Re: Canonical and China
My earlier post in opposition got jailed; I'm not entirely sure what was wrong with it, except that I said "The Chinese" when I meant "The Chinese government". Unfortunately, after the jailing, someone else on another forum noted that "there seems to be no opposition from anyone on Ubuntu Forums" which is certainly not the case.
I'll be a bit more careful in this post as I'd like my opposition to stand on record.
I'm strongly opposed to Western companies getting into bed with the Chinese government. I'm especially opposed to Canonical doing this, and I consider that writing a distro for Chinese government use is "getting into bed" with them. The risks are enormous - not just to Canonical but also to Ubuntu and its users - and I don't think Canonical has the savvy to avoid the risks. There's also the question of ethics which is too large to ignore.
I've not completely made up my mind, but I think this will be my last pure Ubuntu installation. I have concerns about what could happen if China decided it was strong enough to take aggressive action, and Ubuntu effectively being used against me if I was on the front lines of any future conflict. I'm feeling like I want to move away from Ubuntu, initially to Linux Mint and then perhaps to something not derived from Ubuntu code. Debian maybe?
I won't make a big song and dance about it because that will annoy people, but I'm very disappointed that Canonical is making this move, and also disappointed in Canonical's sense of ethics too. I do hope that it will be strong enough to stand up for itself against any unethical demands from the Chinese government.
I try to treat the cause, not the symptom. I avoid the terminal in instructions, unless it's easier or necessary. My instructions will work within the Ubuntu system, instead of breaking or subverting it. Those are the three guarantees to the helpee.
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