Comment on Citizen Lab director warns cyber industry about US authoritarian descent
ExtremeDullard@lemmy.sdf.org 4 days ago
descent into a kind of fusion of tech and fascism
One of the defining traits of fascism is the private sector is in cahoots with the government. In fact, that’s the root of the words fascism: fasces in Latin means bundle - the bundling of state and private interests.
Corporations have no principles and no morals: whatever will make more money, they’ll ro-ro with. When it takes colluding with an authoritatian regime, they have no problems getting onboard.
The danger today compared to IBM helping the Nazi is of course that today’s computers are vastly more powerful than mechanical tabulators. This is going to turbocharge the dystopia orders of magnitudes.
And finally, people have been lulled into a false sense of security and convinced to give away a lot more personal information than they should’ve for the past 25 years - the “I have nothing to hide, why do I need privacy?” fallacy. Now they’re going to find out why they should have been careful. I almost want to say “I told you so” every day, having been called a paranoid crackpot for the past 25 years, but it’s so sad and so too late that this isn’t anything to gloat about…
SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 days ago
I disagree, because the more you hide, the more you’re giving into authoritarians and letting them win. Yes, it’s going to be wildly dystopic, but the people running the show are also bumbling fucking morons. I think cowering and deciding to self-censor on the internet is the worst choice you can make, especially now. The more people who are speaking up, the more people they have to come after, which means the more people they have ready to stand against them. Bending over and giving up and hiding from it all is just tantamount to sticking your head in the sand and thinking that will somehow protect you. News flash: It won’t.
But that’s just, like, my opinion man.
F04118F@feddit.nl 4 days ago
You’re both right: one doesn’t exclude the other.
cecilkorik@piefed.ca 3 days ago
As long as we've got some vestiges of free speech and free association available to us we need to do what we can to organize and sow the seeds of resistance. They're not coming for us yet, although I suspect they likely will eventually. But if you're already too afraid that they'll be coming for you to do what needs to be done, then they've already won. And I don't think they have. Resistance is the only choice that makes sense. But as you said, it's just my opinion. I'm allowed to share my thoughts and opinions though, at least for now, and I will do so.
ExtremeDullard@lemmy.sdf.org 4 days ago
The morons in and around the White House aren’t the ones running the show. They’re puppets, and the puppetmasters are the Heritage Foundation. And THEY are anything but morons.