Huawei or the highway
If there’s even a hint of possible espionage maybe we should stop and look more closely
Recently, the NDP called for the Saskatchewan Party government to put a temporary halt to the proposed marriage between Sasktel and Chinese telecom giant Huawei Technologies. Canada is the latest to join a list of governments that also include Britain, Australia, and the United States who are asking Huawei, “Seriously, guys, wtf?” See, Huawei has come under a little bit of scrutiny lately because it is alleged that the Chinese government can remotely access any of its own telecom devices. George Orwell, eat your heart out.
There are a couple of problems inherent with suspecting a telecom company of having unrestricted remote access to your cellular devices, and that is that a telecom company has unrestricted remote access to your cellular devices. I really feel that I cannot stress this enough, because no one seems to be as upset about this as they should be. This is technology gone berserk. Big Brother literally is watching … and listening, and reading, and giggling at your awkward attempts at sexting.
Huawei has, on numerous occasions, called allegations that they are able to spy on their customers “ridiculous”. They’ve even offered the US Department of Securities to inspect every allegation levelled against them. That would be big talk for a company that was engaged in cyberspying of the highest order. But my inner madman is always reminding me that where there’s smoke, there’s fire. If being a telecom corporation meant you were subject to the average paranoid lunatic accusing you of spying on a semi-regular basis, I might just disregard this current round as so much psychotic rambling and feces-smearing nonsense; however, it seems that no Canadian telecom company has been legitimately accused of spying on its customers … well, ever.
If there’s even a hint that a partnership between Huawei and any Canadian telecom company could be compromised by Chinese state influence, then negotiations need to cease and desist. I can’t believe that supposedly elected bright-minded people of conscience can’t seem to move past this Mount Kilimanjaro of conflicts of interest.
Then again, the Conservatives haven’t disallowed Huawei from conducting business in Canada and the Saskatchewan Party is pushing and fighting awfully hard for a partnership with Sasktel. This isn’t good. Canada resembles a police state more and more closely with each passing omnibus bill and budgetary slash. What better way for the police state to instil and enforce fear into the masses than by keeping tabs on them using the tiny GPS devices that most of us carry at all times?
As I see it, there’s only one solution – it’s time to bust out the tinfoil hats and live off the grid. I’ll collect the beef jerky, alcohol, and enough gasoline to power a portable generator for one month. Other tasks will be assigned to those who decide to join me on this quest to disappear from the radar of “the man.” According to a Chinese proverb, every man is the architect of his own fortune. Should my fortune lie away from the watchful eyes of our elected dictators, then so be it.
Kyle Leitch
A&C Writer
