TikTik - National security or daylight robbery

TikTok signs deal to sell US unit to American investor-led venture

The deal would end years of efforts to force the app's Chinese parent ByteDance to divest its US business over national security concerns.

WASHINGTON: TikTok's Chinese owner, ByteDance, signed binding agreements with three major investors to sell just over 80 per cent of the company's US assets to American and global investors to avoid a US government ban, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew told employees on Thursday (Dec 18).

The deal is a major step toward resolving years of uncertainty about the short video app's future in the United States since August 2020, when then President Donald Trump first tried unsuccessfully to ban the app that is now used regularly by more than 170 million Americans....

The deal, set to close on Jan 22, would end years of efforts to force the app's Chinese parent ByteDance to divest its US business over national security concerns.

The US joint venture will be 50 per cent held by a consortium of new investors, including Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX with 15 per cent each, 30.1 per cent held by affiliates of certain existing investors of ByteDance, and 19.9 per cent will be retained by ByteDance, the memo said.  REUTER

We lie, we cheat, we steal and we kill. This is the way the American terrorists behave. Very responsible behaviour that all countries should learn and follow. Using an easily available app for small businesses, pleasure and fun is a national security threat to America, the number one Empire in the world. Is TikTok selling nuclear weapons or WMD, drugs, poison or any prohibited or banned stuff? How can anyone believe in this fabricated lie coming from the thugs and gangsters in Washington?

This is outright robbery, like pointing a gun at TikTok, to sell or else. This is a loser country, unable to create an equally useful and popular app and resorting to stealing. Yes, the Americans are stealing Chinese app, Chinese technology. When you cannot win, cannot make it, lie, cheat and steal it.

This is what is happening to TikTok and what is happening to a failing Empire that is running out of ideas. When are they going to ban DeepSeek? They have already banned all Chinese EVs in America, national security. When the American rogues have to resort to such low down tactics, it speaks a lot about where they are heading.

Trump suing BBC for a gold peanut

Nothing more revealing than White against white now. Trump is suing the BBC for US$10 billion over its lies about the January 6 event. The BBC thinks it can get away with just blatant lying and distortion of facts. The BBC had gotten away with murder against all others for decades. Yep, let them fight and expose all the dirty skeletons in the cupboard, hopefully.

This is like the National Kidney Foundation case, with T. T. Durai thinking that power and connections can silence those who exposed his excesses. He was to go up against an entity with much deeper pockets than he could threaten. Durai also lied about NKF's reserves of more than $260 million then, claiming that the NKF's coffer would not last for three more years without donations. Moreover, during the trial it was also disclosed that only 10 cents out of every dollar donated went to benefit patients, with the rest funding the excesses of the man at the top with gold plated taps in his office and first-class air travel. To add to all his miserable lies was the inflated patients list which was very much lower than reported.

Durai did not foresee that SPH has deeper pockets and connections to bring him down, unlike others that had to succumb to his threats and suffering consequences for exposing the truth. Durai was banking on support from Peanut Woman and her powerful backers but got thrown under the bus. Was that karma?

Now, we await the Trump versus BBC trial, but on hindsight might not happen if an out of court settlement should be the result. Trump will reap a massive windfall, while the world would still be swallowing BBC lies, misinformation and disinformation. How much was BBC paid by the USA propaganda machine is anybody's guess. In any case, it is just a family quarrel, folks.


Anonymous

Trump and NATO running in circles...for unending wars

Trump is still gloating that the peace deal between Russia and Ukraine is 'closer than ever before'. All we have been hearing from Trump about everything is 'close, closer and closest', yet nothing ever comes even 'close'. Tomorrow he may even say that the 'peace deal' has overshoot the timeframe and already a done deal when it is still hanging in the air.

The USA and NATO do not have any wish to end the war. They think that Russia will collapse just like the Soviet Union in the past if they carry on the show. The USA's economic situation today is not the same as in the past against the Soviet Union, when it was overwhelming the Soviets in economic power. NATO Europe's economic situation is also just as dire, desperately flogging a Ukraine dead horse, committing economic suicide by ditching cheap Russian energy and buying highly expensive energy from the USA and other sources. The irony is that the EU is still even buying Russian oil under the table, a situation so ironic that it really boggles the mind.

Wasn't the Russia/Ukraine war supposed to be able to be ended within 24 hours of Trump taking office. What happened? It is almost a year of boastful conning, and the parties involved are not even close to the finishing line. Of course not, when there are so many issues under disagreement, the concessions to be sorted out, the peacekeeping issue, the demands of both sides. Most telling of all, having Trump and NATO countries stirring the shithole and making the shit smell ever smellier is not going anywhere.


