abercrombie wrote on 30^th Apr, 2011 at 3:03pm:


I believe it's not too expensive in the city.  Because I live in the countryside with no telephone lines, I have to use a satellite connection.  It is extremely expensive, costing me 1,500,000 kip a month.

It's called high-speed satellite internet, but I don't know the exact speed.


Old Man

Yes, the internet censorship in China is childish.  I can understand blocking porn I guess, but all the other stuff is just plain retarded.  And in Shanghai, the city of the future, we have the slowest internet in the entire country.

If I move to Laos, which always seems to be pending, I won't need lightning fast internet, but I would like something better than dial-up that's reliable and unlimited.

I was just saying that if a government was going to block access to something, porn seems the least objectionable target.  Not saying one way or the other, other than that case is more easily understood than banning Facebook and Youtube and Wikipedia and Blogspot.  And the blockings are seemingly random at times.  Sometimes Youtube is fine, sometimes not.  Then a couple days of sketchy gmail and google.  Even my domain where I post the chapters to my upcoming Nobel winning book gets blocked once in a while.  If anyone's interested...  http://alrightlook.com/default/

But a VPN works around all the problems, but of course it makes a slow Shanghai connection even slower.

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I'd also like to know.

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As a matter of policy, the big information sites and social networking sites are the main ones being blocked.  And porn.  Then they will block CNN or BBC or whatever for a few days if what the censors view to be an incendiary China related story has been posted.  The random blockings I mentioned no one understands.  But this site won't have a problem.  Shanghaiexpat.com has really juicy anti-China postings at times, but since maybe only two or three Chinese people look at that site, it doesn't matter.  

[Edit:  I'm talking about foreign sites.  Once those are out of the way, they can concentrate more effort on controlling the domestic Chinese sites.  They know the rules, and are well aware that the plug can be pulled on any of them (or even arrests) if they engage in anything the big boys might not like.]

And the Chinese government employs thousands of people in their internet security department, which I don't think Laos is going to do.  China is huge with constant bubbling resentment and little uprisings, so they are forever hushing up and brushing under any coverage of these potential flashpoints to prevent them from spreading.

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Long story short, visa issues.  But my employer (the cause of the visa issues) always manages to shove enough money-stuffed red envelopes into whoever's pockets so nothing happens.  I could get another job, but I like my job.  But I need a plan B for when the rug finally gets pulled.  

Everyone online says nothing but good things about the Lao people.  That can certainly NOT be said about China.  And I can live in Vientiane for half the cost of where I am now.  Seems a good place to work on my writing.  If publishers laugh my stories out of their offices and my savings finally run dry, I guess I'll go back to teaching again.  Not the end of the world.  While I'd rather be writing, I am a pretty decent teacher, and the kids think I'm cool.  

Laos don't censors internet. China, Thailand, Vietnam, North Korea do.

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Old Man, who upset you? Wow. I for one like the Lao government a whole lot more than the Thai government. Not only is what happened in Thailand unlikely to happen in Laos, but most of my in-laws were (or are) in the military.

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What? Me Nervous?     To tell the truth, exceedingly so. There are so many things we have to do before we go. Keo thought we had one more week to get ready (than we actually had) so now she is about as nervous as I.

We depart from Columbus International (Ohio) one week from tomorrow. Nervous as I am, I have never been happier, nor more in love. Take care, see you soon.