There was a lot of scoffing last month when a big announcement was finally made of a pledge signed by many major blog providers encouraging their users to self-censor their blogging activities. The ‘new’ pact didn't just rehash aims that many before it had attempted and largely failed to achieve, but the official justification given for its implementation also left netizens without much room for agreement. Mandatory standards for blog service providers the pact proscribed include the use of “certain” but unspecified software and hardware, the abiding by of “a specific guide” in regards to all content serviced, the provision of open complaint hotlines and “windows”, allowing for the “supervision, tips and complaints” from “the public”, with all tips and complaints to be dealt with immediately, as well as encouraging BSPs to implement ‘real name registration’, but requiring BSPs to enact an effective “user information safety management system” to “protect” user information for real name bloggers. Suggestions provided for bloggers themselves were primarily to ‘strengthen supervision of the content of their blog posts, encourage public supervision over blogs, refrain from spreading pornographic, obscene and illegal information, refrain from infringing upon others’ intellectual property rights, using blogs to spread viruses and refrain from spreading false information.’ Then on the day of the pledge launch ceremony, general secretary of the Internet Society of China Huang Chengqing identified the three most problematic characteristics of the blogsphere as its “openness, interactiveness and anonymity“. Then Guo Kaitian, Vice President of Tencent (QQ), the leading internet media and services company with a less-than-stellar reputation which co-organized the event was quick to add: “these problems not only create large complications for society, but at the same time restrict the healthy growth of the blog (provider) industry itself; for this reason, the blogging industry needs to strengthen standards and conduct.” There was no complete list of all content provider companies which have signed on made public, but at least included are: People's Net, QianLong, Sina, Sohu, Netease, Hexun, Tianya, MSN China, Yahoo! China, Bloggers Associated, Voice of China, Tencent/QQ, Tom.com, Blog.com.cn, Yesky.com and BlogChina. King of Chinese bloggers Keso quickly came out with a strong (‘you ain't gonna make us your bitches’) editorial against the pact, pointing out just how many near-identical ‘internet self discipline pacts’ had come before, and dismissing this latest version as just a media show. In questioning the move for BSPs to collect user information including but not limited to bloggers’ names, IP addresses, phone numbers and e-mail addresses, Keso pointed out that one of the most often quoted examples of ‘blog violence’ has been committed by one of China's foremost celebrities, Han Han, who blogs in his real name on the largest BSP there is in China. He also tears apart the claim that many are making that there is “international precedent” for real name registration when the only example there is is what South Korea has done, adding that even the Korean government has admitted the expected results have not been achieved. Keso wrote: 说实在的，我搞不懂让这些BSP搜集用户的真实姓名、通信地址做什么？是希望再增加一个泄露个人隐私的通道？还是为了满足秋后算账或打击报复之需？ As with all its previous incarnations, bloggers quickly stopped beating themselves up over recommended self-discipline. Now well into the third quarter, however, the 17th National Congress is just less than a month away and a major crackdown on blogging has begun in preparation; perhaps as a sign of the the severity of the situation, livid Chinese bloggers can even now be seen praying for strength in foreign tongues. If the self-discipline pledge was the warning shot, several bombs were dropped all at once late last month when the plugs were pulled on Internet Data Centers all across the country, from 500 servers up north in Luoyang to as many as 3,000 way down south in Shantou, leaving operators there struggling to re-route their traffic through other IDCs which themselves don't know if they could be next up on the chopping block. Oft-quoted Shanghai-based blogger Wang Jianshuo isn't the only one left frustrated by all this: After that, news about whole IDC was shutdown came one after one, and each time, at least hundreds of servers were complete unplugged from Internet. Since these IDC host about 100 to 200 websites per server, I cannot imagine how many sites were shutdown. If this continues, I guess the total number of shutdown sites may quickly be one million.