One must wonder what would grow out of the toxic wasteland where Google used to stood. Google is a cultural by product and probably that is where the real solution lies. You don't want to rely too much on goverment, because goverment will simply replace the Google and take its place. And if you don't change the culture that made Google what it is, than Google will be replaced by Facebook like organizations that are just as bad or worse. Only real defense is cultural cohesion that resists practices of companies like Google, its goverment protection and also the kind of people that vote with money and refuse to finance Google empire. We must remember, that Google started out in a garage as a small company, and without users it would never have become what it was.

For two decades Google grew because people felt they had a voice on social media platforms and by the time they got dependent on it, google was already so powerful that they could start abusing their power. And yet people were still dependent and kept feeding the monster for at least a decade until it comes for everyone. I think we as users and society at large must take its part of responsibility for all that and more importunately the responsibility for the future. We can stop using the services for start and support alt tech and pressure local legislation and push for laws to protect consumers. And that requires cultural shift on the grand scale. But just as Google grew out of garage, time for us to start building garages. Its a never ending arms race. Cans vs can openers.

@Krunoslav The solution is legislation to control these people who think they are governments. The most obvious manner is to allow them to be sued into compliance.
McDonalds can explain to them what a hot cup of coffee can do.

@Rick-A In normal times I would agree. But constitution for example is the law of the land and supreme piece of legislation and we saw it torn apart like it was not even worth the paper it was printed on, sort of speak. With that much corruption, I don't think legislation really has power unless its by those in power.

Section 230 clearly did not apply to parler, but Big Tech is using it as cover story. So what legislation would be equally applied? None, because the rules do not apply equally. Its a corrupt system where one side just stoled election and declared half the country to be terrorists.

In normal times, legislation might have been part of the solution, but

a) I think we are way past that point where legislation would be passed and enforced properly, although maybe in Texas and Florida, but not across the country, and

b) you don't want goverment to be involved, because they can fuck up a cup of coffee, especially current swollen corrupt beurocracy. You want free market capitalism and cultural norms to do it, not goverment regulation. What is needed is free market capitalism, which is not there at the moment. There is clear hierarchy where rent a goverment is working for corporations, otherwise there would not be any monopoly. Government is hired to protect those monopolies.

I think we need change in consumer behavior, change in cultural norms, and than we can use grass roots movements to do something , because that is how the left has managed to get where they are. They started with instantiated pressure at universities and than outside of them and in politicos etc. And after the long march trough the institutions was over they have all the power , or most of it. So if you want that back, you have to do the same. Although you can't really take back universities etc. you have to built your own.

@Krunoslav The left controlled the narrative even under the Trump administration so how do you think that 30 years of leftist madness can be reversed if a Trump Admin couldn’t control Social Media?
Leftists control the deep state, Biden is today purging the government of Republicans. Trump should have been more aggressive in the first years of his presidency. I should have cleaned house! Too late and the Republican Party is wow-fully inept at using the levers of power to go where it needs to go.
It’s sad because controlling the media is a very worthwhile agenda. If you can’t control the narrative you loose! Trump is the example he was too soft and too subservient to social media.

@Rick-A yes. I guess now it's time mor the other side to learn something from it an begin its long cultural transformation.