Yeah I don't understand why people don't understand this, big tech is using their virtual monopolies to control many aspects of people's lives. There's a reason why the phone companies fell under 'common carrier' clauses, because when they were privatised, the risk was they no longer had to respect the 1st amendment and could ban communication (or spy on) for those it wanted to control and silence.
Also the big platforms pretty much own public discourse, the alternatives are almost the equivalent of having your phone 'priveledges' taken away and told you can use CB radio. The platforms also use public infrastructure to operate, and generally have used public funds (or currently have public contracts) to grow and accrue profit. We aren't talking about small niche forums like LL, but large town squares like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, where the alternatives are basically fringe (and usually maligned by those platforms as extremist sites, seeking to make all competition irrelevant). Facism is essentially the corporatization of the public sphere, so people no longer have any democratic power.
Also the big platforms pretty much own public discourse, the alternatives are almost the equivalent of having your phone 'priveledges' taken away and told you can use CB radio. The platforms also use public infrastructure to operate, and generally have used public funds (or currently have public contracts) to grow and accrue profit. We aren't talking about small niche forums like LL, but large town squares like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, where the alternatives are basically fringe (and usually maligned by those platforms as extremist sites, seeking to make all competition irrelevant). Facism is essentially the corporatization of the public sphere, so people no longer have any democratic power.
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