How Linux developers defeated the new OS age-verification laws

That's true and I bet its a big part of the plan. The good parts for us about that approach, though, is that the bad technology is baked into the services, not the user's software, and the system depends on the tech oligopoly remaining. Laws are more durable than trends, so maybe that could be better for online privacy long-term, because the oligopoly will eventually break up. If we're real lucky, some of them won't survive the AI bubble aftermath enough to participate in this.

Like a balloon, ...and something bad happens!

There is something like that but I'm not sure it really has the force we all wanted it to. I don't know if it's been tested in court yet, but the optimistic people thought it would ban any kind of "be tracked or else you have to pay", but I believe a lot of services are operating exactly this way.

The trick is understanding that no one does.

While I don't like age verification, I do have to give the System76 guys some credit for pushing for an exception

Let's not misdirect peoples anger over age verification

The blame for age verification rests solely on the legislative bodies and the governors who didn't immediately veto it.

It also goes to show you who is running the government

Whatever device based verification those websites or electron apps were communicating with can be spoofed in a system where you have complete control.

Games are cracked in weeks at most, don't you think that whatever secure communication is established won't be cracked lightning fast by the whole FOSS community? Once the "secure communication" between local apps is broken, a third package can mitm that shit easily. It's a local environment.

The first thing on the post you linked is the systemd change which adds a new number field in a completely user controlled local environment where they can write anything they want.

Oh nooooo... ಠ_ಠ

Oh come on we know how this works. Age verification is a prelude to digital ID and that "totally optional user field" is a prelude to something not optional. The _current_ incarnation of that PR is optional and user controlled but it leaves us open to more and more.

Never give them an inch

Then if it doesn't matter, why even put it in? I know you're not so ignorant as to not realize this is how it starts. They add something innocent and unimportant so that idiots like you will say "it's fine, it's not a big deal, it doesn't matter" and then they slowly make it more and more invasive, little by little

That may be my favorite line from the whole show

It is a classic. Another of my favorites: "At the risk of sounding negative, no!"

Blackjack and hookers for 500 please

And again and again we shall fight