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> ... I hope that we can pilfer it. Steal and steal alike? No thanks. > I don't know how they'd get the price and quality without benefiting from industrial e

> ... I hope that we can pilfer it. Steal and steal alike? No thanks. > I don't know how they'd get the price and quality without benefiting from industrial espionage. They engineer their internal economy to keep cheap labor at near starvation levels of subsistence. > Perhaps something more ideal would be to opensource everything that's been stolen. Robin Hood arguments are vapid. Stealing is often costly. Hackers aren't free, although the Chinese government does basically quarantine anyone with any chops. > Now, I'm sure some middle manager would insist that the 'operational knowledge' be documented and stored somewhere that becomes that much more lucrative for a thief. Actually, all levels of management want information to be there because you don't want to lose enormous sums of money if someone leaves and doesn't document the location of encryption keys before taking a secret job and disappearing into Asia or eastern Europe.

alexanderstears 9y ago
They engineer their internal economy to keep cheap labor at near starvation levels of subsistence. But that doesn't explain how the tires are so good. Building a good tire is very, very difficult. I'd say that my cheap chinese tires are comparable with state of the art tires from 2002/2003, that requires much more expertise than a dozen good engineers can provide. In my opinion, the tires' performance is evidence that they use someone else's technology. Robin Hood arguments are vapid. Stealing is often costly. Hackers aren't free, although the Chinese government does basically quarantine anyone with any chops. But stealing is worth it and the right robin hood arrangement could reduce the expected value of industrial espionage. Weigh the costs and benefits yourself. Actually, all levels of management want information to be there because you don't want to lose enormous sums of money if someone leaves and doesn't document the location of encryption keys before taking a secret job and disappearing into Asia or eastern Europe. And there's the rub, how many people would leave their company if they had the company's commitment to stable employment? About once a year I sign something that verifies I understand that I'm an at-will employee, do you think that garners my loyalty?
ajross 9y ago
> They engineer their internal economy to keep cheap labor at near starvation levels of subsistence. The first clause is true enough, the latter seems to be missing a ton of context, given y'know, the actual famine this same government caused two generations ago. Low wages being a growth engine may not be fair or uniformly beneficial. Compared to the desperation of the cultural revolution it's sort of a paradise. Things are getting better, not worse.

alexanderstears 9y ago

They engineer their internal economy to keep cheap labor at near starvation levels of subsistence. But that doesn't explain how the tires are so good. Building a good tire is very, very difficult. I'd say that my cheap chinese tires are comparable with state of the art tires from 2002/2003, that requires much more expertise than a dozen good engineers can provide. In my opinion, the tires' performance is evidence that they use someone else's technology. Robin Hood arguments are vapid. Stealing is often costly. Hackers aren't free, although the Chinese government does basically quarantine anyone with any chops. But stealing is worth it and the right robin hood arrangement could reduce the expected value of industrial espionage. Weigh the costs and benefits yourself. Actually, all levels of management want information to be there because you don't want to lose enormous sums of money if someone leaves and doesn't document the location of encryption keys before taking a secret job and disappearing into Asia or eastern Europe. And there's the rub, how many people would leave their company if they had the company's commitment to stable employment? About once a year I sign something that verifies I understand that I'm an at-will employee, do you think that garners my loyalty?

ajross 9y ago

> They engineer their internal economy to keep cheap labor at near starvation levels of subsistence. The first clause is true enough, the latter seems to be missing a ton of context, given y'know, the actual famine this same government caused two generations ago. Low wages being a growth engine may not be fair or uniformly beneficial. Compared to the desperation of the cultural revolution it's sort of a paradise. Things are getting better, not worse.