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I haven’t used Facebook in over 3 years, yet I’m forced to interact with the government daily. They are nothing like the same thing.

cratermoon 5y ago
You don't have to use Facebook to interact it with. You probably did a dozen things on the internet today that somehow involved Facebook.
- seibelj 5y ago
  I am forced to pay the government money every time I earn income, buy anything, wish to start a business, hire someone, or just exist as annually I have to file a tax return. Failure to do any of these things results in violence - the seizure of my property and / or my freedom forcibly taken away and my body put in prison. Facebook may have business relationships with other private entities I use, and as a side effect receive some of my information, but Facebook is nothing like the government.
  - jimkleiber 5y ago
    I'm not saying they are equal in power over one's life. I do believe that most governments have more influence over one's life, whether national, regional, local, or other levels. I also think most governments haven't regulated online interaction very much, for better or worse. Which means most online interaction is moderated/regulated/controlled by the platforms that host them. Yes, Facebook won't throw me in physical jail, however they could suspend or even ban my account. If I don't use it, not such a big deal. If it's the only way I communicate with 90% of the friends in my life and I run my business on there, it could be a huge detriment. They could even just tweak the algorithm of posting, without me knowing, and all of a sudden, my friends and family aren't receiving the messages I'm sending, without me knowing. Not just Facebook, but Amazon, Google, Visa, Stripe, Paypal, and many other platforms have huge power over our digital lives. Is getting banned from Twitter the same as getting thrown in physical jail? Personally, in most cases, I don't think so. However, I still think these platforms can have a lot of power over one's life.

cratermoon 5y ago

You don't have to use Facebook to interact it with. You probably did a dozen things on the internet today that somehow involved Facebook.

seibelj 5y ago
I am forced to pay the government money every time I earn income, buy anything, wish to start a business, hire someone, or just exist as annually I have to file a tax return. Failure to do any of these things results in violence - the seizure of my property and / or my freedom forcibly taken away and my body put in prison. Facebook may have business relationships with other private entities I use, and as a side effect receive some of my information, but Facebook is nothing like the government.
- jimkleiber 5y ago
  I'm not saying they are equal in power over one's life. I do believe that most governments have more influence over one's life, whether national, regional, local, or other levels. I also think most governments haven't regulated online interaction very much, for better or worse. Which means most online interaction is moderated/regulated/controlled by the platforms that host them. Yes, Facebook won't throw me in physical jail, however they could suspend or even ban my account. If I don't use it, not such a big deal. If it's the only way I communicate with 90% of the friends in my life and I run my business on there, it could be a huge detriment. They could even just tweak the algorithm of posting, without me knowing, and all of a sudden, my friends and family aren't receiving the messages I'm sending, without me knowing. Not just Facebook, but Amazon, Google, Visa, Stripe, Paypal, and many other platforms have huge power over our digital lives. Is getting banned from Twitter the same as getting thrown in physical jail? Personally, in most cases, I don't think so. However, I still think these platforms can have a lot of power over one's life.