Chinese, North American Legal Systems

The Zero Hedge blog has a brief article written by "Static Chaos" on the eight year jail sentence given to an American geologist convicted of industrial spying, clandestinely buying a database of Chinese oil resource information.  He complained of torture.  Some of the links provided in the article are reproduced below.

Americans are dismayed over what they perceive as an outrageous abuse of law.  They conveniently forget how they treat industrial espionage.  For instance they sentenced this 74 year old Chinese spy to 15 years after he was convicted of stealing classified information from Boeing.

There is an easy way for China to shortcut the whole procedure.  They could set up military detention centres for terrorists in other countries, where neither Chinese law nor the law of the host country, nor military codes of conduct apply. Then they can snatch people off the streets anywhere in the world as long as they believe them to be terrorists, or have ties to terrorists.  These suspected terrorists can then be held indefinitely with no need to be charged with anything, and torture is OK, probably even condoned and encouraged at the highest levels.  In that way China could bring its judicial system up to the American high standard. 

It should be pointed out that in America you can be detained and harassed for taking photos of industrial sites or important landmarks, anything that could be a target of terrorists.  Here's one recent example.  And people no doubt are now familiar with the new rule barring journalists from getting within 65 feet of any oil booms in the Gulf of Mexico.

China continues to be criticized for its brutal treatment of students at Tiananmin Square in 1989 as well as other repressive treatment of citizens.  Americans levelling such criticism should remember the Kent State shootings in 1970.

Canadians should demand an independent inquiry into police action/inaction in the recent G20 "Fake Lake" summit in Toronto, especially what role, if any, agent provacateurs may have played.  Many journalists have complained of arbitrary arrest and excessive, brutal treatment from the police.  One citizen who received some prominence was Tommy Taylor.  Everyone should read his detailed account of the events leading up to his arrest, police conduct throughout, and detention conditions.  There are many similar, shorter accounts written by journalists.

The North American and Chinese legal systems aren't as different as many people think.

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And what's with the kid on the ground.  No real critic of the corporate globalization movement would own anything made by Nike, and certainly would not be wearing Nike runners at a protest rally.