In the wake of the Great Deplatforming, Big Tech's "Achilles Heel" takes the spotlight...
Nerd By Northwest #245 – “Big Tech’s Digital Gulag”
(Click on the image to see the full-size version)
I'm sure I'll get more than a few "Karens" on Twitter objecting to my adapting pastor Martin Niemöller's famous quote for this strip. But given the context of the situation, if he were still alive today I think he'd approve. I'm pretty sure he'd also be a Bitcoiner. 😎
I will freely admit, Big Tech's ongoing Great Social Media Purge has struck a raw nerve. Consequently, my DILLIGAF level (or, "Do I Look Like I Give A F***" level) of concern with getting deplatformed/censored by Big Tech or upsetting people is at an all time low. So going forward, if you think I might be intentionally trying to trigger some of the "Karens" out there or provoke the Big Tech bullies, you're probably right. It's not like they're going to be able to touch me here on Hive... 😁
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Nah, you did a great job with it and brought it into the modern world. I'm certainly happy not to hear what Trump is fuming about, for sure, but it's a slippery slope. The ironic part is that it's all rooted in legal and capitalist "Terms of Service!"
Oh yeah, that made me laugh. 😂
The Parler joke was more one for the Millennials & Gen-Z'ers out there... my understanding is much of the younger crowd barely knew it existed until last week 😄
The 'free speech' arguments will run forever. I was interested to read about the limitations placed on it in the first amendment. Having a platform gives you some responsibilities. It is very hard to know where to draw a line on what is acceptable, but saying we scrap the line altogether may not be the answer. The big sites ban thousands of accounts spreading illegal porn and terrorism. They tolerated Trump for years and gave him a voice. Even if he pops up elsewhere it will be hard to reach as many people.
Interesting times indeed.
We can agree to disagree. But regardless whether you think there's a case for it or not, I am 99.9% confident that the motivation behind the current push for suppression of speech has nothing to do with protecting us and everything to do with a self-centered interest in controlling people & society. Even if you agree with some of the measures they take, the ones pushing this (Big Tech, government, or any highly-centralized power) do not share the same goals that you do. Give it a decade or so, and they'll expand it to censor the regular people like us.
I don't think it's that simple. There are lots of motivations in play. Companies care more about profits than direct control. I doubt they actually want to run things. It's all run by humans with all their imperfections. Just don't fall for the populists who say they are doing it all for the people. Freedom is precious and needs to be defended, but that does not mean we need violence.
Hope for the best, but get involved where it can help.
Yet more control of the market & consumers leads to greater profits (at least in the short-to-medium term), does it not? Why else do most large companies pay off politicians & lobbying groups to push bills that advantage them and disadvantage smaller competitors? 😉
Now to be fair, I suspect a big part of the motivation for Big Tech is covering their ass preemptively from an increasingly overzealous Congress. Go along to get along, right? Of course, that very easily ties back into convenient ways to crush potential competitors.
Show me the incentives, and I'll show you the outcome... 😕
Outside the US there are different factors. Germany has strict anti-nazi laws and other countries have much more control. Some US companies compromise with that to operate in places like China. The US is relatively free really. But some companies are bigger than many countries and that brings power. We have to see if politicians will hold them to account and we do get some say in that. How much say is another argument.