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US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

reuters.com

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Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#171
post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

a) Using TikTok is not a right. b) Removing the platform entirely is not censorship. Especially when everyone will just shift to Instagram, Youtube etc. c) This was a decision made by the US Congress. It is by definition not authoritarian.

> This was a decision made by the US Congress. It is by definition not authoritarian. Clearly the US Congress represents the will of the majority...

The US Congress is not supposed to represent the will of the majority. It is supposed to represent "the will of the people," which is distinct, by design. The actual implementation might have imperfections but tries to reflect the "will of the people" as the framers interpreted it.

Either way, there is a large spectrum between whatever it is and "authoritarian."

Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#172

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So… if China mistreats their citizens, reciprocity says we must mistreat ours? You don’t fight censorship with censorship. That doesn’t stand up to even the most cursory thought. You fight censorship with openness. As soon as you find yourself arguing that you have no choice but to engage in the same behaviors you claim to dislike, you have literally become the enemy.

> You don’t fight censorship with censorship. That doesn’t stand up to even the most cursory thought. You fight censorship with openness. Can you explain this better without the assumption that it is self-evident?

Sure. If censorship is wrong, then it is wrong. If censorship is just fine, the n it is just fine. It is the height of hypocrisy to engage in censorship in the name of stamping out censorship.

It feels like a tautology because the opposing viewpoint is a very simple hypocrisy. If you don’t like something, don’t do it.

Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#173
post #144
post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

i’m not sure which part confuses you—it means what i said. i don’t magically trust them more than i trust any government. if the collective We have decided we don’t trust governments with algorithmic manipulation powers, why on earth are we trusting anyone with concentrated power: billionaires, churches, governments, etc… it would seem We have deemed social media to be incredibly dangerous. i’m not yet personally con…

>if the collective We have decided we don’t trust governments with algorithmic manipulation powers, why on earth are we trusting anyone with concentrated power: billionaires, churches, governments, etc This is a crazy extrapolation. The sale/ban of tik tok was forced because the US government/people do not trust a China owned company. That is not simply extrapolated to, "oh well if we don't trust the CCP, how can you…

There are an awful lot of Chinese products that are not illegal, what specifically about TikTok are We concerned with?

It isn’t because it’s a pair of pliers or a notebook. it is because it has been decided it is too dangerous for that government to wield against society. again, if it’s too dangerous for them, why is it magically not too dangerous for the wannabe kings behind US social media companies?

they have at various times,

1) been caught manipulating citizens,

2) outright admitted their desires to strongly influence politics

3) refused to cooperate with elected officials investigating abuse

4) actively resisted any kind of oversight

so again i’ll say, im not convinced it is truly this dangerous, but We have declared that it is terrifyingly powerful. if it is this dangerous, it should absolutely not be in the hands of people who have already proven time and time again they’ll use it against us and really don’t want any oversight or transparency of their actions.

Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#176

Too many elections are being influenced by the free exchange of ideas on TikTok -- best to shut it down if the U.S. corrupt government cannot control it. Who cares what the people think!?

It's not the free exchange of ideas if the CCP can put its thumb on the scale.

Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#177
post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And the worst part of a Communism is "planned economy", e.g. the state decides which app/service is good or not.

There was the PLA hacking gmail accounts in Hong Kong also, which supposedly was why Google stopped playing nice in the first place.

It's a rogue state after all.

Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#178

This was always about running defense for the likes of Israel and it’s ongoing televised genocide…. This isn’t about national security, if it had been this would’ve never gotten as far as it has been, the door would’ve been closed long ago. TikTok and its algorithm isn’t beholden to the US’s government mandate like the other social media platforms. It also just happens to be the one with the largest amount of users a…

[flagged]

Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#179

This was always about running defense for the likes of Israel and it’s ongoing televised genocide…. This isn’t about national security, if it had been this would’ve never gotten as far as it has been, the door would’ve been closed long ago. TikTok and its algorithm isn’t beholden to the US’s government mandate like the other social media platforms. It also just happens to be the one with the largest amount of users a…

Anyone who's used TikTok knows the platform is heavily moderated and not at all an "anything goes" paradise for the exchange of free ideas. So, if, as you suggested, the moderation does not favour the US government's mandate, then the obvious question one should be asking is: whose mandate does it favour?

Re: US lawmakers tell Apple, Google to be ready to remove TikTok from stores Jan. 19

#180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Google did everything right in terms of local execution to get all the required licensure and top talent, and then Sergey threw it away.

Both founders having grown up in communist block countries supposedly had something to do with their aversion. At least that’s what I heard (was working for MS china back then).

Larry grew up in Michigan... a communist country?

(As I heard it, the legend is mostly attributed to Sergey pushing for it, and every time I've heard Eric talk about it it felt there was some disdain there, so I would agree with you that Larry was probably convinced also, otherwise Sergey alone wouldn't have pulled it off.)

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