US Trade Rep criticises tech trade barriers in Oz, NZ

I'll take what you say seriously Mr USTR when the America Inc doesn't have to be dragged through the courts to pay for other peoples IP and you start allowing Aussie agricultural products into the US market.

Seriously, hypocritical arsehole or lying cocksucker (thank you Mojo Nixon) - you chose.

For want of a nail, the kingdom was lost, and now it seems for want of $25NZ a time, the financially near-destitute content oligarchies are prevented from chasing down the evil K1W1 pirate hoards? What a heartbreaking tale of woe!

politicians

Unfortunately, this is exactly the kind of nonsense that will get our nz politicians on there knees looking for the nearest US counterpart to kiss arse or worse.

Remember all politicians only care about what gets them the most ego points and maybe a vote in election year, they live for the instant and have little to no understanding of anything technical. Actually little to no understanding of anything at all beyond the very high level 'blue sky' board table thinking.

Practical, clear thinking, leave that to (quality) trades people. Get my picture with the US president, sure you can do anything you fancy. You will still respect me in the morning though, won't you?

There is just SO much wrong with this outburst it's hard to know where to begin!!!!

{it remains critical of foreign investment limits on the incumbent carrier, Telstra.}

Oh yeah, and how much foreign investment is permitted in U.S. companies. I'm thinking of airlines in particular here, but there are numerous others that can not be bought into or are severely curtailed as to percentage of foreign ownership.

{The offshore hosting debate in Australia centers on two concerns: that cloud providers in other jurisdictions may accept lesser privacy and security controls than would be required in Australia; and that the data may become subject to laws in other jurisdictions. The USTR says the notion that data may be “scrutinized by foreign governments” appears “based on misinterpretation of … the Patriot Act and regulatory requirements”.}

So the U.S. wants to control ALL data? Come on, if you think this is not a concern to Australia, how's about the U.S. complete their outsourcing of all their industries and putting a few cloud database server farms in other countries. Oh, you wouldn't? For security and privacy issues?

Dearie me, that is a concern, then. Oh, and misinterpretation of the Patriot's Act? No, just past experience of U.S. agencies wanting to gobble up all the information that it can force out of other countries. The day they brought in fingerprinting and photographing visitors was the day I swore I would never visit the U.S again, and I have lived and worked there (legitimately) in the past . I fail to see why if I have no criminal record I should be treated by a criminal, and to say that it's to stop terrorism, I ask the question. When did any of this techno babble ever foil a terrorist plot? They've either been found by on the ground intelligence or purely by accident.

I'm going to stop now before my blood pressure gets REALLY out of control, and yes, I know there's one or two generalisations in there, but the sheer hypocrisy of most things U.S. these days is unbelievable. Free trade? On yer bike, we've got to protect our manufacturers/producers from the dreaded Australian steel/beef & NZ sheep meat and no doubt there are other countries who have suffered at America's idea of "free trade".

Let the down-voting begin!

"I fail to see why if I have no criminal record I should be treated by a criminal"

Whoops. A Freudian slip maybe. Of course it should read "treated AS a criminal"

Oh, and the outburst to which I referred in the Title was of course the U.S. outburst, the subject of the article. Certainly not any of the exemplary comments of the preceding commentards.

Au contraire

"based on misinterpretation of … the Patriot Act and regulatory requirements”. Ah no. I think everone understands the patriot act perfectly ... You just wish they didn't.

And the USTR

can FUCK RIGHT OFF out of our two countries. The very things it is complaining about are the few things our governments are actually doing right! Shows just how the "land of the free" is full of it. The whole USA government can take it's corporate dictatorship shite and piss off, thank you very much.

I'm betting on the Southern Pacific vassals (otherwise known as NZ and Oz)

doing the right thing and heeding the complaints/orders of the USTR. It's only fair ; here in Sweden we do absolutely nothing to offend the sensibilities of that office - or, for that matter, of the MPAA or RIAA, in the event someone believes that a distinction exists....

Henri

Let's put it this way...

It's simple. If my eHealth records were to be stored off-shore in the US then I'd instantly withdraw from any Australian eHealth initiative.

I, like many, am fed up with American trade imperialism. These jackboot tactics are why the US is forever at war with one country or another. And the US has been at it for a damn long time too--at least 150 or so years and it still doesn't get the fact that others don't like these dictatorial tactics.

'Thick hide' is the understatement of all time.

Need a reminder? Then check Wiki's article on "Matthew C. Perry" and his gunboat diplomacy, also look at the photograph of the "Odaiba battery at the entrance of Tokyo, built in 1853-54 to prevent an American intrusion". Insular Japan had to protect itself with fortifications to repel the Americans--and this was about 7 or 8 years BEFORE the Civil War.

And the US is damn well still at it now!

No one dislikes Telstra more than me (read my many posts to that effect), but Australia being dictated to by American 'Trade and Industry' on how to fix the Telstra problem, is the last straw.

Fuck 'em!

Trouble is arse-licking Australian politicians have always been frightened to stand up to American imperialism. Not even worth a bet, everyone knows Oz'll eventually roll over and kowtow as usual.