cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/28202261
The international Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement are calling on people to cancel Game Pass subscriptions, avoid Microsoft-owned video game properties such as Minecraft and Call Of Duty, and boycott all Microsoft Gaming and Xbox-branded products in protest at the company’s reported business connections with the Israeli military.
The call follows allegations this January about the Israeli military’s usage of Microsoft’s Azure cloud technology and artificial intelligence products in the course of its bombardment and invasion of Gaza.
According to a joint investigation between the Guardian, Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, with additional reporting from Drop Site News, Microsoft have “deepened” their relationship with Israel’s defence establishment since 7th October 2023, when several Palestinian militant groups struck across the border and massacred over a thousand people. Israel responded to the attack by mounting a ground offensive and airstrikes that have destroyed much of Gaza and killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
Bruh name a mainstream Corp that isn’t pro Israel. I don’t even understand why these fuckers are so obsessed with fairies, rocks, and dirt
use linux. that will remove everything microsoft.
i made the change a few years back, and my wife made the change a few months ago. #worth
Well, it’s not so simple for gaming. People who don’t already own a gaming PC will need to drop a lot of money to buy one, and then get used to gaming on Linux (which can be janky, as I’m sure you know).
But, it’s worth it. Our convenience shouldn’t cost us our humanity.
Well except for any Xbox peripherals such as controllers, or games published or made by studios owned by Microsoft. It’s not just Windows OS.
These days 8BitDo controllers are superior to first party Xbox controllers and sold for cheaper.
Are there any with gyro?
Yep, I have the 2.4ghz dongle ones with hall effect sensors and charging stand. Its just better and cheaper. The dongle is so that I don’t have to sync, I kinda like the whole plug in and it just works.
For sure, there are lots of options for controllers for PC!
with piracy you can boycott games without even stopping yourself from playing them.
That is true.
The most cowardly and entitled boycott is certainly the one where you still consume without spending money.
So, the company you supporting publicly uses torrent, to feed its AI model, to Murder on camera, children, women, fist aid worker, journalist and innocents people. Yet, you call someone using the pirated content weak?
Video games are a luxury and it should be easy to avoid them.
And piracy means that you can enjoy them without having to support whatever bad shit happened to make them so you don’t need to avoid them
Pretty simple stuff, really
its in fact the best boycott. boycotts have nothing to do with personal sacrifice. rub it in their faces and force them to spend millions in DRM, or pay up.
just don’t suck up to corporations.
Better than not boycotting though.
my xbox controller works fine on linux. and I don’t feel the need to stay for xbox exclusive software anymore. this isnt 1998. Software comparable or better than microsoft-made applications and programs are numerous now. you can choose freely. and proton is extremely powerful now.
the world needs to move on from windows and microsoft. its time.
I agree with all of this, my point is your Xbox controller is a Microsoft product? And if you purchase or play any games owned by Microsoft, they are also Microsoft products? So you would need to boycott all of that as well. That is just a much larger net cast than just not using Windows.
BDS does not imply you stop using whatever you already own. it’s about preventing future purchases
Again, agreed. The original poster said “use Linux, that will remove everything Microsoft”. That is disingenuous, because you can use Linux and still purchase Microsoft products compatible with Linux. So my point was not to toss your existing items. However, you cannot replace your existing physical Microsoft products, purchase new digital content, or support any of Microsoft software in addition to switching from Windows. I didn’t imply anything about what you may already own.
Divest? Sell?
institutions should divest from future and present contracts. most consumers don’t have contracts with Microsoft. selling your electronics doesn’t hurt them in any way nor is that something that BDS asks for on their website:
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Glad I‘ve waited for the Switch 2 pro controller to come out. I‘m in need of a new one and Xbox probably would‘ve been my second choice. And yes I‘ve looked into 8bitdio and what not, but they‘re not cheap either and I was happy with my switch pro for 7 years until recently.
The 8bitdo Ultimate 2C is very cheap as controllers go, and is also one of my favourites. Certainly my go-to for general purpose
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I mean Nintendo isn’t really pro-consumer either. I’m not sure if they donate or support genocide, but they are pretty capitalistic to a fault.
You criticize capitalism, yet you participate in it. Curious. /s
If you know a manufacturer that‘s handing out world class controllers for free let me know, but otherwise I didn‘t ask.
but otherwise I didn‘t ask
No, but you did say something pretty stupid, as they pointed out
Interesting you felt the need to tell me that instead of lecturing the person comparing Nintendo‘s practices with supporting a genocide. Very unique priorities indeed.
the Israeli military’s usage of Microsoft’s Azure cloud technology and artificial intelligence products
Genuine question, but doesn’t this just mean that Israel paid for a Microsoft Azure subscription and used it to host web services? Like, anyone can do that. What am I missing here, exactly?
They say Microsoft have “deepened” their relationship, but how did they do that, exactly?
they answer your question in detail on their own website
So, yeah. It’s pretty much that.
If you knew someone is doing terrible stuff with the goods/services you are offering to them, would you happily continue to have that commercial relationship?
Israel crimes are known. Microsoft has deleted accounts for muuuuuuuuuuch less.
Yeah, but that’s the thing. Other accounts don’t bring millions of revenue.
wrong, no other cloud provider offers the same military services that Microsoft does
Two steps ahead of you
Why is the dpad censored?
That’s just what it looks like now
The original Duke, S controller, and Xbox 360 controllers all have similar D-pads. I actually forgot they switched to a traditional one.
Wow, what MBA thought that was a cool look?
It’s so that’ it’s easier to perform directional actions. I personally like it from a usability standpoint.
You know what would help? Steam releasing a console. Valve, please just do what you did with the Steam Deck and put it in a box, offer 2-3 variations of specs and refresh them every 3-5 years.
They can even call them something cool like Steam Machines
“Steam engines”
Whoosh?
Fuuuuuccckkk
a question to parents/guardians of kids playing Minecraft or other Microsoft games:
if they uninstall the Microsoft version of Minecraft and switch to a pirated launcher, does that respect the BDS demands? also, does playing it on Linux Mint from the Software Manager benefit Microsoft in any way?
I’m aware of similar media boycotts such as SAG/AFTRA telling people not to promote targeted media projects publicly. Ofc, BDS is a different organization but I’m hoping someone could clarify if not promoting Minecraft while still playing is sufficient? I’m not personally invested in continuing to play, but would like to find ways to inspire my young relative to consume consciously.
The most important thing in boycotts is not giving them (more) money, and not promoting their goods/services. You can’t get your money back from already bought things, so you can use or buy used stuff from other person.
Regarding Minecraft, the most effective is to avoid all its subscriptions and new purchases. But there are more actions, like not promoting and not playing. It is more about what you can do at the moment. Usually, listening and sharing the bad things done by the company helps you decide what can you do rn.
