Facebook Admits Censoring Content in Pakistan
pcworld.com
pcworld.com
As individuals, we don't always do what is in our own personal best interest. We choose to execute what we percieve to be our social responsibilities and we do so, at least in part because the society at large expects this of us. Shouldn't we expect corporates to carry a little bit of social responsibility?
When companies act this way, they further reinforce preference falsification and put local movements for social change years behind. Now the moderate Muslim in Pakistan will find it even more difficult to publicly express her views and this will push the tipping point for a more moderate Islam in Pakistan by quite a few years.
I would argue that the same thing applies to individuals; that no rational actions are truly outside of self-interest, because we do what makes us happy, even if the action itself would appear to be selfless.
That would be the rational thing for us to demand, since a more liberal Pakistan would make both us and Pakistanis happier. Nowadays it is a matter of corporations' interest rather than law.
But not always. Google shareholders do not have the right to have google act evil even if it would have increased their value. A charity is obligated to serve whatever beneficiary group is listed in their charter and can't serve other groups (i.e., no redirecting anti-malaria funds to save the dolphins).
...and thus advocating a lowest-common-denominator philosophy for the Internet.