| Yeah, companies make political statements all the time, on a regular basis, on all political "sides". -- Whether it is a hunting accessories business advocating for 2nd amendment rights, -- An enormous craft supply store (hobby lobby) using religious beliefs to decide what their employees insurance will cover, -- A shoe company (Nike) hiring a controversial spokesperson (Kaepernick), -- A coffee company (Starbucks) choosing to say holiday rather than pander to a religious sect, -- A bakery refusing to sell cakes to lgbtq folks, -- Enormous corps spending massive money to disrupt any employees attempts to discuss whether or not they wish to unionize, -- A software ceo donating sums of money to groups trying to ban lgbtq marriage, -- Fossil fuel spending billions to support candidates who support their business interests, -- Renewable energy industries supporting candidates who support renewable energy projects, -- A famous software ceo providing substantial funding for lawsuits to bring down popular liberal media sites he disagrees with, I find it incredibly confusing why people pretend like this is a new thing, or that silicon valley is alone in this, or that the left shouldn't be allowed to use the same tools. To be clear, I think all business interests and influence should be severely limited from politics, but that just isn't the world in which we live. The world we live in allows a disproportionate amount of influence from all industries, with plenty of real world examples from across the entire political spectrum. If we want to have a conversation about removing corporate interests entirely, I'm game, but I'm not willing to entertain some false notion that only liberals use these tools and certainly not willing to say only conservatives can use those tools as cudgels. |