It is getting harder to distinguish chatbots from humans.

I would talk with a mattress company's chatbot for information about its products, if I could do so without being identified. I would not ask it for advice, because I want unbiased advice and a mattress company is not the place to find unbiased information about mattresses.

I would not talk with anyone's chatbot about my personal feelings, because there is no reason whatsoever to expect it to keep my confidence.

CAPTCHAs and "click to agree" are examples of how computer systems are designed to reshape people to subserviently participate in the designs of the systems' owners, and avoid careful thinking.

Proprietary programs and online disservices are the means for doing this, but the solution to do this to people is found in executives and owners of those systems.

The free software movement has considerable overlap, therefore, with the refusal to let businesses reshape you.

How an excess "safetyism" can make people grow up fragile and weak. We should reject the idea that to challenge a person's ideas is to threaten per.

George Monbiot: The Earth is in a death spiral. It will take radical action to save us.

Some causes involve conflicting interests between groups. In these causes, society generally makes a compromise. An different compromise that is better for your group may be a fine goal.

But when there is an absolute goal, for instance defending human rights or survival, it is a mistake to ask people to aim campaigns at "politically realistic" lesser steps that won't be adequate to achieve the goal.

The free software movement, to give users control over their computing, is also of this kind. Each step in the right direction is good, but it won't be over until users' freedom is fully respected.

Five Supreme Court decisions that gave the US government dangerous power.