Over a decade ago, I walked away from Facebook—tired of their voyeuristic games and creeping invasions of privacy. But I held on to Twitter and Instagram, clinging to my follower counts and the hours spent crafting posts. Back then, the cracks in the façade weren’t as glaring, and the privacy concerns didn’t feel quite as dire.
Now, in 2025, it’s not just about privacy—it’s about power. The men behind these platforms aren’t just tech CEOs; they’re oligarchs. Titans who mine and sell your data while twisting the flow of information to suit their whims and political schemes. Algorithms don’t just serve you ads—they mold the way you think, guiding public discourse like a shadowy puppet master. They’ve become gatekeepers of truth, playing footsie with governments—domestic and foreign—all in the name of profit and information control.
It’s time to shut down the machine. After three decades in tech, I know what’s at stake, and I’m asking you to join me. Yes, I know it’s hard. Social media is engineered to hook you—every like, every share, a tiny hit of dopamine. And yes, walking away feels like abandoning the blood and sweat you poured into your posts. But there are other roads.
BlueSky, for one, isn’t beholden to shareholders. It’s a public benefit corporation that values users over profit. And then there are the real sanctuaries: independent forums like jalopyjournal.com, garagejournal.com, and countless others. These aren’t factories for bots or battlegrounds for trolls. They’re havens for real people, sharing passions, knowledge, and ideas without the stench of corporate manipulation.
So, shut the damned thing down. Step off the algorithmic hamster wheel and into a space where authenticity still breathes. Log into a forum or build your own, and reclaim the internet before it’s swallowed whole by the machine.
