Google in China

I guess this wouldn't bite so badly if Google's motto were 'Be Extremely Evil', or 'Eat Small Children'. But for a company that espouses 'Don't Be Evil', it's the hypocrisy that stands out more than anything.

I mean, it's not like we don't already know that major corporations make what we might call moral compromises in order to operate in various nations whose democratic norms aren't what those of us who live in democracies might prefer. And I don't think Google is the worst company, nor China the worst nation, in this regard. I mean, there are oil companies operating today in African nations who happily pay millions into the coffers of politicians they know are corrupt, and will siphon those millions from the needy who don't even have enough to eat. And there are bribes galore to be paid in all kinds of poor nations. In some cases it might even be excusable -- how do you weigh up the moral weight of a few thousands paid in bribes, against the several hundred jobs created for needy workers? No bribe, no jobs, and the unemployed workers won't thank a principled company for refusing to pay, thus keeping them unemployed.

It's a good thing that big western companies invest in nations like China. Such investment has led to an economic boom in China that has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, and godwilling will lift hundreds of millions more in the years ahead. And it's tough for big companies like Google to stay out of China, because the Chinese market is so massive, and it's entirely likely that avoiding China could place Google at a huge competitive disadvantage in the future. It's easy to see where the pressure comes from, and why Google made the decision that they did.

But none of that obligates those of us who value democracy and free speech to like it. Nor should it absolve Google from the current storm of criticism. Google's entire brand image is about free speech. Freedom of information. Do what you like, find what you like, read what you like. Don't Be Evil. By agreeing to do the Chinese censors' dirty jobs for them, they've essentially compromised that image. You can't be for free speech, and against it. You can't pretend that you're more than just another uncaring corporate monolith, and then act like the worst of them. Or rather you can... it's a free world -- outside of nations like China, anyhow. But you can't do it, and expect people not to notice, and be displeased.