| "You have zero privacy in the internet and you're an idiot if you think otherwise." This type of statement usually comes from the "schizo" who is "living on the internet", not the "normie" who has a life away from the internet and only uses it occasionally. It is a common "all-or-nothing" perspective that has been shared on HN for at least a decade. Meanwhile so-called "tech" companies spend millions on lobbying against privacy regulation and pay millions in fines and settlements for violations. Perhaps whether one has "privacy" is not as important as whether one believes they might be able to get it. As long as the possibility of "getting it" exists in people's minds, and people take action toward that end, then so-called "tech" companies face a potentially existential threat. It interferes with the progression of their only "business model". The "all-or-nothing" view of "privacy" seen in HN comments is particularly suspect when one considers that those invested in so-called "tech" companies have a financial interest in erasing the _possibility_ of "privacy", i.e., the motivation to take action, however small and seemingly insignificant, from people's minds. There are ways to use the internet that send minimal useful data to so-called "tech" companies and there are ways to use the internet that send maximum amounts of data to so-called "tech" companies. Neither is "internet privacy" in the absolute sense. But each has a different effect on the "business model" of so-called "tech" commpanies. More importantly, less use of the internet may result in less data being shared with so-called "tech" companies. Good luck getting the "schizo" to reduce their internet use. It is not suprising the "schizo" would suggest an absolutist standard of "internet privacy" where achieving it is impossible. For the "schizo" who is wedded to the computer, this is probably true. |
It's less a function of mental illness or time spent online, and more simply pointing out the old-as-writing state of affairs where companies will do whatever they can do to you to make more money. See the "Complaint tablet to Ea-nāṣir" for a timeline of this.
It is not hallucinatory to observe that companies take advantage of people given the opportunity to do so, and it is not indicative of mental illness to be unhappy about being on the receiving end.