Yes, this is common in user comments on several otherwise intellectually useful sites. It almost always takes the form of a reasonable take followed by a comparison to China and an insinuation that the US version may be worse. The commenters have the same playbook to work from because the Russians wrote it in the mid 20th century.
>"...followed by a comparison to China and an insinuation that the US version may be worse..."
I do not see insinuation that the US version is worse in this thread. What I see is people being concerned that we are on a dangerous path and building our own version mass surveillance, hence comparing it to China. Instead of shooting the messengers you'd better be concerned about where are we going.
>"The commenters have the same playbook to work from because the Russians wrote it in the mid 20th century"
Sure, I start my day by reading user guide written by Russians on how to fuck up the western world. Check under your bed btw. Maybe couple of them are hiding there.
Thank you - this is exactly what I was referring to. Reasonable take then moving into a comparison to China to bring China up to the same level as the US (or US down to the same level of China). Most individuals don't care or don't have the depth of knowledge to notice what is going on.
I've noticed a lot more recently - probably tied to the strong national spirit coming out of China these days.
