RSSGoogle advises shareholders again to vote down anti-censorship proposal
By Scott M. Fulton, III | Published March 26, 2008, 1:17 PM
For the second straight year, the search giant is silently opposing a proposal to shareholders that would prohibit it from housing personally identifiable data in countries whose human rights policies could be detrimental to its customers.
It's a publicly known, if not well known, fact that part of New York City's many pension funds are invested in the stock market. Among the city's teachers, firefighters, police, and administrative employees, their pool of ownership of Google stock alone now totals nearly $383.3 million, according to the city's comptroller-general, William C. Thompson, Jr. So it seems only fair that those employees should have a respectable voice with regard to the policies of the companies in which they invest.
It's the comptroller-general who represents those employees' interests; and over the last few years, an issue that has been close to Thompson's heart has been whether Google and Yahoo -- in which the City holds a $76 million stake -- succumb to censorship laws in the foreign countries where their servers are housed. Thompson wants the search leaders to stop housing personally identifiable data for any of its customers, in countries where that data may be susceptible to censorship or government influence.
To that end, the City advanced once again shareholder petitions to be considered by both companies. Last year, on their companies' advice, shareholders of Google, and later shareholders of Yahoo rejected those petitions; and yesterday, in its proxy materials for shareholders' consideration, it asked them to reject the repeat, once again without explanation.
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| New York City Comptroller-General William G. Thompson, Jr. |
The Google petition also repeats the list of countries where Google has distributed its operations, whose human rights and freedom of speech policies are under suspicion: Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
Comptroller Thompson's office had no further statement this morning, though it referred BetaNews to his comments from last January 31: "American technology companies doing business with countries who wish to censor basic rights need to establish standards and policies ensuring that universal freedoms are protected. Both Yahoo and Google are companies based on the fundamentals of user trust. By allowing these countries to censor the information the users receive, that trust is broken."
The petition news comes on the day that it was learned that Google disclosed with the Securities and Exchange Commission it had invested $1 million in China-based social network tools provider Comsenz, a company launched by original Google VC backer Michael Moritz.
Even further, NYC should include US of A in that notorious list.
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|Wow.
Ya know, there are plenty of other countries in which to live, my friend.
I love all these folks who seem to *hate* the US, and yet, for some reason, still live here.
It is possible, you know, to love your country *and* fight for change.
Ya know...instead of just whining on endlessly about it.
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|They don't hate the US but a system which your dinosaur opinions represent. It is the same narrow minded argument those fools use to accuse citizens of being un-american when they don't agree with the administration (as if it would be a bad thing some have to add, of course)
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|*yawn*
I have yet to see any post where the OP presents a possible solution in keeping with the values this Country was based on.
I accused him of nothing.
They don't hate the US but a system which your dinosaur opinions represent.
Putting words in my mouth? Care to show us a few of those "dinosaur opinions" you seem to think I have?
If anything I suggested a means to disagree with the government *and* be patriotic.
...not that I'm surprised you wouldn't see it that way.
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|Yes, it's not advisable to surprise alpha males. Too much chest-thumping for my liking.
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|...and you backing up anything you post with such things as facts instead of the usual rhetoric would indeed be surprising.
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|If you need examples just find your own posts. I am wasting too much time on this site already.
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|Translated: You've got nothing.
Well, you're definitely wasting time. No argument there.
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|"have an obligation to comply with the principles of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights," and Nations don't have that obligation?
if Nations don't have that obligation and is optional, then companies don't have that obligation either.
Companies are working under the law, if the law have problems with the UN, then is an issue that has to be treated between the UN and that Nation.
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|Governments tend to have soldiers who carry guns.
If you are in a country it is a good idea obey that
country's laws.
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|"Technology companies in the United States such as Google, that operate in countries controlled by authoritarian governments..."
...we are still living in denial, aren't we..?
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|When *was* the last time you or someone you know was thrown in jail, tortured or killed for speaking out against the government?
Right.
Your point?
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|Last time I read the news.
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|Likewise the question is, when *was* the last time you or someone you know from Belarus, Burma, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, or Vietnam was thrown in jail, tortured or killed for speaking out against the government?
Right.
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|How about for plain old gambling or simulated kiddie porn...
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|I don't live in any of those places. Why don't you ask someone who does.
Nice try.
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|lmao...
Right.
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|Not completely related. Those have more to do with ancillary dangers, not freedom of speech.
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|Alexander Litvinenko
Viktor Yushchenko
more ??
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|Sorry, I meant *our* government (The US) which is what I assume the OP was implying by his quote which specifically *named* the US.
Viktor is Ukraine, and Alexander is Russian.
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|Im sure a certain person on a grassy knoll could tell you.
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|"Alexander is Russian."
Was Russian.
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|Just bound and determined to miss the point completely, are we?
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|Just pointing out the facts.
They are relevant to the topic in question, I might add. You need to get laid because your comments are becoming more patronising day by day. I much prefer the tool of old where you made yourself appear more knowledgeable by sticking to the point and the facts rather than belittling whomever you are replying to.
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|OP:
"Technology companies in the United States such as Google, that operate in countries controlled by authoritarian governments..."
...we are still living in denial, aren't we..?
My reply:
When *was* the last time you or someone you know was thrown in jail, tortured or killed for speaking out against the government?
Right.
Your point?
Where was I belittling or off-topic? I was making a point regarding the validity of his implication.
You are the one who decided to take this post out of the OP's context. Your problem, not mine.
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|Thompson needs to campaign his elected officials to apply the pressure he seems to think is Google and Yahoo's jobs.
Perhaps he also needs to discover the difference between politics and business. The *last* thing we need is business deciding politics (DMCA, anyone?)
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