this post was submitted on 27 Jun 2026
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Privacy
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So in 2024 he is praising the republican party about anti-trust, which even you admit he is wrong about. So he is spreading misinformation, or possibly disinformation depending on whether he knows he is wrong. And he really should have known that the republican party rabidly supports mega corporations at that point, with the only exceptions being any that oppose their agenda. And he is ego stroking Trump. Which is what a bunch of other tech billionaires have done as a prelude to climbing into bed with him and going full mask off techno-fascist. So I don't really see why you're surprised that this is a giant strobing red flag for a bunch of people that are privacy focused, and largely fall on the left.
I'm not calling for everyone to boycott Proton. I'm answering the original question of why people dislike proton. And I said that it was enough for me to personally cancel my subscription.
If I divested from everyone I thought was incorrect about something, I wouldn't be able to do business with literally anyone. And I explained why I think he said this, which implied it's quite possible he doesn't even think this is true.
How is this any different than what Mamdani did?
Again, if he was out here stumping for fascist positions I'd have a little more pause. But the issue he picked up here, of all the political issues in the recent years, was anti-trust. Sorry, this doesn't scream crypto fascist to me. Certainly not enough for me to worry about.
I also didn't say I'm surprised. I'm arguing that I think it's wrong and the vast majority of even those on the left aren't going to care about this.
Mamdani didn't spout obviously false republican talking points on a public forum, and then double down in defense of the republican party when called out on it. The republicans don't support the little guy. Anyone that pays attention to anything the party has done since st least Reagan should know that. So what Mamdani did was not the equivalent, and it seems disengenuous to claim such an obviously false equivalency.
And I'm not saying divest from everyone that is wrong about anything. I'm saying that spreading obviously incorrect information that aligns with fascist talking points should be scrutinized. It should get called out. It should make people question your beliefs and motives.
Again, you'll need to explain to me that if his real goal here is "align[ing] with fascist talking points", why is the only actual issue he jumped in on anti trust? Where was he regarding the election moves? Where was he regarding the ICE policies?
A decent anti trust pick isn't aligned at all with fascism, yet it's that issue that he spoke up on. Why only that when there have been countless issues that are aligned with fascism he could have commented on?
This screams the kind of now typical online left purity testing way more than fascism, to me.
Just adding that Mamdani talks mad shit about Trump both before and after meeting with him. He's extremely principled in his approach.
Sure, but he was also perfectly willing to encourage him towards what he could frame as being a win for Trump, too.
I'm in no way saying Mamdani isn't principled. I'm saying he also has an eye for strategy over performative politics. There was, probably is, a small left cadre that was really giving him shit for meeting with Trump at all for fear of "legitimizing" or "normalizing" him... this strikes me as very, very similar to the dynamic around Yang.
Again, there has been ample opportunity for this guy to go to bat for fascism. Why only anti trust?