I don’t want to suggest that his sexual preferences (or is it God’s greatest gift to him, as the motherfucker once said?) have anything to do with his business practices, and I don’t know which orifice is his favorite, but I believe he needs to be anally fucked by a bunch of big-dicked individuals. He deserves it.

A couple of days ago, every news outlet reported that … Tim Cook reportedly signed five-year $275bn deal with Chinese officials:

The five-year agreement was made when Cook paid visits to China in 2016 to quash a host of regulatory action against the company, the report said, citing interviews and internal Apple documents.

This deal includes …

… Chinese officials promising Apple would do its part to develop China’s economy and technological prowess through investments, business deals and worker training.

If this isn’t mind-boggling, I don’t know what it is!

This is not “business as usual.” This is not “just making money.” To understand what $275bn means, let’s compare it o the most recent GDP of a few countries: Colombia $271bn, Vietnam $271bn, Finland $270bn, Pakistan $264bn, Chile $253bn, Romania $249bn, Czech Republic $245bn, Portugal $231bn, New Zealand $211bn.

Ars Technica notes that “China represents 19 percent of Apple’s total sales.” Let’s examine some of the readers’ comments.

• Good old Tim Cook, sending more technology and investment into the “enemy”.

• I think the only part of this deal that bugs me was that it was secret from the majority of the world. Both countries agreed to it but never mentioned when obvious conflicts that should have arisen were negated by this deal.

And $275 billion is a looooot of money to pay a foreign country to keep your business model alive.

• He has no choice, who else will make the iphone… americans? Lol… no that’s not good for the shareholders.

• I’m part Asian and I don’t understand what you’re trying to say. All our base belong to Tim Cook?

• The Chinese market is the largest market for Apple. It’s also the country where the vast majority of the manufacturing of its product is done. In what world would a place like this be an enemy?

• ALL real growth for pretty much any segment of the economy is occurring in Asia, 50% of global GDP will be concentrated in Asia by 2040. Apple knows where the future is, it’s in China, India, the rest of South/South East Asia.

• The Asia Pacific region is 40 countries making up 60% of the world population.

While China is the biggest one – there are other powerful countries such as Japan, India, Korea, Australia, Indonesia, etc.

About 70% of the region’s GDP is outside of China.

• Good to see that Apple’s interests and America’s national interests are one and the same. 🙄

This is classic American capitalist shortsightedness and the inability to look past the next quarter. A big part of this deal seems to be technology transfer and skills training to help the Chinese out-Apple Apple at building electronic widgets.

• How is it shortsightedness? The CEO of a company made a 5-year deal to secure business in its largest market and the largest manufacturing source for the company he manages. That actually shows foresight on his part. Shortsightedness would be making a short-term move at a cost of long-term prospect of Apple in China.

You need to understand that just because a company is based in the US or that its management class is American does not make it “patriotic” (whatever that means). They are first and foremost concerned with their profits.

• The a-hole Steve Jobs constantly reminded anyone who would listen that it was not worth it to invest in American industrial infrastructure, implying Americans weren’t worth it or were too stupid for such endeavors.

So to tim cook a hearty fuck you.

• This is just an example of why the world goes around due to money.

You can talk all you want about countries, patriotism, etc., but that’s all “show talk” for the masses to keep them occupied and focused elsewhere.

This is ALL about money. And the fact that it was kept secret just makes that crystal clear. Legal agreements don’t need to be kept secret unless they go against the public narrative.

• To be fair, China was on a very different trajectory in the mid-2010s, when these deals occurred. It certainly wasn’t a paragon of human rights, but there was hope that the trajectory it had followed under Jiang and Hu, with gradual opening up, and increasing international engagement, would continue.

Avid China watchers started to raise concerns about a change in trajectory by around 2014, but it wasn’t until the past few years that anyone outside that community started to pay serious attention to the backsliding and increasingly aggressive nationalism. Most people kept up the mantra that “free markets lead to free minds”, and believed that increasing investment in China could only lead to it becoming more open.

At the time these deals were made, they probably went with the flow of mainstream thinking. However, now it’s clear that Xi’s China is not the China of the early 2000s, this thinking needs to be revisited. The real question here is whether, after investing this much money in China, Apple has the stomach to rethink its level of engagement.

It’s probably wise in the long run to not be too tightly coupled to China. Its relationship with other major economies could continue to deteriorate, and anything could happen in the Taiwan Strait. But a $275 billion investment is a pretty big incentive to convince yourself that you’ve made the right choice.

• There is nothing stopping any company or any number of consumers from cultivating a consumer, tech, or consumer tech industry anywhere in the world.

People wail, “but there is no one here capable of doing that kind of work” as if making smartphones and other imported goods are based on techniques and practices passed down from the Ming Dynasty.

It is clear that there is an other-than-dollars price to be paid with Chinese production. Everybody knows the dollar prices would be much higher to not import Chinese products, but if China’s gaining power concerns people so much, just pay them.

• Designed in California

Made in China

Pays taxes in… Ireland, maybe? Or that secret Jersey Isle deal?

• In other news China just said “The U.S would pay for the diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics”

The question is when do you stand up to a bully that is constantly threatening every neighboring country
Taiwan, Australia, Japan etc etc

At some point band together & punch right back.

• Any corporation worth more than the smallest sovereign state is going to be treated like a sovereign state. Those that don’t quite make it still get treated with the same respect as at least The Vatican.

Capitalism is going to have to start their own diplomatic career path.

Yeah, everyone would betray their country for money, especially the Americans. And the Asian-Americans would applaud.

Let’s summarize:

  • Steve Jobs was the one who practically betrayed the United States and moved the entirety of Apple’s manufacturing to China. Yet he is still revered as a second Christ by some (good thing he’s dead, now Elon Musk can be the only God or Son-of-God on Earth).
  • Tim Cook carried on with this non-patriotic business practice, and helping the enemy was profitable for him: Cook was paid $265 million in 2020 and $750m in 2021, including the stock.
  • Part of this technology deal will empower China to implement Xi Jinping’ strategy “Made in China 2025,” with other milestones set for 2035 and 2045 (or 2049). This is active cooperation with the enemy!

Only caring for the next quarter’s profits, seeking profits no matter the price, and ignoring the danger that is Xi Jinping’s China will screw us all. Fuck you, Tim Cook!

By the way, the economists who believe China’s GDP is second to America’s are more retarded than Karl Marx. That’s because they count this way:

  • A product is manufactured in China.
  • It leaves China at $2 (VAT-free, as it’s an export).
  • $2 are added to China’s GDP.
  • Transport costs add $0.30, custom taxes add $0.20. So far, it’s worth $2.50.
  • After being imported, distribution and retail costs, plus the local huge profit margins add to the final price.
  • It retails for $19.99 (plus Sales Tax).
  • $17.49 are added to America’s GDP ($19.99-$2.50; the Sales Tax is not part of GDP!)
  • This is obviously absurd, as the entire value of the product has been made in China!

That’s highly oversimplified, but their economic theories are all oversimplified too, and it’s their schools of economics and their CEOs who made China our future master!

No matter how they calculate China’s GDP, everyone can see that almost everything we purchase is Made in China, dammit!

Thankfully, Tim Cook is helping Xi Jinping to become our Master of us all. They should give Tim an official position in China’s governance system. Maybe I’m repeating myself, but FUCK YOU, TIM COOK!