TikTok China Trouble

The Great TikTok Tizwas: Banishing Byte-Sized Videos

6 min read

Remember that plastic charm bracelet fad? Every kid wanted one of those overly priced rainbow looms, which they used to weave plastic rubber bands into constructs, shaping almost anything. I saw teddy bears that looked inbred, as well as Winnie the Pooh, puppy dogs and Mickey Mouse, more often than not, they had the same intrafamilial qualities. My kids would've stabbed me in my sleep if I got rid of their creations! Well, the latest homogenous trend, TikTok, is facing banishment. Most of this blog, is based on my opinion, informed only by biased news channels, but I will say, it's so unfair for TikTok users; because they're forced to consider what could happen to their content, followers and income. I think the US Government clearly want the app to make line dancing videos and we Brits want it because we have bugger all else. It seems they put some news out to test the waters, see who'll kick-off first, this really is preparing everyone. Harbingers of change. It makes me think, why the sudden urge to slap the app? 

Trying to Make Sense of it... 

In the rumor mill, doubt is always churning out theories creamier than the milk of our finest British cows. Farmer's would say this TikTok ordeal is a power grab, a bit like how number ten try to get their greedy fingers on their land! Apologies, I'll stop with the farmyard lingo. Think about the alarmist reasoning; highpointing threat of user data is merely an excuse for action, a ruse and it is a sign of bad faith with the East. Indeed, we should be ramping up better trade relations, trust and healthier interractions. Let's face it, Western trade coming in from China is colossal, massive and of course, you have to ask yourself; couldn't they have easily attacked or breached the West many times in our history of trade? Have they? Yes, the chinese government has hired hackers to watch the US Government. 

Oh, uh, okay, they aren't simply playing politics here? Banning the much used app to frustrate China? Is this cutting off your nose to spite your own face? It seems dramatic, politically loaded and irrational, doesn't it if we can avoid economic loss and keep the app? The US intelligence can monitor TikTok, counter-intelligence brings more jobs, reducing unemployment! Let's get more people doing these internet security jobs, easy. Let's be honest, as I said before, banishing TikTok plops a turd into the 'good relations' cake mix. Millions of users worldwide would be left longing for their daily dose of narcissism and street fights! Remember a couple of years ago, that massive data leak from a Shanghai? It exposed the personal details of nearly a billion people? 

So, What's the Real Deal?

The truth, as always, in a political sense, is likely a complex web of diverse considerations, democratic concensus and sometimes quite stupid outcomes. That's social media. It is achievable to address these security fears without resorting to a full-on ban. However, xenophobic concerns surrounding cross cultural pollination and influence have been identified, and cetainly factor into this decision to ban TikTok. Does such rhetoric detract from a hacker threat? 

Will The US Government Be Solution Focused? Is Diplomacy on the Cards? 

Balancing national security and user privacy is what most people want and it seems quite possible to increase scrutiny: imagine TikTok being regulated under stricter regulations—solved? Yeah. Non biased, audits and data security measures can solve national security concerns. This means the US Government and technology expertise should increase their collaborative efforts. It is absolutely essential to find a solution. A complete ban does come across like a quick fix, but all quick fixes tend to be more costly, if you dont fix the issue properly.

What are your thoughts? Am I totally wrong here? Are you happy to see TikTok gone? What if the US had someone make a TokTik knock off?