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Any kind of non-democratic for-profit organization is going to have incentives that don't align with "free society". When one of those organizations runs the t

Any kind of non-democratic for-profit organization is going to have incentives that don't align with "free society". When one of those organizations runs the top centralized content and communications silo, use it to censor, stalk its users and promote its or its sponsors interests, it becomes a threat.

fwn 10y ago
Of course also democratic non-profit organizations wildly disalign with what one might call a "free society". Those adjectives mean little (as does "free society") without a definition.
- darpa_escapee 10y ago
  Non-democratic organizations inherently don't represent all parties and interests participating within it. If they did, they would be democratic organizations. A non-democratic organization will be influenced by, and will bend to the interests of, the few. A for-profit organization inherently has incentives that are perverse. Historically, the profit motive has incentivized things that run contrary to the well-being, and rights enjoyed by, society. It is profitable to censor, erode privacy, erode labor protections and rights, use psychological manipulation to influence the behavior of others and push negative externalities onto others. Yes, democratic non-profit organizations can misalign with a "free society". However, a non-democratic for-profit organization is fundamentally incompatible with the ideals expressed in the article. > Those adjectives mean little (as does "free society") without a definition. Merriam-Webster works for most when colloquial definitions bottom out or are hard to recall.