Tu Zifang (涂子方): "The Wall" and "Climbing Over the Wall" (Updated with Images)

This commentary by Tu Zifang was published by Southern Metropolis News on October 11th, translated by CDT:

Just by typing two Chinese characters “Fan Qiang” (翻墙）［meaning “Climbing over the Wall”] into search engine Baidu or Google, one can find infinite items. Opening those search results, one can see posters including amateur politicians, professional technologists, or people like myself who are computer illiterate but full of curiosity. As far as the content of those items is concerned, it includes complaining, cursing, asking for help, making suggestions, voluntarily providing software download information… All in all it is quite hot. “The Wall” and “Climbing over the Wall” have become quite a scene on the contemporary Chinese Internet.

“The Wall” is one kind of software. “Climbing over the Wall” is another kind of software. The relations between the two are Mao and Dun [“mao” means sword and “dun” shield; together, “maodun” means conflict]. The purpose of the Wall software is to stop netizens from crossing, and the purpose of the “Climbing the Wall” software is to providing netizens with ladders. The longer the ladders are, the higher the Wall becomes. The higher the Walls, the longer the ladders become. It seems like there is no end to this game. The Wall will only get higher and higher, and the ladders are only getting longer and longer.

For so many years, the busiest people on the Chinese internet are those who make the Wall software and the “Climbing the Wall” software. It has been said that those people all have something in common: 1. They are all Chinese, 2. They all made a fortune, 3. They all have studied in the US. The only difference is that those who write the Wall software have come back from the US and those who write the Climbing the Wall software are still in the US. This is we Chinese: We will help whoever pays the salary. As long as it makes money, we can do anything. It only hurts ordinary people: So much money spent on “the Wall” and “Climbing the Wall”!

在谷歌或者百度中输入“翻墙”这两个汉字，可以看见不计其数的条目，打开这些条目一看，可知发帖的人中，有业余政治家，有专业技术高手，也有类似 66我老人家这样爱看稀奇的电脑菜鸟；至于发帖的内容，有抱怨的，有骂娘的，有求助的，有出主意的，有义务提供软件下载地址的……，总之是十分的热闹， “墙”和“翻墙”成为中国当代网络上的一道风景线。

“墙”是一类软件，“翻墙”是另一类软件，二者是“盾”和“矛”的关系，“墙” 软件是要让你网民过不去，“翻墙”软件则是给你网民送梯子。梯子长了，墙就修得更高，墙更高了，梯子就建得更长。双方的较量看来将永无止境：墙没有最高，只有更高；梯没有最长，只有更长。

这许多年来，中国的网络上最忙碌的就是那些制作“墙”软件和“翻墙”软件的人，据说这些人的共同之处是：一，都是咱中国人；二，都发了大财；三，都在美国学习过，唯一的不同之处是写“墙”软件的人从美国回来了；写“翻墙”软件的人还留在美国。咱中国人就这德性：谁出钱帮谁；只要能赚钱，什么活也能干。心疼的是咱老百姓，这修“墙”和“翻墙”，该花了多少民脂民膏啊！

□ 涂子方(网址：http：//blog.ifeng.com/article/3216077.html)

Here are some images about the Great Firewall created or circulated by netizens: