The war between free speech, Elon Musk, and Apple is heating up thanks to some shady practices by Apple and the new GOP majority in the House. Of course, it’s well known that Apple is a so-called progressive company that derives cheap labor from China to make its products and that, on its face, is bad enough. However, with events that have come to light recently, Apple is beginning to look more sinister by the day.
It should be recalled that Apple removed the social media and primarily conservative site Parler from its App store shortly after the so-called insurrection on January 6, effectively killing any momentum the new platform had. Placement on the app stores of both Apple and Google is absolutely critical for the success of any app, so when one or the other takes access away for any reason, it’s a big deal. With the stunning revelation from Elon Musk that Apple has threatened to remove Twitter from the App store, the GOP has taken notice and is putting Apple on notice. Check this out.
Republicans are going to war with Apple over what they say is an unfair effort to quell free speech.
‘Apple has also threatened to withhold Twitter from its App Store, but won’t tell us why,’ the Telsa billionaire said earlier this week.
WARNING: If Apple decides to deplatform Twitter they will experience a consumer backlash unlike anything ever seen in America.
Think Disney Groomer-Gate x 1000.
Balenciaga photo shoot x 10000.
Do not underestimate the power of Twitter power-users with loyal audiences.
🍎
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) November 30, 2022
Why would a company like Apple, which the vast majority of Americans rely on with basically a computer in their pockets, decide they want to remove access to arguably the most popular and important social media outlet in the world? Could it be because Apple hates free speech? If that sounds a bit extreme, also check out the shady update that Apple installed on all iPhones in mainland China just before the Covid lockdown protests.
Meanwhile, Apple is also catching heat for a new software update – exclusive to China – that makes it harder to use iPhones’ AirDrop feature.
‘I’d like to know why [Apple] continues to aid and abet the totalitarian regime in [China] while campaigning against free speech at home,’ said Missouri GOP Senator Josh Hawley, throwing both spears at the firm at the same time.
In a letter addressed to CEO Tim Cook on Tuesday, Hawley called on the company to move its existing manufacturing presence in China back to the United States.
‘Why did Apple modify the AirDrop feature in China in a manner that makes it more difficult for Chinese protesters to communicate amongst themselves?’ he asked.
Josh Hawley, never one to mince words, has asked valid questions of Apple that the American people deserve to know. If Apple indeed modified the phones in China to make protesting more difficult, then how can they be trusted in America when it comes to free speech?
It is simply not ok for a company like Apple which so many Americans trust and rely on, to squash free speech in the country where they employ cheap labor to make their products while simultaneously threatening free speech in America by limiting our access to Twitter. Elon Musk has so upset the progressive Apple cart, pun intended, that the tech giant has gone bananas and threatened free speech worldwide. This is not acceptable, and if Apple continues this Communist love affair, the GOP and we as consumers must take action to punish the company. Nothing short of that will send a strong enough message that Americans and the Chinese deserve free speech.
