Money vs speech

I finally made enough money from my holiday pay to buy a newer iPhone. It's used and certainly not the latest model. Granted, I'm not happy with Apple since Tim Cook tried to placate Trump to avoid tariffs, but I've been needing an upgrade since last year, as many apps and websites that I use were starting to reject my obsolete phone. I shall not upgrade again for years, staying perpetually behind and delaying any use of stupid AI tech as long as I can. The upgrade was fairly easy and seamless, backing up the old iPhone to my Mac and then copying that backup to the newer phone. Then I could just take out the SIM card and erase the old iPhone. Had I switched to some android phone, the process would have been more trouble, and it's not like any other technology companies are morally better. Wired has a whole issue about the billionaire tech CEOs all caving to fascists. They value greed more than our democracy. Me staying with Apple's ecosystem for now lets me continue to have free software updates for years still.

Boycotts come with sacrifices and hard choices. It was easier for me to quit Target, though it still rankles when I can't find what I need locally and have to shop online. Many people canceled Paramount Plus (me included) when CBS canceled Colbert, but I assume people are still watching his show for now until it ends. So exceptions are made. I'm still angry at Netflix for their anti-trans content, while other people are happy with Netflix for saving Sesame Street. Everybody has to find their moral line and weigh what they value vs what they can give up. I know many people are still on Amazon because they have no other options; I don't begrudge them that.

I was heartened to see the public rage against Disney when ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel. They have finally backed down and restored his show, but Sinclair TV stations are going to still pre-empt because they still have a merger planned and want to suck up to the corrupt FCC. So some people may continue their boycotts to keep pressure on Disney and ABC. We'll see if we can win any other victories for free speech and democracy.