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Re: [ace-users] Red Flag Linux (fwd)





On Mon, 10 Jan 2000, Guy Baruch wrote:

> I wonder who the worst opressor of costumer-choice is, 
> microsoft or the goverment of china ? (note one of them does not shoot
> demonstrators, yet.)
> in fact, when china's people will be able to choose for themselves
> (which I hope is soon, like a decade or 2) will this lead to a backlash
>  against linux ?? or just against this "red-flag" govermental flavor ?
> 

If an old chinese proverb was not "Take things into proportion", IMHO it
should be.
I fully appreciate the trendiness of being politically correct and the
loving hypeness of supporting the underdog. But if I read your post
correctly (and I fully apologize upfront if I misunderstood you), what you
are trying to say is "hey, those poor chinese guys should be free to use
Win2k if they so choose! Burn the Party leadership for saying otherwise!".
Now, let's see some assumptions:

* you assume the average Chinese government clerk is dying to use Win2k,
and those idiots up in their Politburo will be torturing them by imposing
Linux. Oh well, perhaps that's _one_way_ to imagine the world. And that
once they are relieved of the tirany of pork-and-penguin-soup, they will
stomp CompChina in search for the much-oppresed Win2k boxes. Now, that's
farfetched on a ny clear day, IMHO. American closed Micro$oft "technology",
or world open technology. In fact, who cares, what's the chief's special
down in the canteen today ?
 
* some poor bugger will have to maintain their user base. Hey, that guy
has actually a life and a brain, and got to the conclusion that managing
Linux (and what a name, Red Flag Linux. The US Navy/Air Force must be
laughing their flying socks off) woudl be actually easier and cheaper!

* Micro$oft points to China as the worlds largest pirate country. What a
nice way for the Chinese government to say "bugger off" without triggering
an international incident ("Microsoft's 6th Navy bombards Shangai with
shrink-wrapped Win2k boxes").

* Every enterprise is free to declare and ENFORCE its standards. A
government is, computer-base-wise, no diferent from a bank or other such.
They have all rights to use one systm and NOT another. ("Well, Mr. Xing
Ling, we wont be able to pay your family their dues, since we run Win2k
and the INS runs Linux and we don't talk to _that_kind of box").

* Every time the words "China", "government" and "ban" come together at
the same time, people jump at "Tianmen never more!". It helps to check out
what is being banned, context and timing.

just my 0.02,

--izar



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