Having some amount of utility doesn't contradict it possibly being used for nefarious purposes by it's owners though. If I intentionally wanted to design an information warfare weapon, I'd make sure to sugarcoat it with interesting/funny/useful content to make it palatable. Just like putting the soldiers inside a giant wooden horse.
Not that I really care enough to ban TikTok, but the value demonstrated here is pretty spurious. You could swap "TikTok" with "socializing", and I'm sure these people would've had similar outcomes.
Socializing is indeed of great value to people; not at all spurious. You're helping prove OP's point.
And OP didn't even mention all the small businesses that took off due to TikTok giving them an avenue. This notion that people have to dismiss TikTok as merely mindless dopamine is really just wilful ignorance.
My point is that none of this is truly dependent on the existence of TikTok, which OP does not be seeming to be arguing, even slightly. The internet is a revolving door of gathering spaces that enable people to do nice things for each other. People can do nice things for each other anywhere, even when surrounded by the digital equivalent of two-way mirrors.
Citizens have a right to assemble and speak to each other. Foreign corporations don't have a right to own the feeds of huge swaths of the population. Hence the rules around newspaper and TV ownership.
Some opinions here are super ignorant. Yes Tiktok has lots of silly videos but it also is a way for many talented people to reach their audience. Many small business owners and indie artists depend on it to make a living.
I initially agreed with the author but at a second thought, I found the author made a big mistake of not distinguishing different types of quality.
The article talked about mostly entertainment or art related quality. However when it comes to utility related quality, it is a totally different story. It is obvious. I even don't need to expand on that.
Why is it impossible for Talyor Swift to ask that question herself? Because she is a blonde singer?
It is very common for someone top of one's trade to command respectable knowledge and skill in another trade.
Einstein was a decent violin player. It wouldn't be a surprise if he asked some deep questions in musics in certain circumstances.
Talyor Swift has got to the top and sustained at the top of probably the most competitive business, and keeps her wealth growing. She has certainly financial knowledge and discipline. I am pretty sure she is capable of asking that question.
> It is very common for someone top of one's trade to command respectable knowledge and skill in another trade.
I don't think that's true. There are some popularized figures, especially ones who have become public figures through music, and then have had continued success, but those are just the pop stars. What about all the doctors or engineers who have found success in one area, and then think that automatically makes them experts in a different area, with disasterous results?
I think he meant a treaty of quasi independence yet on face a special autonomous region of China for Taiwan.
And your assessment is right. It is unimaginable for any leader of CCP to grant independent state to Taiwan. He would be buried by party members and mainland Chinese.
This sort of treaty still needs to be approved by China's parliament. Though in most cases it is a just formality for parliament to approve any treaties but when it comes to a treaty that grants independence of Taiwan, vast majority of parliament members would object it.
And please be aware that Chinese people do go to street. Recent demonstrations in multiple cities and universities against endless covid lock downs proved it.
Oh yes, I didn’t mean that protests never happen — I was in one of the cities with protests as they were happening. I only meant that I think it’s unlikely we’ll see more large-scale protests related to Covid.
Edit: and thank you for your first-hand input on Taiwan.
I don't think it was full out from Russia's side. They could still mobilize millions and use nukes. They haven't really bombed Kyiv's critical infrastructures and government buildings, for example president's office.
I think Putin will bet it all on full out war to conquer Ukraine in 2023. I wish I would be wrong.
It is crazy that CCP is again on the course of self destruction.
Maybe this sort of self destruction is inevitable for every single major power. It is just a matter if one can correct the wrong and change course before it is too late.
USA ditched Trump by election. Putin is doing shit to Russia.
It is happening in China now.
Chinese people can put up with CCP because we have been through too much disasters. A stable and somehow rational one-party rule is NOT so bad as long as stability is maintained and people's private space is respected to an acceptable level.
Shanghai is right now at the edge of breaking this unwritten agreement between CCP and the people. If this goes on for a few more weeks, there will be social unrest.
It is so easy to find reports and evidence of how Tiktok could be of great value to people.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/16/dining/tiktok-ban-cooking...
https://www.today.com/popculture/books/what-is-booktok-meani...
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-67555175