A few things have prompted me to bring up the question of freedom to blog, one was an article in Metro newspaper (free daily paper in London), which reports on the numbers of writers arrested by Chinese authorities, and secondly of course BBC News coverage of the continuing disgraceful progress of the Olympic torch tonight's highlighting how Chinese citizens are carefully vetted before being allowed to witness its progress to Beijing.
Obviously most bloggers are not professional writers, but do offer something journalists cannot and that is the ability to write what they want without considering financial matters (or grammer or who they upset). It seems clear to me that journalists on newspapers particularly local ones must be aware of upsetting advertisers, particularly local government which countywide spends around eight million pounds a year, with Thanet council around 200,000 pounds a year.
In life we have to be pragmatic, but I just wonder whether local councilors and public employees should be accepting hospitality from the Chinese government, admittedly China isn't the most repressive regime but it's certainly the case that its citizens do not live in a free and fair society. So whilst our local planning authorities consider implications of the China gateway development and its potential to destroy the local environment and poison our water, maybe they should also consider the corrosive nature of dealing corrupt regimes.
Perhaps Thanet council could insist that the Chinese authorities release political prisoners including bloggers before they give permission for the Manston Gateway development to go ahead. One thing is for sure I will not be getting an all expenses paid holiday or even a business trip courtesy of the Chinese government anytime soon also the China gateway as far as the Internet is concerned is clkosed and likely to remain so for a long time.
The People's Republic of China
Human Rights in China
hi
ReplyDeletei don't agree with china taking our water, i also don't agree with the politics of China,
but our empire finished ages ago so why are we still telling the world how to live after all we are by no means perfect and we have enough problems of our own.
Stephen Stock
The china gateway of all the changes is the one that should not happen (IMHO). Fine so I think the Turner Centre is a lemon but it's some-one else's lemon and money that was going to be spent anyway might as well spend it here. Yes the gateway thing ruined the library but it was not something I used much and it at least gives us something to talk about when Sandy is not acting like a baboon. It's done now.
ReplyDeleteBut the china gateway in that location - there is no need. It just seems more like a cash grab than in anyone's best interests. It's backed by a council whose "leader" seems (recently especially) to be screaming at and shouting down anyone who stands against him (like a bully if you ask me) and that leaves me wondering how much intelligence and thought went into the planning.
If it comes to light that one or more members of the council were on the take on this issue this is one blogger that will not be surprised one little bit.
Its quite simple really despite Labour and Tories erodeing our freedom at every chance, we are still quite free unlike china
ReplyDeleteCGP are a property development company out to make money, full stop!
ReplyDeleteThey have already bought the council leadership by paying for their fact finding trip to China!
And they are going ahead with the idea of getting the planning permission ( already in the bag! ) and then selling on their ownership of the project to another group, and taking the profit that goes with it!
Good news for Thanet! Hell no! Just big bucks for Wills and co!
Why are we all such hypocrits in Thanet, we have had so many chances for economic growth that have been flushed away by people most of whom have never grown up in an area that has had the economic deprevation that Thanet has suffered over the last 30 years, Yes ken Wills will make money but thats the nature of all business however as a true Thanetonian born and bread her who had to leave to gain employment because of the lack of emploment prospects we all faced in Thanet from the late 1970's onwards and in many respects still o, I say if you've come here as migrants of the urban sprawl to retire of for a quiet life tuff!!! Thanet has as much rite as any other community to see economic development for the benefit of its own future generations, the same economic development that gave people who have moved here their living elsewhere and who now profess to know what is best for the people of Thanet, hypocrasy indeed, we have lost so many chances in the past for economic growth why should we be left behind again, I say bring it on the days where interfearing indviduals can affect our furure like thoes that forced the closure of the worlds first fully operational hoverport back in the 1970's because they felt that the noise would advearsley affect the price of their property is over, Our time has fnaly come, China Gateway Bring it on!! Thanet Earth Bring It on!!! London Array bring it on!!! high speed rail link bring it on!!! Turner Centre bring it on!!! redevelopment of Dreamland for leisure and new homes bring it on!!! Eurokent & Westwood Cross bring it on!!! if you have children as I do and you want them to grow up in an area where they dont have to move to get a job shut up moaning and support Thanets growth and regeneration, if you aren't from Thanet but have moved hear for cheaper homes or a quiet life simply go back where you came from, if you can afford to now that is, Oh and for all of the people constantly knocking China if you feel so strongly I have no doubt you will be throwing out every peice of electrical equipment, furniture, clothing, and of course motor vehicles from your homes as 99% of them are either manufactured or contain componants that are manufactured in China and that why you can afford to buy them!! so if your not going to throw them all away and make a moral stand for your convictions stop being such hypocrits and do us all a favour and belt up. And finnaly for thoes people from mediocracy who have no stake in Thanet's future who make films and organise rallies in order to further their own profile as chanpions of the earth and protectors of the water supply at Manston who tell us economic growth is bad and that we won't bennefit but we will pay because our water will be contaminated I say your are about 30 years to late don't you know that all of the surrounding area around the base has had abnormally high levels of background radiation ever since the USAF used it as a nuclear ordenance storage facility during their occupation until the late 1980's and further to this if the drainage system to the development is appropiately designed the gatering of water will be even more efficient than it is now and will still filterd through the chalk the same way it is now, so to these people I say do your home work better next time and why don't you go get a life or open a cats home or do something else that actually has some value to it like help the local elderly citizens of Thanet survive this winter with the criminaly high fuel prices they will have to pay to heat their homes, if you feel the need to fight the good fight then do it for something worth while like that and allow the children of Thanet the chance to get a job without having to leave their heritage and families behind by moving away from the area to have a chance of a career for them selves as so many of us had to in the past,
ReplyDelete