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Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

mattstoller.substack.com

21–30 of 595 posts

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#21
post #5

Finally, they've started attacking big tech on the privacy front. The whole "monopoly" and "anti-trust" thing was going nowhere. But privacy orders like this are a step in the right direction. And to put the nail in big tech's coffin, congress should pass a law forbidding the sharing of any personal information on any resident of the US for any commercial reason whatsoever. With draconian penalties assessed per user…

And how do you feel about sharing the collected data of your conversations and travel with government agencies?

I feel there is nothing the government is going to do about that. This doesn't mean that I throw up my hands and say, OK, I'll let everyone have all of my communications logs since the government has them.

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#22
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Elaborate? Out of the loop

It's a game of "Spot the Fox News viewer". If you're a fan, you believe the largest ethical quandary facing the nation in the last quarter-century is that a person related to the President of the United States is selling a painting in an anonymous auction. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/obama-ethics-chief-hunter-b...

While I detest bias in all media (Fox included but in no way do they have a monopoly on)…

Are you saying Hunter Biden (the son of, not just “a person related to”) hasn’t recently sold his artwork for $500,000 a pop to anonymous buyers?

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is buying a son’s painting considered a donation or not?

Elaborate? Out of the loop

Here's an article from the NYT about how they are trying to ethically sell Hunter Biden's artwork. "Ethically sell" was a term I chose specifically because Hunter Biden is not an artist, and the question of why his paintings are being sold for half a million dollars and to whom is substance.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/08/us/politics/hunter-biden-...

Edit: Anyone can be an artist of course. Selling artwork for such a price would be quite an artist.

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#24
post #17
post #5

Finally, they've started attacking big tech on the privacy front. The whole "monopoly" and "anti-trust" thing was going nowhere. But privacy orders like this are a step in the right direction. And to put the nail in big tech's coffin, congress should pass a law forbidding the sharing of any personal information on any resident of the US for any commercial reason whatsoever. With draconian penalties assessed per user…

After all, now that the NSA has all their spy networks set up they don’t need the tech companies to do the spying anymore. Time to crack down. Makes me think of an abusive relationship where the abuser is very jealous and protective of the abused. “If anyone spies on my citizens, it’s gonna be me!”

I actually agree with this, it is an abusive relationship. Only the abuser has a gun to your head so there's nothing you can do about it.

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#26
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is buying a son’s painting considered a donation or not?

That's anonymous - there's no way for the Biden's to ever know the buyer. Of course, the buyer can just show them a picture of the painting in their house or whatever but that would be unethical.

> Of course, the buyer can just show them a picture of the painting in their house or whatever but that would be unethical.

Unethical, yes…something which a good chunk of society have no qualms with, especially those in the business of bribing politicians.

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#27
post #3

I can understand them going after Ag and Pharma in a big way, but I'm skeptical about the Tech part. There is just too much to lose in political support from that industry for any politician to attack them too aggressively.

I hope it’s real. We need modern anti trust laws, big tech is out of control. You’re right though.. sadly. Most importantly, we need to get money out of politics to free our government from the grips of these corporate conglomerates.

We must free ourselves from censorship.

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#28
"Hearing aids cost thousands of dollars apiece, for no other reason than there is a cartel established by government that prevents firms from selling hearing aids without a prescription."

An example of how many (most?) monopolies are able to exist because of some sort of legal authorization or protection. Regulatory capture.

There are dozens of companies who would no doubt start making inexpensive hearing aids tomorrow. Absent government regulation, they already would be.

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#29
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a game of "Spot the Fox News viewer". If you're a fan, you believe the largest ethical quandary facing the nation in the last quarter-century is that a person related to the President of the United States is selling a painting in an anonymous auction. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/obama-ethics-chief-hunter-b...

While I detest bias in all media (Fox included but in no way do they have a monopoly on)… Are you saying Hunter Biden (the son of, not just “a person related to”) hasn’t recently sold his artwork for $500,000 a pop to anonymous buyers?

As I understand it from reputable reporting, all such sales are hypothetical.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/deal-of-the-art-whit...

Re: Biden launches action on "Big Tech, Big Pharma, and Big Ag" – can it be real?

#30

How about Big Telecom and Big Fintech and Banking? Or is it simply because the rest did not pay enough to the lobbyists?

The ISPs have been getting hit in this series of orders.

That said, yes, fintech and banking are conspicuously absent. Which kind of lets you know that they are just too powerful.

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