TikTok

For those who don't know, TikTok is a social media platform that offers short videos.  It is like YouTube for people with short attention spans.  Currently, the US Congress is discussing what to do about TikTok.  Why?  TikTok is a Chinese company and therefore, like all Chinese companies, it is a pawn of the Chinese Communist Party.  As such, there are several concerns regarding TikTok in the United States.

First, user data is at risk.  The Chinese could easily acquire all the data that TikTok collects on those who have downloaded the app.  The story of data breaches at various companies is an old one, but in the case of TikTok it isn't so much a breach as a free exchange to the Chinese government.  How risky is this?  Is some arm of the Chinese government going to open a credit card in the name of some Zoomer?  Unlikely.

Second, the app could be used to spy.  There has long been an issue with apps that virtually take over the phone and thus allow others to listen in or even watch via the microphone and camera.  There is also location data, various other apps, and so forth.  As this is an app produced by a rival global power, it might be best to limit its use in the United States.

Lastly and most importantly, it is foreign propaganda.  Through algorithms, TikTok can emphasize certain messages and suppress others.  For example, criticism of Xi Jinping or the Uyghur genocide has been censored.  Here is a social media platform that is tremendously popular among youth, who are also the easiest to brainwash.  That is probably not a coincidence.

Many countries have already banned TikTok to some degree.  The Anglosphere (England, US, Canada, New Zealand) has banned it from government devices, which addresses point two, at least as far as national security is concerned.  Also of note, TikTok is unavailable in China!  They have a walled garden version called Douyin.  Therefore, China has very strong control over what is available to Chinese citizens and can present completely different content to the foreign audience.

There is no easy or obvious solution to TikTok.  The US First Amendment is anti-censorship (though that view is fading fast).  Here is another case where a foreign adversary is using our values against us.  On the other hand, recent studies (take with a fistful of salt) indicate that social media is a mental health risk, especially for young people.  There is talk of treating social media like cigarettes or alcohol.  Maybe we need a rating system, like we have for movies.  As with most congressional hearings, I expect it to result in nothing at all.

Abusive Relationships

I saw this posted on Instapundit today: 15 Signs of an abusive relationship.  Let's check them out!

1. Stop you from seeing friends and family.  Yes, state and local government have been putting a lot of effort into this one.

2. Won't let you go out without permission.  This one has been worse in some places.  California sent police to arrest a man who was surfing at a deserted beach.

3. Tell you what to wear.  Yes, masks are the new government-mandated fashion accessory.

4. Monitor you phone or emails.  Well, this one is an old one as we learned thanks to Edward Snowden.  That abuse is old hat.

5. Control the finances or won't let you work.  Ha!  That unemployment rate sure did skyrocket.  In some states, the refusal to allow businesses to open persists.  Some states are more abusive than others.

6. Control what you read, watch and say.  As with the infamous rendition regarding terrorists, the government has outsourced this one to the 'private' sector.  First it was Alex Jones, then Milo Yiannopoulos, and now the sitting president.  Even competitors to the government sanctioned monopolies have been banned (i.e. Parler).  Say the wrong thing and you get canceled.  YouTube channels with the wrong views have been removed.  

7. Monitor everything you do.  If you have a cell phone, the government or their 'private' lieutenants know where you are and probably what you are doing.

8. Punish you for breaking the rules, but the rules keep changing.  All last year, it was fine to riot and government crackdowns were stomping on 'mostly peaceful protests.'  Now riots are sedition and government crackdowns mandatory.

9. Tell you it is for your own good, and that they know better.  The government is locking us up for our own safety.  Really, we're too irresponsible to make an informed decision.

10. Don't allow you to question it.  You know, the recent election seemed a little fishy.  When Hillary complained about Russian interference, we had a 2 year investigation.  How about...  Hello?  Huh, the line went dead.  Huh, I just got banned from Twitter.  That's odd.

11. Tell you you're crazy and no one agrees with you.  Yeah, if you don't agree with the mainstream narrative, you're some sort of loon.  See, there is only one way of seeing things and alternate viewpoints are just a sign of insanity.

12. Call you names or shame you for being stupid or selfish.  Yes, the fun arguments where one person says a country needs borders and the other person says 'racist!'  Hey, the US government should consider the interests of American citizens before foreign citizens.  'Fascist!'  Good times.

13. Gaslight you, challenge your memory of events, make you doubt yourself.  Just look at how many people believe things that didn't happen.  Drink bleach?  Never happened.  Nazis are fine people?  Never happened.  Russian collusion?  Never happened.  Nonetheless, half the population believes them.

14. Dismiss your opinions.  If only it was merely dismissing.  Banning is the current tactic.  There are calls to blacklist people with the wrong opinions.

15. Play the victim.  If things go wrong, it's all your fault.  I've talked about this one before.  If the government shuts down when a Republican is president and Democrats control Congress, it is the president's fault.  However, if a Democrat is president and the Republicans control Congress, then it would be the Congress's fault.  And the Democrats are always victim of Republican partisanship.  At least, that's how the press reliably reports it.

Stop the abuse!

Searching

The movie opens with a Windows screen.  Whoever is using the computer selects to add a new user.  New user named is Margot.  When selecting a user photo, the computer camera shows David, Pam, and 5 year-old Margot in frame.  They take a picture.  The years flow by with new photos and videos.  Here is a happy family.  Then cancer strikes Pam and she dies just before Margot enters high school.  There are not as many photos thereafter.  Margot is a sophomore.  She and her father communicate via text message or FaceTime.  It is Thursday when David (John Cho) notes that the garbage hasn't been emptied and calls Margot (Michelle La) to chastise her.  That night, she tells him she is going to be late with a biology study group.  Then she is gone.  For the first 24 hours, he isn't sure if he has just missed her and she is upset or what.  Finally, he contacts the police.  Detective Vick (Debra Messing) starts investigating and is happy for any help David can offer to illuminate his daughter's friends and habits.  He logs into her laptop and discovers a side of his daughter he never knew.

 

Though the story is told entirely on computer screens, TV reports, text messages, and video chats, it is very engaging.  Cho does an excellent job as the frantic father.  He is the movie and he carries it well.  He proves to be a talented detective himself, making some big breaks in the case thanks to what he finds on his daughter's various social media accounts.  There are plenty of twists and turns, many of them proving to be dead ends.

 

Excellent film and recommended.