Foxconn: Apple supplier in China roughs up reporter

I hate to tell you this but things aren't much different in the USA. Last year I was passing through Kingsport, Tennessee, and as I shot some iPhone pix from outside the sprawling Eastman Chemical facility located in the middle of the city along I-26. Security saw me and basically surrounded me, freaked out as if I were some kind of terrorist. They indicated that they have even picked-up people on the highway as well... just for shooting a plainly visible site from public land.

China, we expect it from. But it's disgusting how far the fascists will go, right here on U.S. soil. What'll they do next, pass a law to tap our phone and electronic communications with no valid cause? Oh... never mind.

As an American living in China I can tell you that it's not a great idea to be snapping pictures indiscriminately at any commercial facility. Shortly after I arrived in China I tried taking pictures inside of a McDonald's and was damn near shoved out the door. Walking up to a secure compound/corporate facility and taking pictures is asking for trouble. Private security has plenty if not more authority than the local Public Security Bureau (police) if only because they're backed by huge corporations that don't want to be bothered. These companies contribute huge revenues to the government via the "Special Economic Zones" in which they operate and do have a "special status." There is no such thing as freedom of the press here and you're an idiot if you think being in the street makes your actions okay. Learn the lay of the (local) land before you stick your nose into matters you don't understand or think you're going to expose some huge secret. You'd do the same thing in the US.

I've watched private security take matters into their own hands and it's not pretty. This is true for foreigners and locals alike. This is not an unsafe country to live in, but you do follow the rules, written or otherwise.

Just another perfect example of why I am tired of people in North America complaining about the prices of electronics and tired of everything being made overseas. Stop bitching about the price of the iPad people. If they doubled the price and made it in Canada or the US, I would still buy one.

China was a Communist country. It's now a Fascist regime. This even should surprise nobody. Apple should buy some of the Many abandoned factories in America and make all of their products here. And don't lie to me about their prices soaring. It would raise the manufacturing cost by maybe five percent. Apple has billions on hand. ABANDON CHINA!

China is not a democratic country, and is a leader in civil right abuse.

Everything (Almost) electronic is manufactured in China, usually by a small group of manufacturers, who funnel big money and business into the chinese economy and will be well protected by the Government as they have a shared interest.

Corporate america manufacturing in china know very well that they are fueling the chinese economy and are forced to do so in order to remain competitive.

There are so many complex issues involved (tariffs, subsidies, trade, etc...) that no one specific company is to blame but rather market forces and government policies that dictate where and how american business will be directed and conducted.

On top of that these are not short term policies but rather long term, and are probably part of an economic strategy relying on mutual benefits to all parties. You see, someone somewhere decided that we're moving forward from manufacturing and industry into research and technology. There is little doubt that the future lies in the ability to invent and innovate. If China decides to grow on the backs of its people, that is a chinese problem. Tomorrow it will be somewhere else.

As we become more sophisticated, support mechanisms have to be delegated so we can focus on keeping a competitive edge. Serving as a global watchdog is a limited role that will have a diminished effect the more powerful countries grow economically.

So rather than blaming individual companies for a breadth of issues that are really beyond their control, we should focus on making sure they provide us with what we need and less of what they want us to need.

and no other company tries to do that better than Apple.

This happened in China?! No way.. I'm totally shocked! Oh, pardon me while I wipe up the puddle of sarcasm at my feet.

Haven't been in China for 4 years or so but I would never insist to a Chinese security guard (or policeman, etc.) that I was in my rights to take a picture. Getting mad at people for taking pictures of perfectly innocent things is virtually a Chinese tradition.

Headline: Reporter In China Seeks Trouble, Finds It

The point being that, no, Apple did not use force or bully people here, FoxConn did. However, Apple is complacent in it (as are all other FoxConn business partners) as they choose to continue to do business with them. We as consumers vote with our wallet. As too must corporations choose what they believe to be right by whom they do business with. Yes, they may be the only game in town for the particular type of technological crack we all love, but there comes a point where enough is enough and we must unhook ourselves from the complacent attitude of "oh well, that's just the way things are" or "I don't like how they treat people or violate their rights, too bad no one else makes that for cheap." Stop for a minute and picture yourself working there. You could argue that without that business their lives may be far worse, but that doesn't make it right.

I will buy the first smartphone that's manufactured in the United States by workers who are paid a living wage with health benefits. It will cost a lot more, but it'll be worth it.

Until that option exists, though, virtually every electronic gizmo you can find is most likely made somewhere like Foxconn (or worse). Consumers who insist on rock-bottom prices for the latest technology are keeping this system alive.