Disillusionist

Thank you for kicking this hornet’s nest. There is a lot of great info and enthusiasm here, all of which is sorely needed.

We have massive and widespread attention paid to every cause under the sun by social and traditional media, with movements and protests (deservedly) filling the streets. Yet this issue which is as central and crucial to the notion and practice of freedom itself as any rights currently being fought for (as it intersects with each of them in very clear and direct ways), continues to be sidelined and given the foil hat treatment.

Discussions around disinformation, political extremism, and even mental health all can not be adequately had without addressing our technical and digital context, which has been hijacked by these bad actors, robber barons selling us ease and convenience and promises of bright, shiny, and Utopian futures while conning us out of our liberty.

With the widespread, rapidly declining state of society, and the dramatic rise and spread of technologies like AI, there has never been a more urgent need to act collectively against the invasive practices violating our most fundamental human rights.

Those of you whose eyes are open to this crisis are needed. Your voices are too absent from the discussions surrounding the many problems and challenges we face at this critical moment. Public awareness is needed for any real hope of change to occur.

As many of you have pointed out, the most immediate step people need to take is disengagement with the products and services that are surveiling, exploiting, and manipulating us. Deprive them of both your engagement and your data.

Keep going, keep resisting, do the small things you can do. As the saying goes, small things add up over time. Keep going.

Hilarious. I bite my tongue so often around these kinds of situations it has permanent tooth imprints in it. But you’re right, someone needs to figure out how to get them to stop tolerating this horrific nonsense.

The more people who demand better out of their employers (and services, governments, etc.), the better we’ll get of those things in the long run. When you surrender your rights, you worsen not only your own situation, but that of everyone else, as you validate and contribute to the system that violates them. Capitulation is the single greatest reason we have these kinds of problems.

We need more people doing exactly as you did, simply saying no. Thank you for fighting, and thank you for sharing. Best wishes in your job hunt.