The shady world of Brave selling copyrighted data for AI training

skilledtothegills@lemmy.world to Technology@lemmy.world – 1335 points –
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I still remember why: Mozilla fired Brendan Eich, the man who would go on to found Brave, for donating to Christian charities in the politically polarised climate of 2016. After Eich went, they also quietly purged any other employees that showed even a hint of conservative sympathies in their internet presence. They then went on to "experiment" with pushing browser ads on users, and while they eventually ended the experiment because of massive user backlash, they still made no apologies and didn't abandon the idea. Just made a final public response dripping with PR bullshit with a patronising conclusion along the lines of "internet users just aren't ready for this change yet".

Brandon Eich was fired because he was constantly giving money to politicians and groups that were advocating for the banning of same sex marriage. Also funding the campaign of congressman Tom McClintock, a certified piece of shit, Who denies climate change, is against LGBTQ rights, and was among the republicans trying to overturn the 2020 election.

Yes. That is political affiliation. You might not share it, but whether same-sex marriage should be legal is absolutely a political question, even if it is now outside the Overton window.

Personally, I'm not sure I support any form of state marriage, but if it exists, it should include same-sex marriage.

If your political affiliation implies creating second-class citizens that may be discriminated against due to innate characteristics or harmless behavior, don't expect me to respect your political identity, to not to discriminate against it, or to give a damn when you find yourself kicked out of places because of it.

So he was fired for his political affiliation.

From an outside perspective, I find it astonishing that those ideas are considered acceptable political positions in the US. With that said, I believe in individuals having the right to support or promote their chosen cause, but also the right of others to choose whether or not they wish to associate with them.

Opposition to gay marriage was fairly common in the early and mid 2010s. It was only legalised 8 years ago in the US, and so, in 2016, it was still a live issue.

Yeah, it just feels so bizarre to me as someone who isn't American.

Same sex marriage is only legal in 34 countries, that's less than 1 in 5.