Why d'you do it, scorpion? (day 137)

No real change in bacterial life today.  I am still on the hunt for pH testing strips so I can reassure myself of the Kombucha tea progress.  I (foolishly?) thought it would be easy to find these testing strips at, say, a wine making store.  Not so.  I think the internet will have to come to the rescue this time.  An initial search reveals the shipping is as expensive as the product...incentive to buy more.

The most interesting thing I heard about today is Google's sudden reversal of policy regarding search result censorship in China.   Some will remember that a few years ago Google's reputation ('don't be evil' motto) took a significant hit when they moved into China and voluntarily censored search results as a condition of doing business.  It was a stunning and calculated move on their part.  The rhetoric was that of constructive engagement.   Over time people forgot.  The release of Android and the continued popularity of Google Apps helped.

In a maneuver reminiscent of the story of the frog and the scorpion, Google was recently the target of an attack on their servers coming from China.  The stinger was that the attackers seemed to be targeting email accounts of suspected so-called Chinese dissidents.   Surprisingly, Google's response was to publicly announce that they will no longer censor search results in China.   They further qualify the response by acknowledging that this may mean the end of their business in the country.   This goes a long way to redeem their initial reputation hit.  Part of me wonders though if it's only one move in a significantly longer conversation with Chinese officials.   I do appreciate the candor of the post - a rare display of ethical values by a company.

A song for this post.