Blurred Boundaries Between Big Tech and Government Amazon has been in the news lately due to its nearly finalized cloud contract with the government. Amazon Web Services, Amazon's cloud hosting service, has been a huge revenue driver for the conglomerate. The Department of Defense favors Amazon Web Services over the competition to host its data for military missions. Amazon could make $10 billion on this contract alone. The partnership with the DoD, though, isn't the extent of Amazon's relationship with the government. Amazon also released a product called Ring, a home security system that acts as a private surveillance network. Ring footage is being shared with local police forces...
Why Self-Reliance Is More Important Than Ever
Self-Reliance vs. Government Reliance The world has arguably become more polarized than ever before over the direction of governments. While a healthy debate is welcome, ideology is winning out over over sobriety. As a result of this unbending ideology, government leaders have made some catastrophic decisions. I've listed just a few current events that have disrupted societies across the globe: The Brexit disaster is costing the UK 600 million pounds a week. Roughly 10% of all Venezuelans are leaving the country due to the economic crisis Maduro caused. China has a widespread surveillance program that could eliminate privacy altogether. I could spend a lifetime attemp...
How to Keep the US-China Cold War From Getting Hot
The Battle for World Supremacy China's rapid growth over the past few decades has positioned it as a global economic and technology leader. As the world's second largest economic power, China has the capital to invest in its technology sector. These investments have proven to come at a cost to China's homegrown companies. Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications firm, provides the Chinese government with "backdoors" to its networks. These backdoors provide China with intelligence about the countries in which the networks are operational. While it's easy to point the finger at China for these practices, Eric Snowden showed that the US has been engaged in similar practices as well. T...
Brexit Box: Case in Point of Government Incompetence
Brexit Box Brexit discussions have continued to drag on without a firm deal in place. In February, Theresa May's proposed strategy to withdraw Britain from the European Union suffered a brutal defeat at the hands of Parliament. On March 29th, Britain is scheduled to leave the EU. Doing so without a deal in place could critically damage the British economy. British citizens have begun to take notice. The Brexit Box is a case in point. Brexit Boxes have been marketed to the British people in response to worries of food shortages. Emergency Food Storage, the UK company selling Brexit Boxes, states the, "Brexit Box is a great start to help you overcome Brexit stockpile worr...
Russia’s Doomsday Machine: What You Need to Know
Tensions Escalate Russia has been in the news a lot lately. The fallout from Russia's manipulation of the 2016 presidential election has yet to reach its conclusion. While the presidential administration's policy towards Russia appears forgiving, members of Congress are in favor of passing sanctions on Russia. The sanctions could severely hurt Russia's economy, as the oil, cyber, and banking sectors would all be targeted. In addition to their election meddling using Facebook, Russia's continued aggression towards the Ukraine concerns US politicians. The oligarchy is threatening the Ukraine's sovereignty. The annexation of the Crimean peninsula seems to have just been the beginning...