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Nobody is calling Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia or frankly S. Korea a 'Surveillance State'. Not Japan either really. China is being referred to as a 'Surveillan

• geodel 5y ago
  > China is being referred to as a 'Surveillance State' because it is. No, I think it is called because China is rich/powerful enough to put technology in place for surveillance where as many others want to but can't afford. It also has developed a kind of adversarial relationship due to its economic impact on west. So more reason look negatives one can find.
  • BlueTemplar 5y ago
    "Want to but can't afford" is quite... uncharitable ? (What is happening in, say, Japan or South Korea - surely they are rich enough ?
  • jollybean 5y ago
    No, many nations have the wealth to put Orwell Tech in place, they don't because it's wrong on every level. China controls it's citizens through absolute control of information. Every email, every text. The 'VPN' bypass is 1) still controlled and China can shut those down as they please and 2) not hugely relevant if 99% of the population believes the facts the CCP wants them to believe. Orwell (well, Blair) himself could not have conceived of the level of control because the tech simply didn't exist. That said, I think you're right to hint that maybe other states have not been able to do this, but that some will. I believe China will become a major exporter of surveillance tech in the coming decades.
• selimthegrim 5y ago
  Pakistan will get there soon enough at the rate it's going