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Why "Against Facebook"? I know some mention of other services in the essay, but the headline, topic sentences and conclusion all call out Facebook pretty much e

by dfxm12 9y ago

Why "Against Facebook"? I know some mention of other services in the essay, but the headline, topic sentences and conclusion all call out Facebook pretty much exclusively. Starting off attacking solely Facebook in the headline and wrapping it up nice and tidy at the end with "You should delete your Facebook account :)" creates a false sense of security for readers that once they delete their Facebook accounts, they're safe from the effects the essay warns about, but that's not true, as long as they're still on the web. ...and please understand, I'm not coming from the position of defending Facebook, but trying to get journalists and essayists to point out more clearly that these issues are pretty much baked into the web at this point and cutting off Facebook, even entirely, is going to have little effect in insulating yourself from things like unpaid microwork, having your data sold, being targeted with ads, etc., even if you are reading good books in your free time.

amelius 9y ago
> the headline, topic sentences and conclusion all call out Facebook pretty much exclusively. Perhaps because it's the easiest target and otherwise the general public might feel overwhelmed, and think that the fight for privacy is futile.
- jimmy1 9y ago
  > fight for privacy is futile See I always disagree with these sentiments. Again like everything in America it's about political action. Problem #1: Not enough people vote. You can break that down into, I see it, 3 buckets. 1. People are content enough with the way things are going, and trust they will keep going so they don't waste their time, or rely on the "wisdom of the crowd" 2. People are lethargic of the issues happening around them and complacency has fully set in. 3. People are so underwater with responsibilities, debt, and pressure from stagnant wages and rising costs, their primary focus is survival, feeding family, and paying rent. I am a firm believer that people get the government they deserve. It's not enough to wish a government into existence. Having said all that, call this a gross oversimplification or whatnot, but I think it comes down to not enough people feel threatened or inclined to take action by the current privacy situation. That's it. Plenty of people love to talk about it, bikeshed about how things should or should not be, play the contrarian, whatnot, but if there's anything life has taught me: if people really want something, they do it (not saying want thing that thing is a good or bad thing)
  - majewsky 9y ago
    > 3 buckets 4. People don't feel self-efficacy, i.e. that their vote is having an effect. (Esp. in a two-party system where, if you don't like either big party, you're basically fucked.)

by dfxm12 9y ago

amelius 9y ago

> the headline, topic sentences and conclusion all call out Facebook pretty much exclusively. Perhaps because it's the easiest target and otherwise the general public might feel overwhelmed, and think that the fight for privacy is futile.

jimmy1 9y ago
> fight for privacy is futile See I always disagree with these sentiments. Again like everything in America it's about political action. Problem #1: Not enough people vote. You can break that down into, I see it, 3 buckets. 1. People are content enough with the way things are going, and trust they will keep going so they don't waste their time, or rely on the "wisdom of the crowd" 2. People are lethargic of the issues happening around them and complacency has fully set in. 3. People are so underwater with responsibilities, debt, and pressure from stagnant wages and rising costs, their primary focus is survival, feeding family, and paying rent. I am a firm believer that people get the government they deserve. It's not enough to wish a government into existence. Having said all that, call this a gross oversimplification or whatnot, but I think it comes down to not enough people feel threatened or inclined to take action by the current privacy situation. That's it. Plenty of people love to talk about it, bikeshed about how things should or should not be, play the contrarian, whatnot, but if there's anything life has taught me: if people really want something, they do it (not saying want thing that thing is a good or bad thing)
- majewsky 9y ago
  > 3 buckets 4. People don't feel self-efficacy, i.e. that their vote is having an effect. (Esp. in a two-party system where, if you don't like either big party, you're basically fucked.)