[ExI] Trusting China information was Protest

Dan TheBookMan danust2012 at gmail.com
Mon Jun 15 20:11:52 UTC 2020


On Jun 14, 2020, at 10:03 AM, spike jones via extropy-chat <extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi Keith, ja, one could go that route, but keep in mind the US doesn't have
> the authority at any level to control the behavior of individuals.  China
> does.  Presidential and governors' executive orders do not apply to
> individuals.  
> 
> We are seeing these riots where people are clearly violating social
> distancing rules, looting in flash mobs, some without masks, ignoring social
> distancing rules.  We see the CHAZ area in Seattle having enormous rallies
> where it isn't clear if social distancing rules apply.  
> 
> China can stop all kind of things, because they have the functional
> equivalent of a dictatorship, with no guarantee of free speech.  The
> government controls the message.  They likely wielded power the US does not
> have at any level, and we don't know if we can trust the message.  We still
> don't know.  We have no intentions of handing the government (at any level)
> the authority that China already has.  In China, the government can dictate
> down to the level of detail including how many children a couple may have.
> We don't do that.
> 
> spike

Regarding CHAZ, what do you mean by 'enormous rallies'? Compared to what? And when did these take place? It looks like, within the context of a protest, these folks are semi-following the rules (just like protesters pretty much everywhere esle):

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/06/14/inside-seattle-autonomous-zone-black-protesters-seek-lasting-change/3179232001/

And the crowd doesn't seem all that large.

See also:

https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/15/us/seattle-capitol-hill-autonomous-zone-monday/index.html

One protest I saw near me on Friday -- not in the CHAZ -- was a few dozen people all wearing masks though a bit closer together than the six foot rule. The thing is I don't see people uniformly following 'social' distancing rules around Seattle. In the more hip areas, yes, but the outlying areas tend to be mixed. (CHAZ is in one of the hip areas by my reckoning.) One standard: you'll see fewer maskless people the closer you get a Whole Foods. :)

I'm not so sure about the PRC government exactly having the power you say. Yeah, sure, it's an authoritarian regime. The problem for such regimes though is there's more a show of power and a show of compliance. And when officials aren't looking? Well, then, like everywhere else, people take more chances and do what they can get away with, no? Or do you believe if the sign says no speeding, no one speeds?

Regards,

Dan
   Sample my Kindle books at:
http://author.to/DanUst


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