2025-02-17
When computing and tech are turned against us
"Here's to the fascist ones.
The boot lickers.
The sycophants.
The toadies.
The people who roll the fuck over.
The ones that have no spine…
They're not fond of integrity
And they have no respect for human decency…"
-Source
I was deeply disgusted when I woke up a few days ago to the news that Apple has chosen to return to advertising on what many now view as a Nazi social media platform. I'm not surprised. Any social justice ethics put forth by multinational capitalists can only ever be a pretense. As a capitalist seeking to maximize profits Apple will often make decisions I don't like. Given the role of its owner in current events, Apple's choice to advertise on X is something I will not ignore.
I've been an Apple user since around 1993 when I bought a Mac Color Classic for school. In the years after I delved further into the role of geek in my little activist community. By 1998 I was building our various websites and doing the design and layout for flyers, pamphlets and newsletters. I was the nerd that kept the network going in our housing co-op or otherwise did tech support for the few fellow activist folk that had started using computers. I'd moved past just using the computer as a tool and had begun to enjoy it as a device. I went from being a bicycle mechanic to managing a computer lab at our local adult literacy council where I also rebuilt our volunteer-student database system. In those days Apple was the scrappy underdog of computer manufactures and it was easier to root for them.
In the years since I've mostly made my living sitting in front of a Mac or, more recently, an iPad. It's both work and entertainment. I never doubted that Apple was just another multinational corporation doing capitalism. Nevertheless, I let myself get comfortable in their ecosystem because I enjoyed using the devices and the software. Add to that their persistent messaging that they valued social justice, diversity and were willing to make a meaningful attempt at responsible resource use and climate-related accounting. Still capitalism but seemingly better than most others in these regards. But it's obvious that Apple is no different than any other multinational corporation. It may still wear the costume of social progressivism and multiculturalism but that's just marketing makeup.
Moving beyond the Apple ecosystem
The conundrum in trying to make ethical choices is that all hardware is made by capitalists. But for the first time in years I'll be looking for alternative options when I next need to purchase new hardware which won't be for a long while because I don't buy tech unless I really have to. My current devices should last another 6-10 years if I replace the batteries once per device. The only exception might be the iPhone 13 which only has 3 years of use on it. With another battery I'd guess I can get another 3-4 years out of it. I'll evaluate where things are then. Same for my iPad further down the line. I was going to replace my 6 year old AppleWatch this fall but no, I'll just skip it. I like having the watch for fitness tracking but I now have a pretty good idea of how my daily activity translates into in terms of calories and balance with my diet. I don't actually need the watch anymore.
But there's also a larger question beyond my personal consumption of Apple products (and computer tech generally). I'm also questioning what and how I contribute to the internet. For years I've enjoyed writing about my use of apps and hardware on my website/blog as well as on forums, most recently the Mac Power Users forum and Mastodon. Though my voice and contribution is tiny, many such voices add up to a much larger online culture and "community". There's a whole cottage industry of tech culture, websites, podcasts and YouTube for Apple enthusiasts and we all contribute our time and energy via posts, views, etc. While I know my personal contribution is minuscule I'm not sure not sure I want to add to this anymore.
At this point it's not just about Apple so much as it is about the tech industry as a whole. I grew up loving science fiction and shows like Star Trek. I wanted to view computer tech as tools to be used by humans to better learn and communicate. I wanted to believe that computers would help us get along better by deepening our understanding of our world and one another. That they, in conjunction with the internet, would bring us together and increase the potential for, and likelihood of, cooperation.
And yes, certainly, some of that has happened. For example, Wikipedia! But it would seem the trend is for computers and the internet to be used in more harmful ways, increasing social insecurity, competition and a persistent, general state of anxiety for many. Perhaps most notable is our use of "social media" which, for many people, may be the primary use of the internet. I may be projecting but it would seem to me that when the most popular terms to describe online activity are terms such as doomscrolling and enshitification, perhaps that's an indicator that we've taken a wrong turn.
A strange dynamic of social media is that it both comforts and agitates us. In any given moment of scrolling a timeline we'll likely find ourselves swinging wildly between anger to laughter, frustration to momentary contentment. It seems to create a never-satisfied seeking for a fulfillment that never comes. Never satisfied, always scrolling for more. I quit Facebook 10 years ago, Twitter 3 years ago and finally quit Instagram a few months ago. But so many others are still trapped in it.
And now the most recent developments would seem to be the rise of an increasingly brazen tech oligarchy in the US that accompanies the rise of AI, a questionable technology that pumps out misinformation and requires even more energy resulting in even more carbon emissions being dumped into the atmosphere. Taken as a whole, the tech industry under capitalism seems to have become yet another crisis in the larger polycrisis.
It didn't have to be this way. It doesn't have to be this way. I suppose I'm stubborn and I want to cling to my vision of a more idealistic version of both humanity and computer technology. For the foreseeable future I expect to continue to use computers daily but I have no illusions about Apple or the industry as a whole. The shining lights of the internet and computer technology are personal websites and projects like Wikipedia and Linux. Perhaps ActivityPub and the Fediverse will have a place in a healthier, non-capitalist web but its use of the timeline seems somewhat problematic in that it reinforces a tendency to habitual doomscrolling pioneered by capitalist social media products.
Minimizing my use of Apple Services
I can't afford to just switch to Linux. But I've begun a process of reducing my use of Apple services. I cut my Music subscription 5 months ago. My only subscription is iCloud so I'll begin experimenting with a transition to a mix of on-device storage and local-network storage for all my file needs. I don't purchase media or apps unless I really want or need them. Going forward I'll seek to draw this down to near zero. I'll have to really think on how to manage my photos as I currently have that in iCloud Photos. I'll begin looking at alternatives.
I'm not in a rush as I expect to be using the iPhone and iPads for several years. My plan for the moment is to begin the transition. I see enough chatter about this to know I'm not alone in thinking about this. I'm hoping and expecting to see more people sharing similar thoughts and solutions. Apple has made their hardware and services ecosystem safe and easy to use. My elder relatives all use Apple devices with almost no need for support and that will likely continue for the foreseeable future.
I have my 2012 Mac Mini as a back-up device. It's shut down on a shelf. I may go ahead and start experimenting with Linux on that. The iPad has spoiled me. A part of why I prefer it over the Mac is simply that it is so easy and low maintenance. In terms of computing I've come to value spending less time mucking about with configuring hardware. The Mac, while more complex than an iPad is still very easy to use. But Linux would be new to me and it would be a step towards complexity that I'm hesitant to embrace. I'll think on it a bit but it does seem like the only ethical option at this point.
I don't have comments but I love email or you can find me on Mastodon.
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