Why Google helps China to censor online searches (and why you should care)

"A few years ago, I walked into an Internet room in Tibet's capital, Lhasa. There were no Chinese soldiers in the room, and no visible government censors nearby. A sign on the wall, however, reminded Web users that even after entering the stateless world of the Web, China's all-seeing eye had not disappeared. 'Do not use Internet,'' the warning instructed crassly, `for any political or other unintelligent purposes.'

"Since then, China's ruling regime has perfected the science of controlling what the Chinese can read or write on the Internet to such a degree that it has become the envy of tyrants and dictators the world over. We might have expected that from a regime that has proven it will do whatever it takes to stay in power. What we never expected was to see Google, the company whose guiding motto reads, 'Don't be evil,' helping in the effort."

-- Frida Ghitis, Miami Herald. Read the rest here.