Data Is The New Oil !
Tech giants amass lobbying army for epic Washington battle (JUNE 2019)
SFGATE.COM: WASHINGTON — Faced with the growing possibility of antitrust actions and legislation to curb their power, four of the biggest technology companies are amassing an army of lobbyists as they prepare for what could be an epic fight over their futures. Initially slow to develop a presence in Washington, the tech giants — Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google — have rapidly built themselves into some of the largest players in the influence and access industry as they confront threats from the Trump administration and both parties on Capitol Hill.
EARTH CUSTODIANS: Anyone realizing what the IoT is really about, will understand why Tech Giants are out defending their "data investment". In fact, they are just protecting their market shares, because without the unwilling participation of consumers, they could file for bankruptcy overnight. Our data -- consumer habits and emotions -- is what they thrive on to control the whole planet.
The four companies spent a combined $55 million on lobbying last year, doubling their combined spending of $27.4 million in 2016, and some are spending at a higher rate so far this year, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks lobbying and political contributions. That puts them on a par with long-established lobbying powerhouses like the defense, automobile and banking industries.
It is crystal clear that monetarism has become a "several headed monster" enabling some to commoditize Life on every levels possible. Remember this previous blog of ours (Telepathy Technologies Will Not Be For "Regular" Humans) revealing that even plants are going to be used to spy on humans. So yes, you can rest assured that Tech Giants are going to pour 10's -- if not 100's -- of millions of dollars, corrupting politics, to make sure that we remain digitally enslaved.
Of the 238 people registered to lobby for the four companies in the first three months of this year — both in-house employees and those on contract from lobbying and law firms — about 75% formerly served in the government or on political campaigns, according to an analysis of lobbying and employment records. Many worked in offices or for officials who could have a hand in deciding the course of the new governmental scrutiny.
What an eye opener, folks! The evidence of lobbying monetizing politics on a grand scale. Crony capitalism in other words. Should they succeed (or not) in protecting their "masterminds", people should consider to turn off or throw away most of their smart devices, keep only 1 computer at home connected to the internet, and switch to a 3G cell version if possible or/and completely quit buying online because this is likely one of the very last opportunities we have to make a direct impact. Perhaps the last one.
This said, sources reported a few days ago that SapceX boosters have all landed safely and thus are ready for the next round of 5G satellites destined to mantle the planet. Big Tech depends on them. When the operation is complete, we'll have 12,000 of them floating on our skies and then the little privacy we still have will be gone for ever. Musk knows what he is talking of when saying that A.I. could create an ‘immortal dictator from which we can never escape’. There is no "could" but "will"...
“They are no longer upstarts dipping a toe in lobbying,” said Sheila Krumholz, the executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics. “They have both feet in.” Facebook and Google are dogged by concerns over their handling of personal data, harmful content and misinformation. Amazon’s rapid expansion has been met with unease over labor conditions and the company’s effect on small businesses. Apple’s control over its app store makes it hard for new apps to get discovered, some rivals say.
Sure, now they lament that the Big Tech stifles competition while completely ignoring that it is competition model that gave them the advantage to take over the market, because collusion is embedded in the premise of monetarism. It has gone unnoticed for so long because our system praises entrepreneurship, regardless of the means invested to make it happen.
If we ever had addressed the "celebrity cult of the rich" decades ago, power would have completely vanished by now. But then people would have realized that solidarity and collaboration is key to ensure the planet safety, and monetarism would have been eliminated.
And the two top federal antitrust agencies agreed to divide oversight over Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google as they explore whether the companies have abused their market power to harm competition and consumers. “Unwarranted, concentrated economic power in the hands of a few is dangerous to democracy — especially when digital platforms control content,” Speaker Nancy Pelosi tweeted after the Judiciary Committee announced its investigation. “The era of self-regulation is over.”.... Pelosi received nearly $43,000 in total donations for her 2018 re-election campaign from employees and political action committees of Facebook, Amazon and Alphabet, Google’s corporate parent....
There is a potential bad news associated with this decision, and which is a power transfer, that the government could officially merge with corporations, under the guise to "monitor" them.
“We have seen these tech companies escape accountability for years,” said Lisa Gilbert, the vice president of legislative affairs for the government watchdog group Public Citizen. The group, which has called for more user data protections and for breaking up Facebook...
And of course, not one words about 5G, that will help gather data 24/7, not to mention being a serious health hazard. This move is a total diversion, if you want our opinion. Lisa Gilbert does not even question the fact that these companies pay little to no taxes... follow the money!
FULL ARTICLE: https://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Tech-giants-amass-lobbying-army-for-epic-13961665.php#photo-17621070
FURTHER READINGS/VIEWING
'Data is the new oil': Rise of internet connected smart products means our private information is increasingly valuable to companies, experts warn
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-7111575/Our-data-valuable-oil-expert-warns.html
NSA has infected computer hardware with spyware at the firmware level: even NEW computers are infected from day one (2015)
https://www.naturalnews.com/048989_NSA_government_surveillance_computer_firmware.html
Elon Musk warns A.I. could create an ‘immortal dictator from which we can never escape’ (2018)
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/06/elon-musk-warns-ai-could-create-immortal-dictator-in-documentary.html?fbclid=IwAR3QpwYkL_QaLy_RZyl3XoWeYjkMF_tlcrP7J3Mej8ItuGwlOyenxhkWrhE
Ben Swann ON: Tech Companies Hiring Army of Lobbyist's To Defend Them
Tech giants build a lobbying army amid antitrust investigations (CBS)
To listen to the audio version of this article click on the play image.
Brought to you by @tts. If you find it useful please consider upvoting this reply.
Curated for #informationwar (by @wakeupnd)
Ways you can help the @informationwar!