14 DAY TRIAL // Google speaks fluent Chinese nowadays. As much as the Chinese Government allows it, but fluent none the less.
But why is Google such a devoted and obedient communist comrade?
"We felt that perhaps we could compromise our principles but provide ultimately more information for the Chinese and be a more effective service and perhaps make more of a difference," said Sergey Brin, Google's co-founder and president.
"In order to operate from China, we have removed some content from the search results available on Google.cn (GuGe), in response to local law, regulation or policy. While removing search results is inconsistent with Google's mission, providing no information, or a heavily degraded user experience that amounts to no information - is more inconsistent with our mission," stated Andrew McLaughlin Senior Policy Counsel for Google Inc.
Such altruism! Such comradeship! Oh, poor Chinese comrades! Let Brin shine an eclipsed Chinese version of Google in the darkness of your Internet connection and FREE YOUR MINDS! Ah, wait! Minds? What minds? Censor that! Maybe a few neurons, maybe even half of one.
Google.cn or GuGe: this is Google at its best, but by Socialist Standards. Marx applied to your Internet connection. Google.cn = your friendly Communist Search Engine.
I wonder what will happen if the largely computer illiterate laptop "users" that dwell in the Romanian Parliament would censor Google one day. Don't laugh! SIAS (the Romanian equivalent of SWAT) may already be at your door, provided you are Romanian, for a few pirated DVDs or over your 20 GB share on ODC. It has happened! We've got pictures to prove it. All because EU told the Romanian Government to fix the piracy problem, and as a good lap dog it did, it sat, rolled over, played dead and played anti-piracy with a few kids. Oh, where is Sergey when you need him? Wouldn't Sergey come on his white Google.com and waving his Google.ro to save us with free information?
Again, don't laugh; we too are former communist comrades so there's a good chance. Although Brin will first probably check the RON (Romanian currency) content of his billions. Oh, that much? Maybe he won't come after all?
What about the Chinese? A reported mere 200 million Internet users. Now, why in the World Wide Web would Sergey go to such trouble over?? Wait! Did you say 200 Chinese Internet User or did I? 200 million Chinese Internet users? That's ten times the WHOLE Romanian population. That's 100 million less than the total population of the United States. Hmm?
Maybe there's a catch! Really, you think? Amazing! Really? Sergey? Our devoted and obedient proletarian comrade? No! Not Sergey! I won't have it! It's a coincidence that he's named Sergey Mihailovich Brin - born Moscow, Russia 1973, he couldn't help it, but he could change! He could, I tell you! He could become a John, or a Larry, oh he would make an excellent Larry!
Or maybe Sergey has nothing to do with it, maybe he fought the thought but that mean, dollar hungry board of directors proved stronger. Oh well, the true is out there and we'll certainly never know it.
But, whatever the true, fact is that the traditional Internet markets, the US, Europe, Japan and so forth, are already saturated or will come to their saturation point in the next couple of years with 70% or more of their populations using the Internet. But 200 million users out of 1.3 billion Chinese equals? well, another 400 to 600 million people ready for an Internet broadband connection. And Google is getting ready to cash in!
The conclusion? Get ready for GUGe.com! You'll be paying with Chinese Yuan for it!