Commercial Convenience Panopticon
You seen these new devices being touted as the hottest new gadget to improve your home life?
Maybe you want one. Maybe you think it's a great idea. Maybe your mother-in-law already has 3 and can't shut up about how wonderful they are. Whatever. I can sum up my opinion of these in just 3 words: fuck this shit. Why? 2 points of view on why these are fucking terrible:
1) E-Commerce Invasion
It wasn't enough that your browser and phones are continually trying to shove more and more advertisements in your face. It wasn't enough that WiFi-enabled buttons helped you order more Tide detergent or Astroglide. No, we needed to go even further and put a fucking capitalism dildo on proud display in your living room as though it represents substantial progress of any kind. Not only can this device tell you the weather or when your snot-nosed crotchspawn needs to be picked up from dressage practice, it also deepens the ad-serving profile that Google, Amazon, etc etc have on your ass. By buying this sort of shit, you are volunteering for commercial vivisection in real time.
These devices are not innovative. North Korea and Stalin already beat us to the punch with state-mandated radios in every home bleating propaganda all day long. All that's been done here is to wrap up the same exact concept in the guise of making online shopping easier, but the end result is the same. Talk to your computer to be served more accurate ads so that you'll buy more useless shit you don't even need. Hip-hip-hooray...goddammit.
2) Easy-Bake Surveillance
You think that these devices are secure just because they came from a big shiny company? Think again. Not only can they be captured by any random 11-year-old who's good at the cyber, they can be pressed into the service of botnets and 3-letter agencies alike. By getting one of these, you are eagerly embedding an always-on microphone in your home and trusting that these companies will magically Do The Right Thing with the data that they collect. Bullshit. You are the product and this is just another barcode to remind you of your commodity value.
Do not buy this.
1) E-Commerce Invasion
It wasn't enough that your browser and phones are continually trying to shove more and more advertisements in your face. It wasn't enough that WiFi-enabled buttons helped you order more Tide detergent or Astroglide. No, we needed to go even further and put a fucking capitalism dildo on proud display in your living room as though it represents substantial progress of any kind. Not only can this device tell you the weather or when your snot-nosed crotchspawn needs to be picked up from dressage practice, it also deepens the ad-serving profile that Google, Amazon, etc etc have on your ass. By buying this sort of shit, you are volunteering for commercial vivisection in real time.
These devices are not innovative. North Korea and Stalin already beat us to the punch with state-mandated radios in every home bleating propaganda all day long. All that's been done here is to wrap up the same exact concept in the guise of making online shopping easier, but the end result is the same. Talk to your computer to be served more accurate ads so that you'll buy more useless shit you don't even need. Hip-hip-hooray...goddammit.
2) Easy-Bake Surveillance
You think that these devices are secure just because they came from a big shiny company? Think again. Not only can they be captured by any random 11-year-old who's good at the cyber, they can be pressed into the service of botnets and 3-letter agencies alike. By getting one of these, you are eagerly embedding an always-on microphone in your home and trusting that these companies will magically Do The Right Thing with the data that they collect. Bullshit. You are the product and this is just another barcode to remind you of your commodity value.
Do not buy this.
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