Hi Lemmy! Today I’ve got something a bit interesting to share. I’m going to keep the other person’s ID totally anonymous and write everything as sic where possible.
The person I was asking questions was a journalist in China for just shy of 10 years and now works as an engineer in Canada.
NOTE: I do not endorse anything here or claim anything is factual. Feel free to dissect it and discuss.
Why did you leave journalism?
The reason I left the journalism business is Xi doesn’t want people to know too much truth
Basically we were banned from reporting any bad things
Were your coworkers frustrated that you couldn’t report on bad things, or was it just you?
Yeah
All of us
Because back then the best and most respectful journalist in the industry is investigating journalist
We are all more or less aim to become that one day
But Xi just put nearly all of them in jail gradually
And never issue 1 more certificate of investigating journalist after 2016 I think
Do you want to leave [journalism] behind now, or do you want to [do it again] over here?
Nah
First I love coding
Second I’ve been paying close attention to journalism in Canada
They are good
Nothing can hide from them
Have you heard of Edward Snowden?
Yeah
I am in favor of right to know of citizen
But in terms of against terrorism and dictatorship
I also support what US gov do
Not because they’re right
It’s because currently there is no better way
So if I’m understanding this correctly - You find the US in Afghanistan/Iraq/etc etc isn’t good, but better than the alternative?
I can say yes
I have interviewed a lot of people who were out from jail in China
I know at least if US army did something terrible, they will be exposed
But not for government like Chinese, Iraq or Iran
I mean I don’t believe things are statics, some day people can work out a way to be good for all
Like the MQ9 reaper with blade missile
No innocent people will suffer and the justice still be served
[[Edit: I regret not pressing this more and asking how they know the targets are not innocent]]
When you interviewed someone who came out of prison in China and they told you something horrible that you couldn’t publish, what did you do?
I archived all video footage and first hand material in my news company
Back then there is no cloud saving
Do you still have it? I think yes
Maybe
Btw
I can tell you one fact
Maybe you also get involved into prison business
In China
Even the person I interviewed
Have you noticed peeled garlic in supermarket?
Me: Yea, in the little airtight bags?
Yep
99% of them are peeled by prisoners in China
They work 18 hours a day
Me: They’re machines
I am pretty sure a lot of them are peeled by prisoners
Because machine cost money but prisoners in China don’t
Would the prisoners telling journalists this not get in trouble?
They can tell only when they are out
I mean their sentence is served
I can’t reach prisoners right in jail
Even I can I know they are selected they are not telling the truth
Besides the garlic, what are some things that you couldn’t publish but stood out to you?
Small pack of ketchup
They are produced by prisoners in north west of china
And some cheap toys
The deepest secret I have come across is government involved human organ smuggling
They even invented a device that can kill a person’s brain but keep all other parts alive
Aren’t those just urban myths or rumors?
Nope
Me: How can you be sure?
https://patents.google.com/patent/CN202376254U/zh
There is a English version
A patent doesn’t mean they’re using it though […] Do you have any evidence they used it?
Nope. My chief editor told me they won’t publish a word of it
what can be published is decided by managers
Back then as a journalist, investigating and interview didn’t break the law
And as a profit pursing entity, it’s good to have wide range of eye catching material to select from
Now basically all newspaper have become month of the CCP:
Great job Xi
Quote: “What is important is ensuring that [University] continues to be a place that values differing viewpoints, champions free speech, and promotes inquiry”
This is exactly the weak point Xi is aming at
Some values are just poisoning
I think Communism is same to the terrorism
Isn’t that a bit extreme? Communism is just an ideology, and in theory people who don’t like it can go somewhere without it
First in history, Communism cause the most death in human history
Second it’s not easy to leave a Communism county
Latest news, Chinese government are setting Landmine on the border of China-Myanmar to prevent Chinese people from escaping
Did communism cause those deaths? Much of it was war, instability, and foreign nations sabotaging it etc. These could have been under capitalism
Nah it’s not comparable to Communism
In 1960 to 1962, there are over 30m death because of famine
In China
One of my idol, 杨继绳, wrote a book about that
I never dare to read that again
In cultural revolution from 1966 to 1976, 20m people were dead because political persecution
Also in China
and the worst part is, in modern country people are keep rethinking how can we prevent the war and death
in China we keep destroying all evidence
the book has english version
Do you think the CCP will collapse in the next, say 50 years?
Maybe tomorrow maybe never
Tomorrow is because China’s economy is nearly collapse
Never is because there still are a lot people supporting CCP
Like Chinese students in the video you sent me
Anyways - that’s it from me. Didn’t want to post it on Reddit since it’ll obviously be taken quite differently (and Lemmy deserves some OC :)). Hope you found it interesting :)
Apologies. I’ve seen CPC around before but I wasn’t sure when to use it. I’ll call it CPC from now on 👍