If you live in Mississippi, you may have noticed that you are no longer able to log into your Bluesky or Dreamwidth accounts from within the state. That’s because, in a chilling early warning sign for the U.S., both social platforms decided to block all users in Mississippi from their services rather than risk hefty fines under the state’s oppressive age verification mandate.

This consolidation of power is a dream come true for the Big Tech platforms, but it’s a nightmare for users. While the megacorporations get more traffic and a whole lot more user data (read: profit), users are left with far fewer community options and a bland, corporate surveillance machine instead of a vibrant public sphere. The internet we all fell in love with is a diverse and colorful place, full of innovation, connection, and unique opportunities for self-expression. That internet—our internet—is worth defending.

  • Saltarello@lemmy.worldEnglish
    18·
    2 days ago

    You can’t always simply VPN around it. I applied for a job via one of the popular job sites. Tried to log back in to the job site a week later only to to find my account had been blocked until I provide proof of ID to a US based third party company …I’m in Europe. Spoiler alert: I did not provide proof of ID & so have no idea whether or not I was a suitable applicant for the job.

    Guess i won’t be job hunting through that site again. The whole thing is farcical.

    • youmaynotknow@lemmy.zipEnglish
      3·
      1 day ago

      This is the display of how we fight this. And I can only imagine the balls it took for you to take that position and move along. You’re one of those scarce unsung heroes that stands by his values instead of bending over to avoid inconvenience or even potentially detrimental outcomes.