It’s Not About Respect, It’s About Fear

[Update] Debra Saunders says something similar to what I wrote below — that Google is tough with the DoJ and wobbly with the Chinese government, because it takes no courage to confront the DoJ (in fact, such fake “courage” might even help its business) while the Chinese can hurt its business.

[Original Entry]

Yesterday, I expressed an admiration for what Rebecca MacKinnon wrote about the “we’re just following the laws” defense of American corporations that operate in places like China.

Well, I also said that I sometimes disagree with her views. While she writes inspiring stuff like what I read yesterday, she also writes something like this that really bothers me:

3. If the Chinese government makes unreasonable requests for search result data, do the same thing you [Google] did to the U.S. Department of Justice: just say no. Othewise, you’ll be sending the message that you respect U.S. users much more than you respect Chinese users.

See, if Google were to be more obliging to the Chinese government, it wouldn’t be because it “respect[s] U.S. users much more than.. Chinese users.”

It would be from the simple reason that the Chinese government scares Google much more than the U.S. government does. Companies like Google (and those who run them) that say chirpy things like “Don’t be Evil” (h/t Michelle Malkin) are hypocritical cowards. They are real tough to the U.S. government that respects their rights, doesn’t intimidate them or create “accidents” for them. But they are not so tough when it comes to governments like China’s that play rough.

This is the exact same reason why you see a lot of “liberal” human rights organizations go after the U.S. for chicken-s**t stuff like Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, but are silent on much more heinous atrocities like China’s oppression, North Korea’s executions, Saddam’s mass graves (when he was in power, that is) and ad naseum.

You see, Ms. MacKinnon, it’s not about respect. It is, apparently, about fear — something that these bleeding heart companies are loath to admit.