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Proton CEO embraces Trump for "standing up for the little guys" (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) by to c/privacy@lemmy.ml
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Unnecessary and deeply concerning bow to the new "king"

Update: position got backed up by an official Proton post on Mastodon, it's an official Proton statement now. https://mastodon.social/@protonprivacy/113833073219145503

Update 2, plot-twist: they removed this response from Mastodon - seems they realize it exploded into their face!

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[+] -24 points 2 years ago (5 children)

Just be aware that this is a peculiarly American take. In Europe at least, most people will agree that somebody's opinions cannot somehow pollute whatever it is that they produce. Be it a traded good, or art, or in this case software.

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  • [–] 17 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Americans did not invent the idea of voting with their wallets. What a preposterous claim

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  • [+] -12 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    The concept that wrong opinions are like a taint that rubs off on everything they touch is indeed pretty uniquely American (with some echos in the rest of the anglosphere). It explains much of the craziness and bitterness of US politics in recent years. It is absolutely not replicated in, for example, Catholic Europe.

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  • [–] 12 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 child)

    Avoiding giving your money to companies that go against your politics isn't some irrational "tainted" concept. Not sure why you're insisting it is. It's just not supporting things you don't want to happen. These companies donate to and otherwise push forward bad policy. Also, still not sure where you got that Americans invented any of this, or how it would relate to the recent increase in polarization

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  • [–] -5 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    This is a guy's personal opinion about one aspect of a politician's program. The only fact he mentions is just that, a fact. His insinuation that Democrats are supported by big business is also fairly defensible. There's no obvious link to his company's practices. The opinion is banal and widespread. You and a bunch of others here are treating this semi-non-story like some kind of religious heresy. I can tell you're American just from that fact.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    His insinuation that Democrats are supported by big business is also fairly defensible

    The truth comes out. You think this is a "both sides" thing, and you agree with it.

    No, what's being said ITT is that he's praising trump prematurely and people don't want to support a business run by people who do that. Incredibly simple, and might I add, logical.

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  • [–] -4 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    You think this is a “both sides” thing

    I don't. I'm not American (as if it wasn't already clear) but if I were then I would have voted for anyone but Trump and done it with both hands. He's a literal insurrectionist, an obvious criminal, a complete charlatan, a nasty bully, and generally an all-round terrible human being. I'm a pretty phlegmatic person so these are big words and I mean it.

    But I still won't judge a whole company based on the personal opinions of one of its employees.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    ...this is their CEO. "One of their employees" couldn't possibly be more unrepresentative here.

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  • [–] -4 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    That's fair. Still, I will judge the company on what it does. The situation calls for vigilance, not hysterically running for the exit. Until proof to the contrary is forthcoming, Proton can still be considered a force for good.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Is this thread hysterical? I don't think so. Only saw like 3 people saying they would see this as a sign to stop patronizing the company, which makes sense to me entirely. You might be misreading the tone here.

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  • [–] -3 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Well one thing's for sure anyway: you're intolerantly downvoting all my opinions while I'm letting yours stand. Symptomatic of my underlying point.

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  • [–] 2 points 2 years ago* (1 child)

    Weird, I noticed all my comments got a downvote by the time I loaded your replies. In any case, reading so much into a downvote might also fall under "misreading tone". Kinda laughable to me in any case that downvoting could correlate to such political turmoil which is what you seem to be saying.

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  • [–] -2 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Probably not but censoriousness over wrong opinions is definitely a US specialty these days. I see in the culture and I've seen it in person with my own eyes. Culture can have deep roots and America, after all, was founded by religious fundamentalists. The 1st Amendment probably plays a role too. You don't see any of this because you're on the inside.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago* (1 child)

    I would probably agree with you to some degree within other contexts, but I do not see anything like that here. It's easy, vote with your wallet. Don't like something a company or its executives do? Don't give them money, done, easy.

    Praising trump for something he hasn't even done yet seems like a no brainer to me. It's indicative of an attitude held by the person that can make sweeping changes to Proton as a company. I don't see how it's controversial honestly. If this post also showed a campaign of people demanding everyone stop using proton over this opinion, maybe you'd have a point. Spreading it for awareness is a good thing, not "hysteria".

    Edit: One last thing, can you provide evidence that any of this originated in America? "You are on the inside and don't see it" is not evidence.

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  • [–] 5 points 2 years ago*

    This. Also, in Europe you can get internet, electricity, email from coops. There are even some "ethical banks" and some survivors from the 2008 (at least in Sapin) as "small savings rural banks" (cajas de ahorros).

    And if you aren't a rich progressist and can't afford some expensive eco-bio-coop consume, there are 2d hand options, food recicling, stealing is easy enough (and nobody will shoot a bullet to you for this) and so on. So, yeah, off-the-grid is a legit option, but on-the-grid stealing electricity from huge power corps is super legit also. No need to go to the caves.

    Even in case of no alternative (say, I must have an id and a cellphone number), this doesn't justify anything from CEOs. Fun fact is, in the case of Proton, there is PLENTY of alternatives. So, let's use all the colorful gradients instead of accepting to remain in a dark-gray scale

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  • [–] 5 points 2 years ago

    I mean for most people there are lots of variables here. You have to pick and choose your battles. This is the entire concept of The Good Place TV show.

    The only people that are 100% "good" are living in a fuckin yurt.

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  • [–] 3 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Idk in the rest of Europe, but in France I've witnessed the contrary a lot of times. I do however not have a study on a big enough sample to make a claim, this is all anecdotal evidence on my side.

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  • [–] -2 points 2 years ago

    Examples please. France is the classic example of a country where most people put the art before the artist. The partial exception, unsurprisingly, is younger people who are more plugged into the poisonous world of America's culture wars.

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