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I would put forth the assertion that Big Tech is more damaging than Standard Oil or US steel ever were. Altering the human mind at will is so much more dangero

I would put forth the assertion that Big Tech is more damaging than Standard Oil or US steel ever were. Altering the human mind at will is so much more dangerous than higher oil or steel prices ever could be.

fifticon 1y ago
I'm willing to call them equally bad. Making the world inhospitable through global warning, is pretty high on the list in my view..
- kortilla 1y ago
  Neither of those were concerns for US steel or standard oil breakups.
- blibble 1y ago
  big tech on their way to speedrunning that too, with the AI data centre buildout https://esgnews.com/ai-boom-drives-150-surge-in-indirect-emissions-at-major-tech-firms-un-warns/ https://esgnews.com/ai-boom-drives-150-surge-in-indirect-emi...
- hosteur 1y ago
  You don’t think global warming would happen regardless of oil being sold by a monopoly or not?
  - immibis 1y ago
    Big oil conglomerates spent a shitload of money pushing the global warming hoax hoax and it worked. Small mom-and-pop oil companies (if that could ever be a thing) wouldn't.
blackqueeriroh 1y ago
lol, “altering the human mind at will” is a pretty wild claim. Without people choosing to open phones? Computers? Spending hours on the internet a day?
- sofixa 1y ago
  > Without people choosing to open phones? Computers? Spending hours on the internet a day? Exploiting basic human psychology to incite people to come back to consume whatever you're giving them (small dopamine hits) doesn't absolve the people doing it, but it doesn't absolve the people exploiting it either. > “altering the human mind at will” is a pretty wild claim How is it wild? Humans are social animals, and there have been numerous studies on the effect of social media on teenagers (up to and including body dysmorphia and suicides) or politics, including influencing the results of referenda or elections, or even starting riots.
- swiftcoder 1y ago
  People don't really choose those things anymore. A generation of us got to choose it a long while back, but the last few decades of everyone making that same choice has made it pretty inevitable - you can't bank without a smartphone, you can't do shit without access to email and/or SMS, you can't stay in contact with friends without a popular instant messaging platform... Short of moving to a cabin in the woods, network effects hold us all hostage to the mind-altering, ad-delivering, capitalism machine
  - noman-land 1y ago
    It's not true and every time people say this they preemptively build their own prison. Having a smartphone doesn't have to mean being subjected to algorithmic feeds, advertising and corporate spying. Keeping in touch with friends doesn't have to be mediated by billionaires. All you have to do is be willing to have a life that isn't 100% convenient at all times in every direction. Signal is free and cross platform. There is literally no reason people can't download and use it instead of the other messengers. GrapheneOS is nearly perfect and works with every single app I've tried, including finance and travel. Web versions of apps exist. You can actually ask the people you care about to change their behavior for you, underlining all the risks with the current way. People act as if downloading a new app is an insurmountable task. It'll just sit there and send notifications. What's this mental block people have? You can do SO MANY things before moving to a cabin in the woods. The door of the prison is unlocked, dude. You don't have to stay inside just cuz you're used to being there.
veunes 1y ago
It's not just about market dominance or pricing anymore; it's about shaping public discourse

fifticon 1y ago

I'm willing to call them equally bad. Making the world inhospitable through global warning, is pretty high on the list in my view..

kortilla 1y ago
Neither of those were concerns for US steel or standard oil breakups.
blibble 1y ago
big tech on their way to speedrunning that too, with the AI data centre buildout https://esgnews.com/ai-boom-drives-150-surge-in-indirect-emissions-at-major-tech-firms-un-warns/ https://esgnews.com/ai-boom-drives-150-surge-in-indirect-emi...
hosteur 1y ago
You don’t think global warming would happen regardless of oil being sold by a monopoly or not?
- immibis 1y ago
  Big oil conglomerates spent a shitload of money pushing the global warming hoax hoax and it worked. Small mom-and-pop oil companies (if that could ever be a thing) wouldn't.

blackqueeriroh 1y ago

lol, “altering the human mind at will” is a pretty wild claim. Without people choosing to open phones? Computers? Spending hours on the internet a day?

sofixa 1y ago
> Without people choosing to open phones? Computers? Spending hours on the internet a day? Exploiting basic human psychology to incite people to come back to consume whatever you're giving them (small dopamine hits) doesn't absolve the people doing it, but it doesn't absolve the people exploiting it either. > “altering the human mind at will” is a pretty wild claim How is it wild? Humans are social animals, and there have been numerous studies on the effect of social media on teenagers (up to and including body dysmorphia and suicides) or politics, including influencing the results of referenda or elections, or even starting riots.
swiftcoder 1y ago
People don't really choose those things anymore. A generation of us got to choose it a long while back, but the last few decades of everyone making that same choice has made it pretty inevitable - you can't bank without a smartphone, you can't do shit without access to email and/or SMS, you can't stay in contact with friends without a popular instant messaging platform... Short of moving to a cabin in the woods, network effects hold us all hostage to the mind-altering, ad-delivering, capitalism machine
- noman-land 1y ago
  It's not true and every time people say this they preemptively build their own prison. Having a smartphone doesn't have to mean being subjected to algorithmic feeds, advertising and corporate spying. Keeping in touch with friends doesn't have to be mediated by billionaires. All you have to do is be willing to have a life that isn't 100% convenient at all times in every direction. Signal is free and cross platform. There is literally no reason people can't download and use it instead of the other messengers. GrapheneOS is nearly perfect and works with every single app I've tried, including finance and travel. Web versions of apps exist. You can actually ask the people you care about to change their behavior for you, underlining all the risks with the current way. People act as if downloading a new app is an insurmountable task. It'll just sit there and send notifications. What's this mental block people have? You can do SO MANY things before moving to a cabin in the woods. The door of the prison is unlocked, dude. You don't have to stay inside just cuz you're used to being there.

veunes 1y ago

It's not just about market dominance or pricing anymore; it's about shaping public discourse