This article finally pushed me over to thinking that we need to start pushing for some laws to limit this sort of thing. It's just pervasive, and "not giving [them] money" is completely ineffective. And for some companies, like Google or Facebook, it's pretty hard for a consumer to actually give them money in the first place, nor is practical [0] to not use their products.

[0] practical, not possible.

The main reason why I'm eliminating these kinds of things from my life is self-protection rather than trying to get companies to change their behavior. As you say, getting them to change outside of effective legislation is impossible.

> for some companies, like Google or Facebook, it's pretty hard for a consumer to actually give them money in the first place, nor is practical [0] to not use their products.

Well, the only Facebook product I use is WhatsApp, and that's to talk with one person in Europe who only uses WhatsApp. The only Google product I use is YouTube, and I only use that with an account that is not used for any other purpose, and on a tablet that is not used for any other purpose.

So my experience is that avoiding these companies is entirely practical. All you give up is a small amount of convenience.

You also must consider that your family and community need protection as well, and they rely on those who have expertise in these highly complex topics.

A rather late place to draw the line, given the sheer exploitive nature the industry has shown itself capable of stooping to these last couple decades.