Anonymous

Desperate Empire of Lies turning to piracy and war, their primitive behaviours

When all else failed, Trump is resorting to piracy, using mafia tactics of extortion, trying to use the 'trojan horse' trick, raising port charges against Chinese ships and forming alliances here and there with allies, sycophants and cronies. The latest new stunt by the clowns in the circus is creating rare earth alliances to counter China. This is the last phase of a total collapse, a situation that many see as exceptionally rapid and unseen before when empires disappear.

Now, how many tricks have the Anglo-Saxo Whites tried to bring China down over the centuries, without being able to succeed. China still retained its five thousand years of civilization unchanged in structure, keeping its culture, language and heritage rock-solid and untarnished, without having to adopt the White's democratic immoral, decaying lifestyle and behavior.

Chinese people still enjoy a lifestyle that could be said to be as equitable or even better than the majority of USA citizens living in an 'oligarchy' masquerading as a so-called 'democracy' and being able to choose their leaders. Despite the fact that the Chinese have a lower per-capita income compared to the USA, higher per capita income does not translate into a better life for most USA citizens. Everything is multiple times more expensive in the USA than in China, and it makes little sense comparing per capital GDP. knowing that China has a population that is almost five times that of the USA.

Many other so-called sovereign states that have been ruled by the Whites before, have lost their identity, most being forced to adopt the White religion and mindset, arm-twisted to allow the USA to site bases in their country and buying USA weapons and now worshipping the Whites and still kissing their arsehole. Didn't Trump even boasted arrogantly that all countries will have to go to Washington to kiss his arsehole in the face of his tariffs?

Trump is now even forcing these USA crony states to foot a bigger bill for maintaining USA bases in their country to 'protect' them from an imaginary enemy. To make that more justifiable, the USA is hyping up the threat of Russia and China having expansionist ambitions.


Anonymous

Singaporeans should work overseas and let foreigners work here

Too much home comfort? Singapore needs more citizens to work abroad and gain international exposure

There are many advantages of staying grounded in Singapore, especially as working overseas may not necessarily pay better, but experts say that the advantages of gaining international work experience will pay off handsomely in the long run.  Taufiq Zalizan CNA

"The problem for Singaporeans … is that there's simply no economic reason to work overseas, especially in the region," said the associate professor at the Singapore University of Social Sciences (SUSS).

Jobs here pay better than their equivalents in neighbouring countries and even in some developed countries after accounting for expenses and taxes, labour and manpower experts noted. Thus, it is hardly attractive for Singaporeans to leave the comfort of their homes and families to work abroad....

The above is from an article by a foreigner or new citizen encouraging Singaporeans to leave their better paying jobs in Singapore, uproot from their families, to work overseas for lesser pay but to gain experience. The reasoning to some point is sound, but with a big hole that smells foul.

Not only it is difficult to get a good job overseas. Today, many countries are paying lesser than jobs in Singapore, and overseas jobs are not easy to come by. The biggest flaw about gaining foreign experience as an advantage is meaningless when many Singapore companies, big and small, are nothing different from chicken rice stalls, selling goods and services that are local in nature that do not compete with foreign companies, and their customers are Singaporeans, and with little chance of operating in an international environment. Even if one or two go overseas, they hardly need the foreign experience when the advantage is being a Singapore product.

This is the big bull in this argument about gaining foreign experience. It may be useful to some top jobs, but most of the time it is something good to have but not essential. More than 90% of jobs, including top jobs do not need overseas experience. Overseas experience gained for lower and middle management jobs are nothing to crow about.

The displacement and dislocation costs are prohibitive and a very high price to pay for Singaporeans working overseas. There is no guarantee that they can get a comparable job on their return. 

The biggest advantage for this kind of thinking is that more foreigners can come in to replace Singaporeans in good jobs with better pay. It would lead to the hollowing out of out talents and be replaced by foreigners. This is an existential threat to Singapore, when talented Singaporeans work overseas and foreigners come in to replace them. It is a deadly blood transfusion, supposedly good but really bad for Singapore. Singapore is home to Singaporeans not to foreigners.

Chicken rice sellers don't need overseas experience. Period. All govt and ministry jobs do not need overseas experience. Most GLCs don't need overseas experience. Even the CEOs of local banks do not need overseas experience. It is only something good to have. Tell me, which job must have overseas experience, that overseas experience is essential, a must have? Stop being fooled into selling out Singaporeans and allowing foreigners to take over Singapore. The days when overseas jobs are better paying and worthy of the experience and the sacrifices of dislocation and working away from home is over. A Singaporean working overseas would have a tough time readjusting and adapting on returning to Singapore, and often becomes poorer financially and in many other aspects. The cost of housing and cars would kill the thought of returning to Singapore. The cost of living here would make returning to Singapore very difficult, except for a few top jobs that pays enough to return.

Only foreigners would encourage Singaporeans to work overseas so that they can take over their jobs and their country, Singapore. Anyone promoting or telling Singaporeans to work overseas, ask who are they, are they Singaporeans, what are their motive and intention.