4 ms·

Why shouldn't the default be to not be tracked, and only start being tracked if you explicitly want to? Advertisers always frame this conflict as though it's ab

Why shouldn't the default be to not be tracked, and only start being tracked if you explicitly want to? Advertisers always frame this conflict as though it's absurd to expect them to just stay out of our lives, and anything that makes it easy or default to avoid them should be rejected as impossible.

ethbr0 5y ago
The perfect is the enemy of the good. There's a lot of money in advertising. The feasible choices are between (a) DNT, off by default, that the more responsible and regulated side of the ad industry respects or (b) DNT, on by default, that everyone ignores. Which one is the greater good? In other words, you're welcome to walk up to me, slap me in the face, and call me a son-of-a-bitch... but that's probably not a great start to a conversation that ends with "Would you please work with me on this?"
- mnw21cam 5y ago
  > In other words, you're welcome to walk up to me, slap me in the face, and call me a son-of-a-bitch... but that's probably not a great start to a conversation that ends with "Would you please work with me on this?" Wow, that's quite some re-framing going on there, if you're casting yourself as the advertiser in that sentence. It's more like if you were regularly "borrowing" my car without permission. Do not track is a bit like the lock on the car, which obviously you can get around in 30 seconds flat. Everyone has a lock on their car, right, and it's installed by default, so by the advertisement industry's reasoning it isn't a true indication of whether I want you "borrowing" it. If you were regularly "borrowing" my car without permission, it'd be reasonable for me to walk up to you, slap you in the face, and call you a SOB, but I'd me more likely to just call the cops. Data about me is owned by me, and other entities can process it only in strongly limited circumstances. That's the default position, by the standard of basic decency, and also in law. Stop making it sound like me demanding control over my own possessions is unreasonable.
- deworms 5y ago
  They didn't respect that, though. And no, I don't want to "work on this", I want to not be tracked by default.
  - ethbr0 5y ago
    Yes, that is what you want. But you know there are other people in the world? Who want different things? Some of which may be the opposite of what you want? And that therefore, in the interest of civilization, we find consensus between what everyone wants?
    - mnw21cam 5y ago
      No. That's what I want, and that's what the law says I should get. End of story.

ethbr0 5y ago

The perfect is the enemy of the good. There's a lot of money in advertising. The feasible choices are between (a) DNT, off by default, that the more responsible and regulated side of the ad industry respects or (b) DNT, on by default, that everyone ignores. Which one is the greater good? In other words, you're welcome to walk up to me, slap me in the face, and call me a son-of-a-bitch... but that's probably not a great start to a conversation that ends with "Would you please work with me on this?"

mnw21cam 5y ago
> In other words, you're welcome to walk up to me, slap me in the face, and call me a son-of-a-bitch... but that's probably not a great start to a conversation that ends with "Would you please work with me on this?" Wow, that's quite some re-framing going on there, if you're casting yourself as the advertiser in that sentence. It's more like if you were regularly "borrowing" my car without permission. Do not track is a bit like the lock on the car, which obviously you can get around in 30 seconds flat. Everyone has a lock on their car, right, and it's installed by default, so by the advertisement industry's reasoning it isn't a true indication of whether I want you "borrowing" it. If you were regularly "borrowing" my car without permission, it'd be reasonable for me to walk up to you, slap you in the face, and call you a SOB, but I'd me more likely to just call the cops. Data about me is owned by me, and other entities can process it only in strongly limited circumstances. That's the default position, by the standard of basic decency, and also in law. Stop making it sound like me demanding control over my own possessions is unreasonable.
deworms 5y ago
They didn't respect that, though. And no, I don't want to "work on this", I want to not be tracked by default.
- ethbr0 5y ago
  Yes, that is what you want. But you know there are other people in the world? Who want different things? Some of which may be the opposite of what you want? And that therefore, in the interest of civilization, we find consensus between what everyone wants?
  - mnw21cam 5y ago
    No. That's what I want, and that's what the law says I should get. End of story.