This is the clearest reason yet to shut down tiktok; they fundamentally misunderstand the law and the point of the constitution. While I'm certain some administrations would love such a kill switch, any company that would implement one is inherently untrustworthy. The ability to oppose the government is perhaps the most foundational part of the American democracy.
Its fascinating how confused authoritarian government get by the real thing. They expect a sharade with some clever strong man in the shadows with ehom they can make deals. But ultimately, there is just none, there is none but us.
And ultimately, the people can not in the longterm: bribed, scared, subjugated and bamboozled. Its just that alien of a beast to them, such a mental abyss from alpha leader to omegamost unnecessary frontguy.
It wasn't until I used TikTok that I understood why it's so scary. Just based on how you interact with the app: how long you watch, what you like, how fast you're scrolling, etc. it starts to show you videos that are eerily related to what's going on in your life and what you're thinking. You don't even have to search for topics. You just start getting videos that seem to be reading your mind. The idea that they can tell what huge swathes of the population are thinking and feeling is scary. I think that's got to be a huge reason they want it under their control: it's sort of a mind-reading app.
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[ 3.2 ms ] story [ 17.5 ms ] threadAnd ultimately, the people can not in the longterm: bribed, scared, subjugated and bamboozled. Its just that alien of a beast to them, such a mental abyss from alpha leader to omegamost unnecessary frontguy.