Google has the reputation for being the big evil tech giant that everyone should avoid. It was well earned decades ago, but there are much bigger evils now like Microsoft and Amazon who get disproportionately less attention.
When Google employees protest and petition Google taking a contract from some evil activity like ICE, weapons production, or fossil fuels, Google reacts and often renounces such contracts. The rationale is sometimes Google’s AI principles – principles that don’t even exist at other tech giants.
When Amazon and Microsoft employees petition and protest, they’re told to piss off and get threatened with sacking. And Microsoft also has the lion’s share of the more evil gov contracts. This article is ram-packed with dense information about these companies and Google is clearly a lesser of evils.
I still boycott Google, but so many fools leave Google for DuckDuckGo thinking that’s an ethical improvement. DDG is a bigger evil than Google because DDG feeds Amazon & Microsoft. There are plenty of decent search engines that don’t rely on either (e.g. Metager, Mojeek and Ekoru).
The problem is this “deGoogle” movement. There is a deGoogle movement and not a deAmazon or deMicrosoft movement. It’s all relative and “deGoogle” sends the wrong message. It actually helps Google’s more harmful competitors.
I strongly agree, I think we focus on degoogling because it is the most difficult company to move away from. But it is incredibly important to remove Microsoft, Amazon, and other tech giants from our lives. For the same reason I avoid unil3ver products, choose my cloths carefully, and (until recently) pay in cash.
We must engage in continuous improvement and not get tunnel vision on one product / company / idiology.