Tech gifts that take more than they give -- Brands that progressives should refuse
Many mainstream technology brands engage in a variety of freedom-oppressing political activities. It's a rampant problem because not enough consumers are paying attention.
There is also a widespread sense of hopelessness following the recent election, but civil libertarians can still vote - that is, vote when shopping. Brands that are detrimental to progressive causes are listed below. Stop feeding these companies. If (for example) you buy a color HP printer as a gift for a left-leaning recipient, be aware that you are actually doing them a disservice that reduces their liberties and the liberties of others.
The data:
| Company | ALEC status | CISPA or CISA support | Drug Tests | Tacker Dots | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adobe | |||||
| Amazon | former member | Tax avoidance practices inspired an organized boycott. | |||
| Apple | |||||
| AT&T | |||||
| Brother | |||||
| Compaq | |||||
| Canon | |||||
| Cisco | |||||
| Dell | former member | Advertises on Breitbart News (a neocon publication). Dell's website also blocks Tor (thus privacy-hostile) | |||
| Epson | |||||
| Fujitsu | |||||
| former member | Anti-whistleblower tactics | ||||
| HP | former member | DRM scandal: automatic malicious firmware update surreptitiously pushed to users. Human rights oppression: supports gaza naval blockade. | |||
| IBM | former member | ||||
| Intel | ALEC founder | TPP supporter. Spy chips: x86 chips made in the past 8 yrs are backdoored. | |||
| Iris | Subsidiary of Canon | ||||
| Kodak | |||||
| Konica Minolta | |||||
| Kyocera | |||||
| Lanier | Subsidiary of Ricoh | ||||
| Lenovo | lenovo.com blocks Tor (thus privacy-hostile) | ||||
| Lexmark | SOPA supporter | ||||
| Microsoft | former member | Sneaky tricks | |||
| Minolta | |||||
| Mitsubishi | |||||
| Motorola | Caught putting spyware on their phones. Knowingly and willfully supplies human rights oppressor in gaza blockade. | ||||
| NEC | |||||
| NRG | Subsidiary of Ricoh | ||||
| Netflix | Organized DRM boycott | ||||
| Panasonic | |||||
| Philips/Norelco | Eco harm: produces battery-powered devices with irreplacable batteries. | ||||
| Ricoh | |||||
| Samsung | Copious federal influence (see the venn diagram | ||||
| Savin | |||||
| Sharp | |||||
| Siemens | |||||
| Sony | There is a boycott for intimidating users who mod their products. SOPA supporter | ||||
| T-Mobile | former member | ||||
| Tektronix | Subsidiary of Xerox | ||||
| Toshiba | SOPA supporter | ||||
| Verizon | |||||
| Visioneer | Partnered with Xerox | ||||
| Xerox | SOPA supporter | ||||
| Yahoo | former member |
To read the above table, note that an icon is a "yes" for that column. For sources and more detail about the various issues examined above, please see which printer and scanner brands are ethical. For detail on why workplace drug testing is harmful, see Employer-imposed Drug Testing.
Actions:
- If you receive a gift of an above-mentioned brand, ask the giver to return it. They cannot expect you to facilitate something that goes against your beliefs.
- Choose alternative brands wisely. See the giving guide wiki. Nevermind the 2012 date. If your constitution isn't strong enough to boycott all of the above brands, at least boycott the worst of them.
- Pitfalls: some laptop makers are pre-installing (Gnu) linux (or no OS) to give the illusion of as freedom-respecting, but then they use Intel chips. E.g. Puri.sm, Clevo, and System 76.
- Consider not buying any gifts for adults. Here is some inspiration.
Wow, I didn't know it was that bad.