Google isn’t Wikipedia. It exists to make money—among other reasons.

Apple, Amazon, and Facebook don’t charge for many of their products and services. Amazon offers many free Kindle books and one can do a great deal of research on its site gratis. Apple gives away free songs and apps. Facebook promises to always remain free for consumers.

If you have a problem with any of these platforms or any others, then don’t use them.

Consider Facebook. Diaspora brands itself as the anti-Facebook–and Mark Zuckerberg is an investor.

Simplistic? Probably.

In the Age of the Platform, there are alternatives to just about everything. It’s not the Age of Conscription.