Apple ejects Dalai Lama from Chinese iTunes iPhone apps based on the teachings of the Dalai Lama don't exist on the Chinese incarnation of iTunes, it has emerged, demonstrating that even Apple has to bend to do business in China. Given the Chinese government's rejection of the Dalai Lama's authority it's no surprise that his only appearance in the Chinese iTunes store …
Businesses aren't set up to create an ethical utopia where everyone's human rights are respected and no-one has anything to fear from anyone or anything. Like it or not, businesses exist solely to make profit. Despite the "ethical policies" that some companies publish as a PR trick, corporate entities will behave in an ethical way *only* if they see it as profitable.
China is a huge market, and Apple would no doubt lose a huge chunk of its cash if it withdrew from it. However, continuing to do business in China and respecting the local laws (and therefore being unethical) will likely lose them very little money. A handful of people might boycott Apple in the West because of it, but it's nothing compared to losing the 1.3 billion potential customers in China.
TL;DR: It's more profitable for Apple to stay in China and obey their laws than it is to be ethical and pull out.
"Like it or not, businesses exist solely to make profit."
It's a small point, but not all businesses exist solely to make profit. One might even argue that those whose sole interest is profit are not, ipso facto, interested in producing a good product or service, and are therefore not worth doing business with.
"Corporate entities will behave in an ethical way *only* if they see it as profitable."
Here begins Adam Smith's argument against Corporatism.
"how the real world works"
Ooohhh so that makes it OK then, I suppose that's what Hitler said when the he carted over 12 human beings off to the death camps.
Maybe Stalin said the same when he carted another 20 million human beings for to the gulags.
Perhaps that is what they are saying in uganda at the moment, where they are proposing to introduce the death sentence for being gay, and long prision terms for not reporting a gay person.
FOAD jai, or is only OK to say that to foreigners
They should tag anything filtered for a particular country with special tags, so that other people can see what China doesn't want them to see.
e.g. a Tag convention "CensoredInChina" "CensoredInUK"...
Maybe with further tags, "CensoredByConroy", "CensoredBySchauble" if there are particular problem leaders.
It's wise to remember that no matter how nice the Dalai Lama seems before the Chinese invaded Tibet the ruling Lamas practiced slavery and in fact the common man in Tibet lived with very low standard of life compared to their pacifistic overlords so don't shed a tear for Google bowing to the Chinese authorities all this political nonsense needs to be taken with a large does of reality.
they could have invaded another country, practiced genocide upon the people there and tried to wipe out their culture whilst plundering their land for natural resources, importing their own people to overwhelm the natives at the same time as brutally opressing them and marginalising them in their own land.
No culture is or was perfect. The idea that because indentured servitude existed in Tibet that somehow justifies the murder of over a million people as well as the destruction of an ancient and essentially peaceful culture and people could only come from someone brainwashed by the Chinese Governent or an idiot.
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Which government, the PLA, the state or the CPC?
To sell in China large companies need to have a Chinese partner and a party member on the board.
Multinationals should not have been allowed to do business in China until the CPC was demolished.
Now you have a mob that extorts a entire nation.
Surely if China likes market forces so much now they'd be happy to offer their citizens the option of either slavery or freedom? I mean, what's the chances that they'd pick nasty old freedom?
Yep, Apple sucks, just like all the other bastards queuing up to make deals with the Chinese devil.
"This is not kowtowing to pressure, but simply following the law. Hardly news at all, really."
So you can't just go in there and mention that Tiananmen Square in 1989 was something OTHER than just another tourist destination?
So your defence is "it's not my fault, I was just following orders".
Bite me.
Refusing business with the Nazi was not common either, not even during the war.
Refusing business is not common at all.
To jai
"it's the only economy that's currently working at the moment",
so why does it work, is it not because we invest in the country, and accept standards and working conditions that are impossible here.
And I cannot see your "freetard" point.
Freetard stuff is adopted and often "stolen", hardly marketed.
To Sir Runcible Spoon
"I wish to fuck that I could go out and buy something that wasn't made in fucking China"
Get glasses and just avoid stuff with the sticker "Made in China".
On the other hand I remember Dirty Dick, the president, who told his crew, before going to China, not to try to fool them, as they are more intelligent than we are, anyway.
And well, who is in investing more in Africa than anybody else. Perhaps they are in fact some steps ahead of us.
(For a free Tibet I would vote yes, of course)
IBM sold computers to the Nazis, Ikea had factories in East Germany, 23 South Korean companies have factories in North Korea, and every Western company would sell their own mother to be allowed to do business in China.
It's wrong, but it's the system that's wrong - there's no ethics in capitalism.
It's difficult to live an ethical lifestyle here in the democratic West, but it's possible with some effort and adjustment!
"IBM sold computers to the Nazis"
Nazis defeated in 1945 (please resist any temptation to make reference to New Labour or more recent political parties)
IBM sells first electronic computer in 1952 (not unless it was to the nazis who were "working" for the allies at this stage)
Do enlighten us, please
"they could have invaded another country, practiced genocide upon the people there and tried to wipe out their culture whilst plundering their land for natural resources, importing their own people to overwhelm the natives at the same time as brutally opressing them and marginalising them in their own land."
When I read this I assumed bluest.one was talking about the brutal establishment of the USA s a counterpoint to the argument. Seems we forget that the USA was born in almost the same 'evil' fashion.
During the 1984 US football Super Bowl, Apple released their landmark "1984" Mac television commercial. The advertisement singled out the Mac as a means to combating conformity and asserting originality.
In his 1983 Apple keynote address, just before a preview of the commercial was shown, Steve Jobs said:
" It is now 1984. ..Dealers ...are increasingly turning back to Apple as the only force that can ensure their future freedom. IBM wants it all and is aiming its guns on its last obstacle to industry control: Apple. Will Big Blue dominate the entire computer industry? The entire information age? Was George Orwell right?"
Apparently George Orwell was right. Apple has joined the jackbooted thugs in the 1984 commercial. The business model is more important than individual empowerment in the face of a police state.
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