You absolutely have to work for the government or be a cop or something. Because that is the most ridiculous notion and most illogical conclusion to come to I have ever heard. Sounds like you hate freedom.
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Apple Pulls Hong Kong Protest App From App Store Following Chinese Criticism [Updated]
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I understand your point but I think it's more complex.
Nobody would be interested in Cook's opinion were he not CEO of Apple. Apple is a company with a huge presence in China.
Furthermore Cook has chosen to use the language of principle. He didn't say "I am a Democrat and oppose this or that law" he always says "this offends against a deeply held principle". Well, the litmus test of any principle is that one cannot pick and choose where it applies.
He has no vote in China of course and he does in America. But when it comes to outrageous abuses of power if one wishes to be principled there cannot be a line drawn at a border. This is not the question of whether the Japanese law on railway timetables is a good one or whether the French regulations on air conditioners need reforming. With China it is a moral question, it is a tyranny that murders political opponents and is ethnically cleansing the Uighur people and Cook, like anyone else, is well within his rights to criticise such tyrannies.
Cook is actually a decent man I think. Personally his sympathies are almost certainly with Hong Kong. But fear of losing money in China is the reason he is bowing down to the Chinese government. Now if he admitted that, said "Apple supports these principles but if it will cost too much money we abandon them - just like every other business" then fine, it would at least be honest. But does anyone expect Cook to stop virtue signalling?
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You are right that the initial case behind all this was clearly an injustice and there should be some change because of it. But we cannot just blindly take at face value laws when we know the Chinese government is involved. They won't play fair, follow the rules, uphold the spirit of laws etc. It would be like expecting Hitler or Stalin to keep his promises.
Hong Kong is not ruled by China’s communist party at least not officially and not yet. So, Apple didn’t have to comply with the local laws. It folded to China’s pressure that came out of a newspaper. The government didn’t even have to say anything. They just let their lapdog bark a few times at Apple, and Cook soiled his pants.
If you know where the police are, you also know where they aren't. Where they aren't is therefore a weak point and weak points will be exploited by criminals.
It doesn't take a genius to work that out.
I don't work for the government but my career is involved with stopping fraud. If there's a weak point, it will be exploited.
China is losing its grip and is resorting to base threats. Sign of despair. China's days as a power are numbered.
These corporations like Apple that have CEOs take a social position and get involved politically can eat crow.
This is right up there with me compared to Nike and the Colin Kapernick situation. A corporation is going to put out multi billion dollar ad campaigns and tell me how to think politically and socially while they whip kids in sweatshops and pay them pennies on the dollar, and then turn around and preach to me about social justice?
Apple has joined them. Gotta protect that cheap labor.
I’ll be canceling my iCloud plan today and other services I have with Apple.
I don’t want to hear Tim Cook preach his social garbage ever again after this.
This is right up there with me compared to Nike and the Colin Kapernick situation. A corporation is going to put out multi billion dollar ad campaigns and tell me how to think politically and socially while they whip kids in sweatshops and pay them pennies on the dollar, and then turn around and preach to me about social justice?
Apple has joined them. Gotta protect that cheap labor.
I’ll be canceling my iCloud plan today and other services I have with Apple.
I don’t want to hear Tim Cook preach his social garbage ever again after this.
China is not losing its grip. It was losing its grip, and now it has found its grip again.
Yeah figures. The whole “everyone is a dangerous criminal” mindset. No offense meant to you personally but it’s totally scary that this mentality exists in 2019. We already have a police state. I’m far less worried about fraud than I am about the government. And if people really knew what the government does behind closed doors, they would be too. Thankfully technology and transparency will start to shine a light on all that.
Shame on you TC! Please let Xi Jinping do the keynote next time since he seems to be the real boss.
May I also remind you that American consumers is your single biggest revenue source, followed by Europe. While kowtowing to China, show some respect to American consumers who believe in free speech and civil liberties.
May I also remind you that American consumers is your single biggest revenue source, followed by Europe. While kowtowing to China, show some respect to American consumers who believe in free speech and civil liberties.
"He's now president for life. President for life. And he's great. And look, he was able to do that. I think it's great. Maybe we'll give that a shot some day".
Hint: this isn't a Tim Cook quote.
Sadly, absolute majority of American consumers wouldn’t know free speech or civil liberties from their rear end.
No, not everyone is a dangerous criminal, but dangerous criminals live among us and will exploit weaknesses in the system.
All I'm saying is the public shouldn't be able to track the police so I've no idea what the rest of your comment is about.
The police are supposed to work for the public not maneuver in secret. The public should have absolute access to everything they do. Abuse is what happens in secret. The danger is what goes on in secret. The lack of transparency and accountability is the weakness.
Wow, no one noted they put the app back?? Hilarious. Anyway, neither removing the app nor putting it back had anything to do with morality.
They removed it a second time, hence the article that spawned this thread. Please try to keep up.
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It was removed a second time.
The mistake that you're making is in thinking the private sector should act as if they're public servants. They're not. You should never really expect them to be. Private sector companies and their management are supposed to be looking out for their own interests. Sure, they also have public outreach and aspects of their business can benefit the general public. However, the international relations part is supposed to be handled primarily by the public sector and government. Those are the people that are supposed to be representing the best interests of the average citizen and also promoting democratic values. Take a look at the current administration: are they focusing on China's human rights violations? No. They've put all of the focus on trade issues. And they've removed the United States from the UN Human Rights Council.
MacRumors is recycling old articles. There’s an updated article after this one where Apple put it back in the App Store
Edit. Did they remove it again? That wouldn’t make sense for them to change their mind after they made a decision
Edit. Did they remove it again? That wouldn’t make sense for them to change their mind after they made a decision
Give me a break! People are protesting IN SUPPORT OF DEMOCRACY. Does anyone spouting this nonsense about a Communist totalitarian regime that now has a president that will be in office for LIFE remember the atrocities committed by this same regime?
Please go lookup the “1989 Tiananmen Square protests” also known as the “Tiananmen Square Massacre”.
Civilians and mostly college students in mainland China were protesting corruption in the communist party and advocating for:
1. freedom of the press
2. Freedom of speech
3. Freedom of association (all Chinese citizens must affiliate with the Communist party)
How were protests organized? They had sit-ins (peaceful and mostly silent) and hunger strikes while occupying Tiananmen Square as well as other supporting protests at 600 other global locations.
How did the Chinese Government handle the peaceful protesters? Oh they just called in the military, declared martial law and then the military opened fire on the protesters killing hundreds and wounding thousands. “THOUSANDS”
The west has grown too accustom to getting cheap goods from China while forgiving the regime for all its past and turning a blind eye to all current and future humanitarian crisis.
If you think money and investments are an excuse for this sort of behavior, you are morally incorrect. And the most ironic part of this human tragedy is that each person who just makes excuses to say this is ok is merely sealing their fate and future when the last few jobs and opportunities go eastward leaving them or their children in the proverbial poor house.
Nothing worthwhile was ever accomplished easily. Perhaps, indeed, sacrificing a few electronics and/or paying more for those items are well worth the investment in the future of our global societies.
However, on Wednesday Apple was criticized by Chinese state media for its decision to make the app available. "Letting poisonous software have its way is a betrayal of the Chinese people's feelings," said the People's Daily.
it sure looks that way, Russell. I mean, today IS Thursday.
Money rules the world, Apple loves the money, China has the money, Apple loves China.