The big problem is the trustworthiness of that central authority to maintain the confidentiality of your information, and to not use it for other purposes.

this isnt about protecting kids online

It never is, but they always try to sell unpopular things as “protecting the kids”.

20 years ago when Scott Adams was still a moderately sane human.

and also fill the screen with pop up ads while you are at it

Like this!

As a Canadian, I would be fine with an EU based system that works globally.

I really hope some non-US controlled credit card issuers and processors start to exist soon.

The entire US financial system seems like such a risk to participate in these days.

The big question is what happens when they are no longer supply constrained.

I can’t see that happening unless the AI bubble pops and their insatiable demand for more hardware ends.

My decade old TV is starting to show its age with a couple of dead pixel columns.

I’m a bit stressed about trying to find a new one that has none of this kind of enshittification.

I just want something with a couple of HDMI inputs and an antenna connector.

I absolutely do not want any ad servers or mandatory account bullshit injecting itself where it isn’t wanted.

They’re setting up to verify identities online I presume?

To track online activities.

To ensure nobody is doing anything the government (or its corporate funders) don’t like.

Look at the Project2025 manifesto and see how much they want people’s activities to be controlled.

Depends how these new laws are written.

Is it fair to say: The field is benign

It is benign if it is optional, remains 100% local and under the user’s control and doesn’t prevent other software from functioning as expected.

Those are also entirely optional and not having them filled in doesn’t cause other software to stop doing what the user wants.

So… if the law interferes with your goals, apparently it is now perfectly fine to just ignore it.

That seems to be the approach the US government is taking.

until the parent company CEO gets replaced.

One would hope pulling such a boneheaded move ought to make that happen rather quickly.

Of course, if this CEO has been there for more than a year or 2, he would probably get a golden parachute for more than the value of his fuckup…

Or they don’t.

Welcome to the current presidency.

No surprise. Any war is largely decided on ability to maintain supplies.

I’ve really lost my faith in the US.

What little I had left was destroyed in November of 2024.

I was hoping they had learned from their previous mistake, but instead they doubled down.

Spy glasses are much less obvious than using a phone camera.

cure for dementia found"

The US government could use some of that these days.

Years of privacy violations going deeper and deeper under pretend of “progress” and “pRoTeCt the cHiLdReN”.

https://imgur.com/QqabC7T