country,i am prepared.

Mate, you should already look to move to a less cancerous country. UK is turning into a shithole when it comes to freedom. Have you heard about Count Dankula's case?

User name checks out. May be an expert on this topic.

I'm a Chinese Citizen and I can assure you that this is mostly a hundred percent real. The situation is a lot worse than this in Xinjiang (currently a province in China), and I believe that it's only a matter of time that this situation goes from Xinjiang to all over China. It's horrible and I believe we need to do something.

Horrifying? Yes. Surprising? Not at all. China as never been shy it exerting control over every aspect of their society. What will be interesting is how the Chinese people will figure out ways to game the system. People can be very clever when it comes to finding the cracks in an oppressive system of control.

Also interesting how this will play out with their economy. They are too smart to shoot into their leg, even if their decisions sound horrifying.

I agree. At least for the past few decades, China seems to have done little to harm their standing in the world. The United States on the other hand ...

Chinese culture is unique. Very much a crowd mentality. Little care for surveillance and big brother state, so long as they can eat well and make money.

Holy smoke! What the hell were they thinking? Do they really want to control their citizen that much? Though I'm aware that they've been trying to control their citizens for years. I think this is just going too far. I feel for the regular Chinese citizen, though they might think otherwise considering their culture.

"What the hell were they thinking? Do they really want to control their citizen that much?"

Yes, yes they do.

They are more accepting of conformism in Asian cultures, but I couldn't tell you exactly how much from personal experience.

Hmm, it just looks like optimized and centralized surveillance, nothing new. Eligibility for state jobs, insurance premiums, some social services availability, loan rates, international travel is already controlled per some of mentioned inputs, but that is being done by different bodies and organizations.

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@lexiconical, you should really check out posts by people who are supporting the @Stephenkendal #deletefacebook campaign.

This really alarmed me but I gotta admit, what you said about Kim Kardashian cracked me up at the end.