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We shouldn't need to use uBlock. It is easy to assign blame to victims. This has happened to bycicle owners. If you don't lock your bike it's your fault your

We shouldn't need to use uBlock. It is easy to assign blame to victims. This has happened to bycicle owners. If you don't lock your bike it's your fault your bike gets stolen. But theft is illegal. Theft is if someone wants to take something that doesn't belong to him and then executes the taking. Locks don't change this fact. It just makes the execution of the crime more difficult. I have a vision of an utopia where people can leave all things unlocked. If they get stolen, the thief gets identified immediately and he has to give the things back. No punishment at all or only a token punishment. This should work because sanctions are not neccessary if no harm was done. Today we punish caught thieves somewhat harshly because we need to deter people from becoming thieves. If we can stop thefts just after the fact, token punishment will suffice. If someone repeatedly tries to steal things in that utopia we could offer therapy or try to find out the underlying cause of the attempted thefts. That's utopia: everything works out perfectly for everybody (shrugs). Today we lock our browsing experience using uBlock just because we have to. We also have to lock our bikes, because we have to. Sorry for the tangent.

MichaelZuo 4y ago
To catch all bicycle thieves, everywhere, at all times, would require 24/7 worldwide surveillance of every square meter on Earth. Do you really desire this?
- _nalply 4y ago
  This is an utopia and the definition of utopia is that this is not a problem. This might be because this surveillance is benevolent. Another way could be that everybody has the tools to do this surveillance themselves in a beneficial way for everybody. That's utopia for you (shrugs).
  - MichaelZuo 4y ago
    > This is an utopia and the definition of utopia is that this is not a problem. What? It's difficult to tell online whether a statement is facetious or not. But I can't see how this makes any sense otherwise.
    - _nalply 4y ago
      I gave some examples why this would not be a problem. One advantage of visions of utopias: they give ideas for a better world and also it shows what-if perspectives: what if we really could catch thieves in a beneficial way and help them? what if there is a business opportunity because there's a need to be fulfilled?
pellucidar 4y ago
I think the point isn’t that you (or Cory Doctorow) has to use ublock to prevent fraud, only that one would expect such users to block ads qua ads and accidentally benefit from the fraud protection.

MichaelZuo 4y ago

To catch all bicycle thieves, everywhere, at all times, would require 24/7 worldwide surveillance of every square meter on Earth. Do you really desire this?

_nalply 4y ago
This is an utopia and the definition of utopia is that this is not a problem. This might be because this surveillance is benevolent. Another way could be that everybody has the tools to do this surveillance themselves in a beneficial way for everybody. That's utopia for you (shrugs).
- MichaelZuo 4y ago
  > This is an utopia and the definition of utopia is that this is not a problem. What? It's difficult to tell online whether a statement is facetious or not. But I can't see how this makes any sense otherwise.
  - _nalply 4y ago
    I gave some examples why this would not be a problem. One advantage of visions of utopias: they give ideas for a better world and also it shows what-if perspectives: what if we really could catch thieves in a beneficial way and help them? what if there is a business opportunity because there's a need to be fulfilled?

pellucidar 4y ago

I think the point isn’t that you (or Cory Doctorow) has to use ublock to prevent fraud, only that one would expect such users to block ads qua ads and accidentally benefit from the fraud protection.