Akio Tsukino

10/11/2025

Burn Down the Paper Straw Factory

The Tor Project was originally developed by the United States Naval Research Laboratory for the primary purpose of protecting government communications.[1]

As of 2012, 80% of the Tor Project's $2 million annual budget came from the United States government, with the U.S. State Department, the Broadcasting Board of Governors, and the National Science Foundation as major contributors.[2]

Around 2 years ago, I fell very deep into the rabbit hole of digital privacy and online freedom. Having always had a less than ideal relationship with technology, (I was born in the 2000s), I had decided to take measures to protect my data and seek sovereignty from "Big Tech". Fueled by my hatred for the ever growing fascist ideologies of tech CEO's I began my journey of slowly seeking alternatives for everyday apps and digital services.

By early 2025, I had fully kitted out my entire digital presence with an array of privacy/libre apps and services. I was using GrapheneOS, Mullvad VPN, Librewolf on a Linux system, Protonmail, Signal, Routing all my traffic through Tor, etc etc etc.

Ironically what I had been doing the entire time was consuming "privacy" the same way people consumed any other Big Tech service. Sure, using the services and software I used might have made it harder for some of these tech giants to get a hold of my private data... But it also made me increasingly disorganized and took my focus away from what actually mattered.

I was, in essence, happy with my little paper straw. It didn't matter that the source of pollution was never addressed, so long as "I" felt productive with my pseudo activism.

A couple dozen people using these privacy first, rebellious tech does not matter because at the end of the day we still have to interact with the rest of the world that is ingrained with Big Tech. There's a reason that the US government directly or indirectly fund majority of these services.[3]

And let's be very frank here. Infrastructure like the Tor network and Signal DIRECTLY enable so much of the horrific crimes all over the world. If the end result doesn't really matter for you and I, does it justify existing to be used by a human trafficking ring?

Personal values matter, yes. Not using plastic straws is still the goal. However, when your solutions start isolating you from the rest of the world and creates an in group of "privacy nuts", that creates a problem. When you're using services that cut you off from the everyday flow of the people around you, that serves no purpose.

What we must do is fight back in ways that are accessible to those at the furthest reaches of the ideological spectrum.

Someone at the teetering edge of fascism is not going to hear you if all you do is post on Blueskys using your dozens of layers of anonymity. Privacy, digital freedom, the centralization of the internet... all of it needs to be advocated for or against by a human voice.

You can't use an app designed under and for the same system, to take down the system. If it is within you capabilities, you must reach out in accessible ways. Talk to people and educate.

Burn down the paper straw factory.