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I worked for years on decentralization projects so I wish this would happen, but I think in the current climate there is a much simpler and more direct option t

I worked for years on decentralization projects so I wish this would happen, but I think in the current climate there is a much simpler and more direct option that Apple is far more likely to take. Perhaps the author's politics prevent him from seeing it: Cook will talk to Trump, Trump will announce crippling sanctions on the UK unless they leave tech firms alone, the UK will fold with some excuse designed to save face (perhaps pretending they never issued such an order at all) and everything will continue as before. This is by far the most likely outcome because it's consistent with everything we know about the new US administration: • Trump loves tariffs, he believes they actually make people richer. The previously prevailing WTO order that tried to push tariffs down is dead and buried. • He already forced allies like Canada, Columbia and Mexico to do what he wants by threatening to impose truly massive tariffs. They agreed to his demands within days. Trump is willing to break allied economies to get what he wants. • Elon Musk is Trump's most powerful and dynamic ally. He hates censorship demands, especially from European governments. He also hates the current British government, and via X has been exposing the American right to the off-the-charts levels of political censorship and oppression that's been happening under Labour (e.g. people getting longer jail sentences for Facebook posts about immigration than for violent crimes or child porn). The right are spoiling for a fight with Labour at the moment, this would be free red meat to their base. • The US right also holds Europe in contempt for its failure to produce a viable tech industry and are inclined to view its regulations as mere extortion by losers for crimes that the Americans did not commit. The last eight years appear to have turned Trump into a radical libertarian, a plot twist few saw coming. The Biden administration was ideologically aligned with the EU and UK on this, but they're gone and there is no built-in sympathy anymore. • The UK is run by a very weak and unpopular government. Starting from a few weeks ago Reform (Farage's party) now outpolls all the other parties. New governments after a long period of incumbency usually have a honeymoon period, but due to the weird way they won the election this one didn't. They also didn't campaign on picking a fight with Apple. There's no democratic mandate here and this isn't the will of the British people. If Labour push ahead with this, Reform will make lemonade. "Don't break my iPhone" is the easiest political campaign in history.

zimpenfish 2y ago
> people getting longer jail sentences for Facebook posts about immigration than for violent crimes or child porn Do you have a link for that? I read UK news pretty regularly and I've missed that one somewhere. > due to the weird way they won the election this one didn't What weird way? They got more votes than the Tories and a clear democratic mandate.
- mike_hearn 2y ago
  There are lots of such cases and they are famous, this is where the "two tier kier" nickname comes from. For example, Hamoud Al Soaimi who took part in the group rape of a 15 year old girl and also a 12 year old girl, was sentenced to 180 hours of community service: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-68446855 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-68446855 versus Daniel Kingsley, a plasterer, who was sentenced to 21 months in prison for posting on Facebook: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c703e03w243o https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c703e03w243o Or compare Shaun Tuck, jailed for 15 weeks for posting comments online, versus Victoria Bowen who assaulted an MP (Farage) by throwing a milkshake at him, who wasn't jailed at all. There have been an endless parade of such cases. If you aren't aware of them it's because you get your news from sources who don't want you to know. > What weird way? They didn't take votes from the opposition. The right chose to withhold their votes in order to try and force a reset on the Conservatives, in some places abstention by those voters reached 50%. For a party to win because the opposing party destroys its own base isn't normal. Normally the bases are stable and swing voters decide an election. This one was very different. That's why Labour were able to win despite getting fewer votes than they did under Corbyn.
  - zimpenfish 2y ago
    > Hamoud Al Soaimi [...] was sentenced to 180 hours of community service You're ignoring the other 3 men charged at the same time who got considerably longer sentences there but also ignoring that he was sentenced to two years suspended -with- 180 hours of community service. Two years is longer than 21 months. > Daniel Kingsley [...] for posting on Facebook Cute minimisation when he actually "admitted to stirring up racial hatred" which is somewhat more than just "posting on Facebook". > Shaun Tuck, jailed for 15 weeks for posting comments online Again, you're minimising with "posting comments online" when he was charged with malicious communication after he "posted racist abuse". > Victoria Bowen who assaulted an MP (Farage) She wasn't jailed, no, but she was "given a 13-week jail sentence, suspended for 12 months, must pay the MP £150 compensation, complete 120 hours of unpaid work and pay £450 in court costs." Also Farage wasn't an MP at the time but that is just splitting hairs. > you get your news from sources who don't want you to know The BBC but I guess I just don't place as much importance on the punishments for posting racial aggravation as you do. > The right chose to withhold their votes in order to try and force a reset on the Conservatives That's not a "weird way", though. "weird way" suggests coercion or cheating or some other shenanigans, not "the Tories weren't far-right enough for the lunatics who had a big sulk".

zimpenfish 2y ago

> people getting longer jail sentences for Facebook posts about immigration than for violent crimes or child porn Do you have a link for that? I read UK news pretty regularly and I've missed that one somewhere. > due to the weird way they won the election this one didn't What weird way? They got more votes than the Tories and a clear democratic mandate.

mike_hearn 2y ago
There are lots of such cases and they are famous, this is where the "two tier kier" nickname comes from. For example, Hamoud Al Soaimi who took part in the group rape of a 15 year old girl and also a 12 year old girl, was sentenced to 180 hours of community service: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-68446855 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-68446855 versus Daniel Kingsley, a plasterer, who was sentenced to 21 months in prison for posting on Facebook: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c703e03w243o https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c703e03w243o Or compare Shaun Tuck, jailed for 15 weeks for posting comments online, versus Victoria Bowen who assaulted an MP (Farage) by throwing a milkshake at him, who wasn't jailed at all. There have been an endless parade of such cases. If you aren't aware of them it's because you get your news from sources who don't want you to know. > What weird way? They didn't take votes from the opposition. The right chose to withhold their votes in order to try and force a reset on the Conservatives, in some places abstention by those voters reached 50%. For a party to win because the opposing party destroys its own base isn't normal. Normally the bases are stable and swing voters decide an election. This one was very different. That's why Labour were able to win despite getting fewer votes than they did under Corbyn.
- zimpenfish 2y ago
  > Hamoud Al Soaimi [...] was sentenced to 180 hours of community service You're ignoring the other 3 men charged at the same time who got considerably longer sentences there but also ignoring that he was sentenced to two years suspended -with- 180 hours of community service. Two years is longer than 21 months. > Daniel Kingsley [...] for posting on Facebook Cute minimisation when he actually "admitted to stirring up racial hatred" which is somewhat more than just "posting on Facebook". > Shaun Tuck, jailed for 15 weeks for posting comments online Again, you're minimising with "posting comments online" when he was charged with malicious communication after he "posted racist abuse". > Victoria Bowen who assaulted an MP (Farage) She wasn't jailed, no, but she was "given a 13-week jail sentence, suspended for 12 months, must pay the MP £150 compensation, complete 120 hours of unpaid work and pay £450 in court costs." Also Farage wasn't an MP at the time but that is just splitting hairs. > you get your news from sources who don't want you to know The BBC but I guess I just don't place as much importance on the punishments for posting racial aggravation as you do. > The right chose to withhold their votes in order to try and force a reset on the Conservatives That's not a "weird way", though. "weird way" suggests coercion or cheating or some other shenanigans, not "the Tories weren't far-right enough for the lunatics who had a big sulk".