3 ms·

With all these eyes on Apple, what do we know about Asus or Acer or even further down the alphabet? For some components we may only have a very few suppliers

by edoceo 6y ago

topicseed 6y ago
> For some components we may only have a very few suppliers Oh, ok then.
- edoceo 6y ago
  ? No! I don't mean F-it. I want to know what's going on.
lasfter 6y ago
The entire hardware industry is dependent on human or environmental exploitation to acquire materials for batteries and chips. Cobalt and Tantalum are mined by child slaves in the Congo, smuggled to Rwanda and Zambia, then branded as "ethical". Rare earth refineries destroyed Baotou lake in China, rendering surrounding villages destitute, and threatened to contaminate the groundwater that sustains a huge portion of the Chinese population. If you look into other materials that electronics depend on you'll see similar problems. Electronics cause astronomical suffering. [1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-02-20/deadly-mines-linked-to-child-labor-thrive-in-rush-for-batteries https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-02-20/deadly-mi... [2] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/aug/07/china-rare-earth-village-pollution https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/aug/07/china-ra... [3] https://www.newsweek.com/2015/02/13/where-apple-gets-tantalum-your-iphone-304351.html https://www.newsweek.com/2015/02/13/where-apple-gets-tantalu... [4] https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/afr62/3183/2016/en/ https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/afr62/3183/2016/en/
- purple-again 6y ago
  Electronics? Didn’t I just read about how the price of coffee is about to spike in the west due to some legislation that will make it harder for them to use slave labor? I hate to say it because my life is so comfortable but it might just be that comfortable life that is causing the astronomical suffering.
  - lasfter 6y ago
    You're absolutely right, unfettered capitalism is at the root of all this. I just wanted to point out that technology is not exempt, seeing as SV-style idealists seem to think technology will solve the world's problems.

With all these eyes on Apple, what do we know about Asus or Acer or even further down the alphabet? For some components we may only have a very few suppliers

by edoceo 6y ago

With all these eyes on Apple, what do we know about Asus or Acer or even further down the alphabet? For some components we may only have a very few suppliers

topicseed 6y ago

> For some components we may only have a very few suppliers Oh, ok then.

edoceo 6y ago
? No! I don't mean F-it. I want to know what's going on.

lasfter 6y ago

The entire hardware industry is dependent on human or environmental exploitation to acquire materials for batteries and chips. Cobalt and Tantalum are mined by child slaves in the Congo, smuggled to Rwanda and Zambia, then branded as "ethical". Rare earth refineries destroyed Baotou lake in China, rendering surrounding villages destitute, and threatened to contaminate the groundwater that sustains a huge portion of the Chinese population. If you look into other materials that electronics depend on you'll see similar problems. Electronics cause astronomical suffering. [1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-02-20/deadly-mines-linked-to-child-labor-thrive-in-rush-for-batteries https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-02-20/deadly-mi... [2] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/aug/07/china-rare-earth-village-pollution https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2012/aug/07/china-ra... [3] https://www.newsweek.com/2015/02/13/where-apple-gets-tantalum-your-iphone-304351.html https://www.newsweek.com/2015/02/13/where-apple-gets-tantalu... [4] https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/afr62/3183/2016/en/ https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/afr62/3183/2016/en/

purple-again 6y ago
Electronics? Didn’t I just read about how the price of coffee is about to spike in the west due to some legislation that will make it harder for them to use slave labor? I hate to say it because my life is so comfortable but it might just be that comfortable life that is causing the astronomical suffering.
- lasfter 6y ago
  You're absolutely right, unfettered capitalism is at the root of all this. I just wanted to point out that technology is not exempt, seeing as SV-style idealists seem to think technology will solve the world's problems.