I’m just amazed Cory Doctorow of all people doesn’t use uBlock and got duped by this. I’ve always seen Google Ads as about as reliable as the fake download buttons on crappy file websites. You tune them out or block them.
It is easy to assign blame to victims.
This has happened to bycicle owners. If you don't lock your bike it's your fault your bike gets stolen. But theft is illegal. Theft is if someone wants to take something that doesn't belong to him and then executes the taking. Locks don't change this fact. It just makes the execution of the crime more difficult.
I have a vision of an utopia where people can leave all things unlocked. If they get stolen, the thief gets identified immediately and he has to give the things back. No punishment at all or only a token punishment. This should work because sanctions are not neccessary if no harm was done. Today we punish caught thieves somewhat harshly because we need to deter people from becoming thieves. If we can stop thefts just after the fact, token punishment will suffice. If someone repeatedly tries to steal things in that utopia we could offer therapy or try to find out the underlying cause of the attempted thefts. That's utopia: everything works out perfectly for everybody (shrugs).
Today we lock our browsing experience using uBlock just because we have to. We also have to lock our bikes, because we have to. Sorry for the tangent.
That's utopia for you (shrugs).
What?
It's difficult to tell online whether a statement is facetious or not. But I can't see how this makes any sense otherwise.
One advantage of visions of utopias: they give ideas for a better world and also it shows what-if perspectives: what if we really could catch thieves in a beneficial way and help them? what if there is a business opportunity because there's a need to be fulfilled?
I mean, if this is a "great Thai restaurant in my neighborhood", how likely is it he ordered there yesterday for the first time?
You're probably joking, but even if you do order from a place a couple times a year it can be hard to tell which site is theirs. A local restaurant for me at one point had two different websites, each featured different indoor pictures of the location and their food. I never knew if I should use the new one or the old one, with the problem being solved when they retired and the new owners renamed the place.