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We have strong protections (constitution) and recourse (elections) against the government. While not perfect by any stretch they are far better than what we hav

We have strong protections (constitution) and recourse (elections) against the government. While not perfect by any stretch they are far better than what we have against Corporations. Government is much more transparent compared to corporations. For me, it is more insidious to be exploited for profit than to be spied on. Scale and applicability, as mentioned in the article. Facebook and other Corporations "watch" much more of us than government does.

cloverich 14y ago
I sympathize but also find it kind of ironic. In the end, whats the worst a company will do? Show you increasingly relevant ads? Leak your private photo's? Perhaps your address to someone you didn't want to know it? I realize there's a lot (more) to fear, but by comparison, what can the government do? What are governments doing around the world? And I'd argue that for many people, the fear isn't what Facebook does with the data, but what they could hand over to the gov't. I"m not worried about what the government is doing today. But when you look at recent history, or even at what other governments are doing today, its hard for me to understand why people aren't more concerned with the government than with Facebook. > Government is much more transparent compared to corporations. I think many would disagree with that.
betterunix 14y ago
"We have strong protections (constitution)" Which history has shown can be ignored, chipped away, sidestepped, circumvented, reinterpreted, and otherwise abused when it is convenient to do so. "recourse (elections) against the government" Except that in America, the elections are a choice between one set of fascists and another set of fascists. Voting third party is the only real recourse in America, but the major parties have set things up so that third party candidates are marginalized and remain obscure. "While not perfect by any stretch they are far better than what we have against Corporations." Better? Corporations cannot send paramilitary teams to invade your home. Corporations cannot punish you at the airport. Corporations cannot hold in against your will. You are free to ignore Facebook; you are not free to ignore the government. "Facebook and other Corporations "watch" much more of us than government does" The real problem with corporations is that they become a tool used by the government to circumvent the constitution: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1475524 https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1475524
baddox 14y ago
> We have strong protections (constitution) and recourse (elections) against the government. While not perfect by any stretch they are far better than what we have against Corporations. Call me selfish, but there really isn't a "we" when it comes to having my privacy and rights violated. What consolation is it if 50.01% of society approves of my rights being violated? I have absolutely no recourse—voting is statistically not worth the trip to the ballot, and that's even if there was a candidate or issue that I genuinely approved of with a reasonable chance at winning the election. In fact, unless you derive utility from the act of following politics, rational ignorance is a perfectly valid excuse for not even researching the candidates or the issues. The odds of my vote affecting an election, even if I'm in the most hotly contested county in the most hotly contested state, is not worth the hour it takes me to read about the issues and travel to the voting booth. > Government is much more transparent than corporation. I can't conceive of a context in which that statement is true. Which corporations have massive clandestine paramilitary organizations with a long history of assassinating foreign politicians overthrowing democratically elected governments? Which corporations are visited by countless lobbyists intent on bribing leaders to change policies? Which corporations have massive police forces deployed country-wide with the express goal of violently preventing you from burning certain plants? > For me, it is more insidious to be exploited for profit than to be spied on. That's a fine opinion for you to have, and you're lucky that the one organization with the funding, equipment, and social license to commit heinous acts with little limit just so happens to do things that bother you the least.

cloverich 14y ago

I sympathize but also find it kind of ironic. In the end, whats the worst a company will do? Show you increasingly relevant ads? Leak your private photo's? Perhaps your address to someone you didn't want to know it? I realize there's a lot (more) to fear, but by comparison, what can the government do? What are governments doing around the world? And I'd argue that for many people, the fear isn't what Facebook does with the data, but what they could hand over to the gov't. I"m not worried about what the government is doing today. But when you look at recent history, or even at what other governments are doing today, its hard for me to understand why people aren't more concerned with the government than with Facebook. > Government is much more transparent compared to corporations. I think many would disagree with that.

betterunix 14y ago

"We have strong protections (constitution)" Which history has shown can be ignored, chipped away, sidestepped, circumvented, reinterpreted, and otherwise abused when it is convenient to do so. "recourse (elections) against the government" Except that in America, the elections are a choice between one set of fascists and another set of fascists. Voting third party is the only real recourse in America, but the major parties have set things up so that third party candidates are marginalized and remain obscure. "While not perfect by any stretch they are far better than what we have against Corporations." Better? Corporations cannot send paramilitary teams to invade your home. Corporations cannot punish you at the airport. Corporations cannot hold in against your will. You are free to ignore Facebook; you are not free to ignore the government. "Facebook and other Corporations "watch" much more of us than government does" The real problem with corporations is that they become a tool used by the government to circumvent the constitution: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1475524 https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1475524

baddox 14y ago

> We have strong protections (constitution) and recourse (elections) against the government. While not perfect by any stretch they are far better than what we have against Corporations. Call me selfish, but there really isn't a "we" when it comes to having my privacy and rights violated. What consolation is it if 50.01% of society approves of my rights being violated? I have absolutely no recourse—voting is statistically not worth the trip to the ballot, and that's even if there was a candidate or issue that I genuinely approved of with a reasonable chance at winning the election. In fact, unless you derive utility from the act of following politics, rational ignorance is a perfectly valid excuse for not even researching the candidates or the issues. The odds of my vote affecting an election, even if I'm in the most hotly contested county in the most hotly contested state, is not worth the hour it takes me to read about the issues and travel to the voting booth. > Government is much more transparent than corporation. I can't conceive of a context in which that statement is true. Which corporations have massive clandestine paramilitary organizations with a long history of assassinating foreign politicians overthrowing democratically elected governments? Which corporations are visited by countless lobbyists intent on bribing leaders to change policies? Which corporations have massive police forces deployed country-wide with the express goal of violently preventing you from burning certain plants? > For me, it is more insidious to be exploited for profit than to be spied on. That's a fine opinion for you to have, and you're lucky that the one organization with the funding, equipment, and social license to commit heinous acts with little limit just so happens to do things that bother you the least.