when John Lennon told me to imagine no possessions I just don't think he was envisioning a world where everything in my life is available only through a subscription-based model because the costs of personal property have been intentionally placed beyond my reach

@VeryBadLlama this hits hard 🙂

… though I’m pretty sure "for corporate control you must subscribe for temporary access" is close to the maximum of possession—just not for *you*.

No possessions would mean that the corp cannot prevent you from just *having* what you need without paying them.

No possessions takes away the power of possession. Only subscription *maximizes* the power of possession.

…sorry for being so serious. Stallman already warned of this 13 years ago. https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/what-does-that-server-really-serve/

What Does That Server Really Serve? - Boston Review

A revised version of this article is available on the GNU Web site. Digital technology can give you freedom; it can also take your freedom away. The first

Boston Review

@VeryBadLlama But just to add insult to injury: you cannot buy ebooks in the EU anymore: they are only "communication to the public" not a sale. That’s an EuGH decision: https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?docid=221829&mode=req&pageIndex=1&dir=&occ=first&part=1&text=C%25E2%2580%2591263%252F18&doclang=EN&cid=4222787#ctx1

You’re legally forbidden from actually owning the ebook you buy, except if you buy not one copy but the rights to all.

It’s why I only buy ebooks that are under CC license: you want me to pay, offer it with a license that allows me to pass it on, or offer it printed on paper, so I can actually own it.

CURIA - Documents