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A comment on I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel. Parent comment

Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by phkahler on Saturday December 12, 2020 @07:06PM (#25403017)
>> Which is essentially market driven blackmail as far as I can see.

Modern medicine can also be like blackmail. Nobody has to actually threaten you, but nature will kill you unless you pay whatever the price of treatment. That's why we need competition, and why pharma companies like monopolies.

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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by simias on Saturday December 12, 2020 @07:43PM (#25403229)
That's the most American comment I've read all day, and that's saying something!
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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by unishark on Saturday December 12, 2020 @11:51PM (#25404400)
It differs from blackmail because you the sick person are the one requiring others to perform a service for your benefit. With blackmail (and generally extortion) you are threatening to take an action unless someone pays you not to.
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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by phkahler on Sunday December 13, 2020 @12:49PM (#25408406)
Oh I completely agree, that's why I said "can also be like blackmail". Key word "like" because it does differ in the exact way you describe.

So in this threads context, "hey I found a vulnerability in your infrastructure, you could pay me for it" does not actually constitute blackmail unless they actually follow it with "I'm selling to the highest bidder which may not be you".

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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by singingfish on Saturday December 12, 2020 @07:24PM (#25403123)
Here in Australia the state funds most medical care. In this case the blackmail vector, if we use that interpretation is the taxation system.
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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by sjwright on Saturday December 12, 2020 @07:44PM (#25403236)
And we (Australia) blackmail drug makers: sell your drugs to us at a certain price and the Government will heavily subside it and you’ll get big sales. Refuse and it will get zero subsidy and nobody will buy it.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pharmaceutical_Benefits_Sche...

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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by webmaven on Sunday December 13, 2020 @12:21AM (#25404498)
> And we (Australia) blackmail drug makers: sell your drugs to us at a certain price and the Government will heavily subside it and you’ll get big sales. Refuse and it will get zero subsidy and nobody will buy it.

The blackmail version is actually "Refuse, and we'll produce a generic version locally and perhaps even export it to any country that wants it."

https://www.wired.com/2006/12/indiadrug/

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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by karaterobot on Saturday December 12, 2020 @08:38PM (#25403508)
Blackmail with a bit of overhead tossed in then. At least most hackers keep the costs down and pass the savings on to you!
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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by singingfish on Sunday December 13, 2020 @01:26AM (#25404735)
I don't think state funded healthcare works the way you think it does. The american system is the most economically inefficient system out there, to the extent that people without experience of other systems likely end up with highly distorted perception.

Note that a mixed economy (combined public/private funding, like the french and australian systems) are probably for the most part the most economically efficient. A big problem in australia is over-provision of services, especially ending up getting more pathology tests than strictly necessary.

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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by karaterobot on Sunday December 13, 2020 @10:53PM (#25413351)
Just a joke!
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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by comprev on Saturday December 12, 2020 @08:18PM (#25403407)
That statement is so true it's terrifying.
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Re:I Hacked into Facebook's Legal Department Admin Panel by phkahler on Sunday December 13, 2020 @01:43PM (#25408939)
The thing to remember is that the universe does not care, and nobody owes us anything. That's what's really terrifying until you come to terms with it.
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