BLITZER: One of the arguments that some of the pro-China elements is making, Jack, is that this is a very different China today than existed 10 years ago, certainly 20 or 30 years ago. This communist regime today is almost like a capitalist regime. They're a huge economic superpower and that we have a lot at stake in maintaining this economic relationship with China.
CAFFERTY: Well, I don't know if China is any different, but our relationship with China is certainly different. We're in hawk to the Chinese up to our eyeballs because of the war in Iraq, for one thing. They're holding hundreds of billions of dollars worth of our paper. We also are running hundred of billions of dollars worth of trade deficits with them, as we continue to import their junk with the lead paint on them and the poisoned pet food and export, you know, jobs to places where you can pay workers a dollar a month to turn out the stuff that we're buying from Wal-Mart. So I think our relationship with China has certainly changed. I think they're basically the same bunch of goons and thugs they've been for the last 50 years.
我想起法國哲學家伏爾泰的名言(其實不是他說的,是寫伏爾泰傳記的Evelyn Beatrice Hall寫的):「我並不同意你的觀點,但是我誓死捍衛你說話的權利。」("Je ne suis pas d'accord avec ce que vous dites, mais je me battrai jusqu'à la mort pour que vous ayez le droit de le dire.")。看見電視新聞裡全國人民圍攻法資家樂褔的場面,在電視機旁可能最後在笑的(who has the last laugh),也許正是Jack Cafferty。中國人要的,是國民自我價值,自重,不是過份民族情緒。
像微軟搞的這活動,當然有其商業推介成份和目標,但這「打打氣」是很有意義的。雖然這也許仍是界內先「自我認可」,但仍然是合理和來得有點遲的。我近年已不多參與技術產品介紹的活動,但這次看著台上的軟件簡介與示範,令我想起十五年多前我的工作也與台上講者相似,就像昨天一樣似的,從當年1993年前我示範的是第一代的Windows NT、Solaris on Intel等,到看著今天的系統創建示範,講研的是virtualization(虛儗化?),真的與不久之前已有天淵之別。
[CWHK] Hong Kong's latest ICT initiative: Project Net Respect
During the recent nude-photos incident in Hong Kong, the Internet was put on center stage in an unwilling leading role. As a result, there are concerns within the Internet user community about adverse effects on the sustainable development of the Internet, especially in the area of freedom of expression.
A global professional membership society with about 100 chapters in over 180 countries, the Internet Society (ISOC) addresses issues such as Internet governance, technology standard, equal access and information freedom. Since its inception in 1992, ISOC has encouraged responsible and effective use of the Internet through education, discussion and advice to public policy makers. The Hong Kong Chapter – the Internet Society Hong Kong (ISOC HK) – strives to work with government, industry and civil society to pursue these objectives in a collaborative and inclusive manner.
The ISOC is guided by the primary principle that “the Internet is for everyone” – to safeguard the integrity and continuity of Internet development and operations, to support and contribute to the evolution of the Internet as an open, decentralized platform for innovation, creativity and economic opportunity. The Internet is about opportunity, empowerment, knowledge and freedom. Based on these core values, ISOC HK has announced "Project Net Respect" in collaboration with Sin Chung Kai, Legislative Councilor for IT and Computerworld Hong Kong columnist.
ICT code of ethics
The objective of Project Net Respect is to align the ICT industry to advocate, promote and educate the public, especially students and youth, with an “ICT User’s Code of Ethics” for the use of ICT technologies, emphasizing self-respect and respect for others:
"An ICT user – of devices and technologies including but not limited to computers, Internet, mobile phones, etc. – should act respectably, honorably, honestly, justly, responsibly and legally. Using ICT devices and the network, he or she:
Should not harm others but should consider and respect other human beings;
Should not steal or act with malicious or dishonest intent;
Should prevent abusive uses, especially relating to gender and ethnic discrimination, hatred, violence and exploitation of living beings;
Should not pry others’ computer files or break into systems without authorization;
Should not use other people’s resources without authorization;
Should care for and improve the security of his or her own systems and data;
Should honor intellectual property rights;
Should respect the privacy and personal data of others
Should respect the freedom, equality and tolerance of others;
Should contribute to society and consider the social consequences of his or her actions or programs written or executed."
The code drew references from others developed in the past decades by the Computer Ethics Institute, UNESCO and Association of Computing Machinery. We plan to shortly organize an industry roundtable to finalize the code and other activities.
Promotion and education
The second part of our project is promotion – via printed literatures and materials to be posted or distributed at schools, universities, community youth centers, cyber-cafes, and also at the ICT product level, through manufacturers, distributors and retailers.
But the most important part of the project is education. We sent letters to all Hong Kong schoola offering to hold lectures on network conduct and ethics, Internet law and security for students, teachers and parents. Over 60 schools have accepted the offer. This is a huge task in the months ahead, and volunteers from the ICT industry are needed.
In the coming months, as the Government conducts a public consultation to review the Control of Obscene and Indecent Article Ordinance, pressures will mount to amend existing law to specifically target what happens on the Internet. As a matter of principle, ISOC HK is against technology-specific legislation, except where proven to be absolutely necessary. In a presentation to the Council of Europe in 2007, the ISOC stated:
"We would suggest that human behavior should be no different no matter the environment in which humans interact. If we begin to differentiate environments, then we may have to differentiate rights. And this starts to become complex and cumbersome, perhaps meaningless or even counterproductive. Individual rights and the values that guide how we interact with each other should be simple, clear and without complication.
"The issue may be not that we need new rights because of the Internet, but that we need to reinforce existing rights because the Internet has shown how fragile they can be when new technologies or new economic models are introduced...The future of the Internet, and the future of those who will use the Internet, depends on our communal effort to ensure these rights are respected.”
今天早上與二十多位來自業界,政府及非政府組織的同事,討論我和人單仲偕發起的「網絡R計劃」(Project Net Respect)。在兩個多小時的熱列討論之後,我收取了許多寶貴的意見,有助我們完成ICT用戶使用守則建議最後。計劃已經得到幾十個團體的支持,感謝業界及各持分者的支持! 還有,已經有超過八十家中小學接受了我們進校就正確使用互聯網及網絡安全演講了,反應熱列,我們急需更多義工講員!
「If you build it, they will come」這是奇雲高士拿1989年電影《Field of Dreams》的名句。這種思維真叫現實的香港人為難:再說,因為造夢而又能像蓋茨他們這樣發達的,怎說也是萬中無一,也許正是這種「目標為本」性格,令香港沒可能出現就樣的一個「榜樣」,中國內地卻反而可以有這種「英雄」出現。
「你可以想到的點子,大概有千百個人在你之前想過了。」太多人以為自己聰明過人,我最清楚自己的平凡;自己想出來的好主意,主觀地當然覺得好,這就叫「想當然,沒意義」;但我認為,要想「為什麼其他人想了不做」;當中的智慧:「think why not, not why」。