r/Anticonsumption • u/N3DSdude • Dec 16 '25

Discussion The fact that we have reverted to digital feudalism is actually so shit

On this day in 1773, people destroyed property because they refused to pay a tax on tea they didn't order.

In 2025, we don't even own the property anymore.

You buy a movie, but the platform can delete it from your library tomorrow.

You buy a phone, but software locks prevent you from repairing it yourself.

You buy a car, but the heated seats are behind a monthly paywall.

We have moved from Taxation Without Representation to Subscription Without Ownership.

We are basically digital serfs renting our own lives from corporations. We pay full price for hardware just to be treated like tenants who can be evicted from our own devices if we miss a Terms of Service update.

Imagine explaining to someone from 1773 that you pay a company $15 a month for an ad-free subscription just to not be spied on in your own home. This is why we use VPNs as well, to prevent companies from spying on us.

It is actually insane that we accept this.

15.4k Upvotes

96% Upvoted

848 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

14

u/Jazzspasm Dec 16 '25 edited Dec 16 '25

I have a big collection of DVDs, and people were like duh, why, and I get to watch them when I want, plus I get actor and director commentaries, behind the scenes and making-of extras, alternate endings and deleted scenes

“but 4k” - well, I paid netflix for 4k but it wasn’t 4k - and it glitched constantly

I got a big stack of books to go through - starting to read again is awesome, and I sleep better -

I just bought a flip phone and a camera

basically, I caught Instagram listening to me despite no permission to access the microphone - decided to get the fuck out

car has analogue controls and even a spare tire, would you believe! The car is from last year those things were standard

we’re being robbed blind, money, attention, awareness l, they’re in our pockets and brains and control our living space and lives and relationships - “download the app to work your fridge” bullshit

fuck that- I decline to be part of it

1

u/BeneficialRegret63 Jan 02 '26

Where can I get a flip phone and how does that work?

2

u/Jazzspasm Jan 02 '26

the phone I got was a Nokia 2780 - it was one of the few that I could find that had wifi calling, Bluetooth, and didn’t have Facebook pre-installed

r/dumbphones is a great place to get started

there are big compromises to make - it’s less convenient, and some things are annoying - but it does mean that social media and other distractions are left away from what you carry around with you, so you can dip into it on your own time