House Republican concerned about companies "enabling dictatorship!"

[Pacifist Patriot]

Members of Congress blasted four U.S. tech giants Thursday, accusing the companies of willingly helping China oppress internal dissent in return for access to a booming Internet market.

Representatives from Microsoft Corp., Yahoo Inc., Cisco Systems Inc. and Google Inc. defended themselves at a House International Relations subcommittee hearing, but a Google official acknowledged that figuring out China's Internet market "has been a difficult exercise."

But lawmakers were skeptical of what several saw as the companies' efforts to explain their business practices in China only after a recent crush of negative media scrutiny and government attention.

<snip>

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/02/15/tech/main1319691.shtml?CMP=ILC-SearchStories



I agree with the criticism but have to roll my eyes at the Republican comments on the committee. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., said the companies are "enabling dictatorship."

So if you have a problem with companies that enable dictatorship....what the fuck are you going to do about Haliburton, oil companies, media conglomerates, etc? I'm sorry, but a Republican worried about enabling a dictatorship right now seems like a termite worried about carpenter ants gnawing on the neighbor's house.

[NanceGreggs]

1. Talk about a way with words ...

"A Republican worried about enabling a dictatorship right now seems like a termite worried about carpenter ants gnawing on the neighbor's house."

That's downright BRILLIANT!

[Pacifist Patriot]

7. Why thank you.

I first thought of it when writing a sermon about the Christian far right's attitude towards Muslim extremists but this is the first time I've had a chance to use the phrase here. It seemed to fit.

[DBoon]

2. another excuse to beat on Democratic-trending tech companies

while ignoring the dictatorships enabled by mining, pertroleum, and agribusiness

Where do you think the term "banana republic" came from?

[slor]

3. What he meant to say was...

"enabling dictatorship OUTSIDE of America, when they should be enabling it here!".

[tanyev]

4. I haven't followed this story too closely, so maybe somebody

could explain it to me. Just a few weeks ago we learned that Yahoo, AOL, and MSN willingly turned over records of search queries to our government. The government went to court to force Google to hand over the same records after it had initially refused. Now we have representatives of our government grandstanding because these same companies are cooperating with the Chinese government. Aren't they just quibbling over varying degrees of the same problem?

[NativeTexan]

5. The House Republicans have no place to talk....

...hell, they are enabling the most dangerous dictator of our time, in their support of the Bush Fascist Party and Regime!!

[Pacifist Patriot]

6. When I think their blind hypocrisy can't get any bolder...

they trump themselves.

[Laelth]

8. Pot meet kettle.

These people have no sense of shame.

:puke:

-Laelth