China has implemented a social credit system. When China refers to its social credit system it refers to either its financial credit system like the United States and its three credit reporting agencies or the other system is a lot more in-depth and convoluted. The latter involves almost everything that a person or company is involved in. [1]
A social credit system frightens many in the West. MERICS analyst Vincent Brussee argues that a social credit system conjures images “re-education, beginning of slavery, complete control and disappearance of all freedoms.” He states the West should be worried about other more invasive surveillance methods. [2]
Even though there are other surveillance methods that exist, which might be worse, it doesn’t mean a social credit system should be ignored. Quite simply Social Credits give the government too much power about how the US Constitution is interpreted. [3] For instance, in Rongcheng, a small city in China, implementing social credits, the city gave citizens 1,000 starting credits. They deducted 50 for “spreading harmful information on WeChat, forums, and blogs” [1]
That social credit system there has since been modified. However it wasn’t that long ago many scientists in the United States were banned on social media and shunned by the scientific community for “misinformation” suggesting that COVID-19 originated from the Wuhan Institute in China and not from food being sold at a seafood market. [4] If the United States had been based on a system with social credits the ramifications of those outspoken patriots could at the very least bankrupt them possibly causing them to go to prison for having a healthy discussion about the origins of COVID-19.
China isn’t known for its freedoms; furthermore how would the general population in the United States have knowledge of the inner workings of China’s social credit system? The United States shouldn’t model our government from a Communist Regime.
For merely those living in a social credit system would be dependent on their government to protect their inalienable rights, i.e. to redress their grievances against the governments speaking out about controversial topics. It would be up to the government to decide if a patriot went too far with freedoms now taken for granted. According to the Heritage Foundation America is sleepwalking into a social credit system. They give several examples of how in the article found in the bibliography. [5]
There is a solution. Along with self-governance and resistance to Big Tech, a Convention of States could help prevent the United States from implementing a social credit system in a few ways not the least of which is by making a Constitutional Amendment banning the Federal government from making laws and regulations overreaching Big Tech’s creep into the lives of the American Citizens. Sign the PETITION today!!!
BIBLIOGRAPHY
[1] “China just announced a new social credit law. Here’s what it means.” MIT Technology Review Https://www.technologyreview.com/ 2022 Feb 22 Web. 2024 Sep 19 <[1]>
[2] “China’s social credit score – untangling myth from reality” MERICS Https://merics.org 2022 Feb 11 Web. 2024 Sep 19 <[2]>
[3] “Constitution of the United States - First Amendment” Constitution Annotated Https://constitution.congress.gov 2024 Web. 2024 Sep 19 <[3]>
[4] “COVID-19 To the Bat Cave: In Search of Covid’s Origins, Scientists Reignite Polarizing Debate on Wuhan ‘Lab Leak’” California Healthline Https://californiahealthline.org 2021 May 19 Web. 2024 Sep 19 <[4]>
[5] “Sleepwalking Into a China-Style Social Credit System” The Heritage Foundation Https://www.heritage.org 2022 Mar 4 Web. 2024 Sep 19 <[5]>
