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China moves to implement a ‘social credit’ system that will punish people for spreading misinformation about terrorism and committing the horrid act of smoking on a public transport. Those with bad credit will be restricted from using buses and planes, for up to  year, while suppliers are given access to the social credit of their customers, as to know who is ‘trustworthy’ or not.

 

These punishments are not limited to the prior mentioned offenders, but to all those who have committed misdeeds. Those who cause disturbances on flights or buses, or try to sneak in with an expired ticket, or commit other financial wrongdoings, will be affected by this social currency, according to a statement issued in National Development, and Reform Commission’s website. The issue, which was dated March 2, stated the rules will be put into effect May 1 of this year.

 

The notices were signed by eight separate ministries, including the People’s Supreme Court, and the country’s aviation regulator. An excerpt from one of the notices states that this move is directly in line with President Xi Jingping’s plan to implement a social credit system based on the principle of “once untrustworthy, always untrustworthy.” This has been a long time coming, as the Supreme People’s Court said during a press conference in 2017, that 6.15 million chinese citizens have already been banned from using transport over ‘social misdeeds.’ Many chinese citizens are afraid because they never know why or for what they are being punished, creating a kind of paranoiac, nightmarish atmosphere and mindset for some people.

 

Many are afraid that this new type of social control could make its way into US cities, while propagandizing and manipulating the population of China. Besides the obvious law offenses which are recorded and would directly affect your social score, who gets to choose who is punished, how, and for what smaller offences, that usually go unnoticed or unpunished? If the government won’t be transparent as to who is punished and what for, specifically, who’s to stop them from punishing someone for a simple opinion? After all, those spreading misinformation get the punishment, even if the perpetrator is ignorant; but who is to define misinformation, and who is to differentiate a ‘dangerous’ opinion, and misinformation? The government gets to decide, and while 84% of the Chinese trust their government, the government, clearly, doesn’t trust its people; as it already censors the internet heavily, and incoming information, as to control what information they are exposed to.

 

After all, China’s governing Communist Party is attempting to remove a clause in the constitution which prevented the President from leading more than two five-year terms, as to keep President Xi Jinping in power. This move sent the website monitors into overdrive, as they sought to censor opposing opinions during the ignited, online debate. According to censorship-monitoring websites like China Digital Times, the following words and phrases were and are being censored:

 

 

  • I don’t agree
  • Migration
  • Emigration
  • Re-election
  • Election Term
  • Constitution rules
  • Proclaiming oneself an emperor
  • Winnie the Pooh

 

 

They caught us. They saw right through our Winnie the Pooh ploy.

 

But in all seriousness, forgetting about Winnie the Pooh, many speculate this could be a step towards President Xi becoming the permanent President, or an Emperor, of a sorts.

 

Ultimately, this cannot be implemented in the West. Imagine if the mainstream media controlled what you could see; the one-sided complete and utter propaganda. That’s what it would be like, having a government who controls what you’re allowed to view and write.