Bonum Certa Men Certa

A Toxic Combination: Monopoly on War and Monopoly on Human Rights Causes

Helicopters

Summary: Monopolies are trying not only to control the market -- including the military sector -- but also to control the narrative of opposition to them (those who raise ethical concerns about such actions)

TECHRIGHTS would be no newcomer or stranger to the disturbing trend (we've been making site changes recently so as to more effectively tackle emerging threats). Companies that have in essence monopolised (or 'oligopolised') imperialism, militarism, internment camps etc. claim to also have a monopoly over various groups that claim to represent the public interest. As the old saying goes, "money talks" and they offer/take money. "Follow the money" is another saying...



"Enough money and persistence can destroy just about anything."Where does that leave the rest of us, who are governed -- or spoken 'on behalf of' -- by those who assert they stand for manners and ethics (while accepting money from rude, brutal and unethical corporations)? Or even directly by those corporations? Does IBM really fight for social justice? Or is that just some shallow PR tactic? Obviously the latter.

The problem isn't unique to software. When mass movements and popular actions (activism/campaigns) emerged against corrupt banks the corporate-led wars (looking to profit from deaths by the millions, amassing trillions of dollars by killing millions of people of 'lesser value') attempts were made to infiltrate and control the opposition. Did that always work? To some degree, yes. Enough money and persistence can destroy just about anything. In the case of software, look no further than the OSI and the Linux Foundation, especially after they took Microsoft bribes and blessed the aggressive acquisition of GitHub as though it was an act of "love"...

Apple Computer Senior VP Avadis Tevanian Jr. once said:

"Microsoft does not hesitate to use its operating system monopoly power and application program dominance to try to eliminate competition."


Now, with GitHub, Microsoft has another monopoly paradigm, which it is already misusing to create lock-in and "eliminate competition." Is GitHub ethical? Not only is it proprietary software, it's also working for ICE on internment camps. It's censoring the Web, along with Google...

Distortion or obfuscation of facts may be effective (like taking about some mythical "Arctic vault" to distract the media from ICE-GitHub), but provided we have the capacity to respond and rebut we can win the argument and show people what's really going on.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Microsoft-Sponsored Xenophobia and Nationalism
IBM is very similar in this regard
Tentative Summary of Things to Publish in Project 2030
I'll still be in my forties by then
 
Links 21/09/2025: "Hey Hi" (Hype) Under Fire, Fakes Identified; Tesla Burns Family
Links for the day
Google's Software is Malware and Malware in Mobile Devices
Originally posted by Rob Musial
Links 20/09/2025: Hegemony Coming to a Close, Luigi Mangione Ruled Not Terrorist
Links for the day
Gemini Links 21/09/2025: "Charlie Kirk Was a Hateful Piece of Shit" and Slop Code Attempted by Microsofter
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, September 20, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, September 20, 2025
Gemini Links 20/09/2025: Snowy Photos and utism is a Spectrum
Links for the day
Vintage is Sometimes Better
Why can't we get back to "simple" if (or where) "simple" means better?
Climate Breakdown Means We'll be Publishing More, Not Less
Press freedom will be a common, recurring theme
Our 5-Year Geminispace Anniversary is Coming Up
I still remember when Gemini Protocol was quite new
It's Right to Point Out Violence From the Right
Violence is a recurring theme
Web Browsers That "Do Hey Hi" (AI)
State-of-the-art plagiarism or "autocomplete on steroids" (not coined by us, nevertheless a nice description) don't have much/any prospect
Links 20/09/2025: Hardware Projects in View, Some Independent Publishers About Russia Prosper After Cheeto Cuts Funding
Links for the day
Gemini Links 20/09/2025: Options and TV Time Machine
Links for the day
Links 20/09/2025: Retrocomputer, Antique Phone Experience, and More
Links for the day
Links 20/09/2025: Internet Shutdowns, Media Censorship, and Climate Worries
Links for the day
About 700 New Gemini Capsules in 13 Months (or 54 Per Month)
4.8K would represent a 20% increase
Rust People: Drain the Swap, You're Holding It Wrong
Does Rust make sense?
Techrights the Name Turns 15
About 6 weeks from now we turn 19
Microsoft is Running Out of Time and Floating Fake Figures, Fake Projects, Fake Narratives, Fake Excuses
Also, a lot of Microsoft's "revenue" claims are circular financing (i.e. Microsoft buying from itself, which means Ponzi-like fraud)
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity, linuxconfig.org, and Plagiarised Phoronix
Many articles out there are nowadays fake
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, September 19, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, September 19, 2025
Gemini Links 20/09/2025: Navigating the Pressures of Modern Life and SpellBinding Accidentally Wrote Another Gemini Server
Links for the day
Links 19/09/2025: Press Freedom Dying in US, Anti-Austerity Strikes in France, and Alan Rusbridger to Leave 'Prospect'
Links for the day
European Patent Office Illegally Gutting and Outsourcing Its Functions, Acting Like an Above-the-Law Commercial Business (It Won't Stop at Formalities Officers (FOs) and Classification Slop at the EPO)
breaking/violating laws and conventions
Offloading to the Sister Site
In the interest of not overwhelming readers
Links 19/09/2025: Coffee Club and "SpellBinding is Now Absurdly Fast"
Links for the day
Links 19/09/2025: Lobbyist of American GAFAM Becomes Data Protection Commissioner in Europe
Links for the day
Links 19/09/2025: Media Freedom Ceases to Exist in US, "Consider Dropping Twitter/X"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/09/2025: Thinking and Insect Bites
Links for the day
Microsoft E.E.E.: Git Will Now (or Very Soon) Fully Depend on Rust, Which is Controlled by Microsoft
Microsoft now makes Git dependent on Rust, or making Git dependent on GitHub, which is proprietary
The Right to Punch People (Apparently)
At Brett Wilson, Brett's job title is "Head of Crime" and Wilson normalises calls for violence
Slop or Fake Articles Have Turned Linux Journal From a Pioneering/Trailblazing "Linux" Magazine Into a Nuisance
some sites with former reputation - good reputation - turn into cesspools
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, September 18, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, September 18, 2025