Eating Crow – Google Goes For Broke in China
Let me start by saying that I was wrong. Yep. That’s the best way to begin this post. This morning I read on Wired.com that Google had officially stopped censoring search results inside the People’s Republic of China. They ignored the naysayers and have stopped doing searches inside mainland China, instead asking users to go to their Hong Kong site for searches. Of course, it’s not likely that people inside mainland China will be able to get unfiltered search results from Hong Kong, but that’s beside the issue.
Most importantly, Google is risking their China business to meet their stated goal of unfiltered search. The g-men stood on principle and took action in favor of Internet freedom. Bravo.
Just as the issue itself had strong cultural overtones, (see my earlier post) anyone reading the post from outside the USA may wonder about the title. We have a euphemism inside the US for anyone who has to retract a statement or admit that they were wrong. It is called “having to eat crow.” A crow is a particularly obnoxious bird that tastes like a rat. It’s hard to catch and very hard to stomach. So it’s an appropriate comparison for having to admit that you’re wrong. In this case, I’m contrite and happy to see that my original skepticism has been upended.
Right or wrong, the leadership team at Google made a particularly tough decision. It’s nice to see that they stood on principle in the face of opposition. And to CEO Eric Schmidt and everyone in the company, please accept my heartfelt apology for doubting your ability to execute on the plan.
Jim Molini, CISSP, CSSLP
Oh, Jim. I know exactly how you feel. Just a tip…I’ve found that Tabasco sauce masks the gameyness:-)
Keep up the great work!