Unfortunately, the Chinese government already has free reign to do what they want, which is exactly why Google is leaving. I don't see it as a catch-22. China isn't going to let Google offer the services in the way that they (Google) want them to be provided. China has already made it clear that Google needs to comply with China's laws, so Google isn't going to be able to offer unfiltered search results and such. So what's the point of them staying if they are forever forced by the government to play by China's rules, and by staying they make themselves look worse in the eyes of the Western world?