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> Many American corporations gather and abuse much more data than any allegations against TikTok and WeChat. You're inventing a false premise with that setup.

> Many American corporations gather and abuse much more data than any allegations against TikTok and WeChat. You're inventing a false premise with that setup. The issue with TikTok isn't primarily data collection unto itself. It's that they're owned by China (ie who is doing the data collecting), and without exception all large corporations in China are directly commanded by the CCP. They have CCP committees that 'advise' the boards and outline what the companies may or may not do at all times; primarily focused on major decisions, sensitive matters for the CCP, or matters of national strategy. The only reason ByteDance isn't selling TikTok for example, is because the CCP said they weren't allowed to because it would make China look weak; that's not a decision that is up to ByteDance, because they're not in control of anything ultimately. In China's dictatorship, all power by default rests with the CCP (and increasingly with future Chairman Xi's new cult of personality, as the purges have begun); that approach means they can do anything at any time for any reason. They even started hijacking boards in Hong Kong back in 2016: WSJ 2017: "Since 2016, at least 32 Chinese state-owned companies or units listed in Hong Kong have proposed changes to their corporate structures to install Communist Party committees that advise their boards of directors." [1] China isn't an ally of the US, they're a blend of enemy and super competitor. They don't freely allow US companies - such as Facebook, Google, Reddit, Twitter, Snapchat, Pinterest, Amazon AWS, and dozens of others - to operate inside of China. It's entirely reasonable to disallow some China-owned corporations from operating in the US as a matter of trade reciprocation. [1] https://www.wsj.com/articles/now-advising-chinas-state-firms-the-communist-party-1502703005 https://www.wsj.com/articles/now-advising-chinas-state-firms...

DiogenesKynikos 6y ago
> The only reason ByteDance isn't selling TikTok for example, is because the CCP said they weren't allowed to because it would make China look weak; that's not a decision that is up to ByteDance, because they're not in control of anything ultimately. It's not because the "CCP" said they weren't allowed to. It's because the government of the People's Republic of China issued a new policy against exporting sensitive technology. The government obviously had ByteDance in mind, but this was a government policy issued in the normal way, not anything to do with Communist Party committees advising corporate boards. It's a response by the Chinese government to a measure taken by the American government against a Chinese company. > They don't freely allow US companies [...] to operate inside of China. A great many US companies freely operate inside China - many more than vice versa. China's economic development was largely driven by the "Reform and Opening-Up Policy." As the name suggests, a major part of that policy was allowing foreign companies to invest in China. Foreign companies did invest massively in China, gaining market access and taking advantage of Chinese labor. If you walk around any major Chinese city nowadays, you'll see the result: foreign companies are everywhere. Volkswagens, Hondas and Toyotas fill the streets. There's a Starbucks, McDonald's or KFC on every other corner. Everyone walks around with smartphones filled with American electronics. Chinese airlines fly fleets of Boeing and Airbus planes. The computers all run Windows or OS X. The idea that US companies can't operate in China is just very far from the reality, which is that US companies have a massive presence in China.

DiogenesKynikos 6y ago

> The only reason ByteDance isn't selling TikTok for example, is because the CCP said they weren't allowed to because it would make China look weak; that's not a decision that is up to ByteDance, because they're not in control of anything ultimately. It's not because the "CCP" said they weren't allowed to. It's because the government of the People's Republic of China issued a new policy against exporting sensitive technology. The government obviously had ByteDance in mind, but this was a government policy issued in the normal way, not anything to do with Communist Party committees advising corporate boards. It's a response by the Chinese government to a measure taken by the American government against a Chinese company. > They don't freely allow US companies [...] to operate inside of China. A great many US companies freely operate inside China - many more than vice versa. China's economic development was largely driven by the "Reform and Opening-Up Policy." As the name suggests, a major part of that policy was allowing foreign companies to invest in China. Foreign companies did invest massively in China, gaining market access and taking advantage of Chinese labor. If you walk around any major Chinese city nowadays, you'll see the result: foreign companies are everywhere. Volkswagens, Hondas and Toyotas fill the streets. There's a Starbucks, McDonald's or KFC on every other corner. Everyone walks around with smartphones filled with American electronics. Chinese airlines fly fleets of Boeing and Airbus planes. The computers all run Windows or OS X. The idea that US companies can't operate in China is just very far from the reality, which is that US companies have a massive presence in China.