this post was submitted on 30 Mar 2024
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It’s like… I want to disagree with you, but you’re making me think.
Why are we ok with having required services that are only provided by third party companies?
They’re not specific - No government says you must have a Facebook or Twitter account. But you’re right - you have to have a bank account and you’ll not get far in 2024 without email.
What about a step further? If you want a phone number, you need a landline or mobile. Both of those are only provided by private companies too…
Private vs public is not a new debate by any means. I think the tax preparation business in the US a great example. Decades ago the US government was deciding whether to develop a government web based front end to file US taxes. Predictably the existing big players objected to this and offered a deal.
The gist of the deal was they would let most tax players file for free. Why waste government money and resources when the private sector can do it cheaper. Sounds good right?
Well in the end it did not work out that way. Websites used dark patterns to get tax preparers to pay when they should not. They had many data breaches and you can assure yourself they mined the fuck out of any data you share with them.
I like the idea of a standard government phone. Secured by our best technology and locked up tight from data miners.
Perhaps passing stringent privacy laws and regulating the hell out of these technology companies could be enough to turn the tide and certainly they would prefer this to the prospect of the government taking away their monopolies.
I am firmly on the side of the government providing these services though because of the reality we are facing.
All this and we didn't even get to ISPs yet. It is a fucken doozy over here in a lot of aspects.