Real Rebels Pay Their Taxes

Explore the ethical implications of using technologies from tax-avoiding companies in this thought-provoking NDC Oslo 2020 conference talk. Delve into the basics of ethics, economic value, and taxes while examining key ethical issues in software development. Learn how developers can improve ethics in the field through working code examples. Discover the concept of "rebels paying taxes" and its relevance to the tech industry. Analyze the societal costs of major tech companies' tax optimization strategies and their market capitalization. Investigate various ethical theories, including virtue ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism. Examine the distinction between makers and takers in the economy, and critically assess the role of banks and rent-seeking platforms. Consider the power dynamics of wealth and philanthropy in relation to taxation. Evaluate the long-term value of investing time in specific technologies and explore alternatives to dominant platforms. Gain insights on building accessible alternatives, lowering barriers to entry, and making ethical choices in software development that benefit society as a whole.

Intro
GAFAM - the big five
Runaway tax optimisations
Market capitalization
Societal costs
whoami
Rebels critique systems
Developers build systems
Morality
Categories of ethical theories
Virtue ethics
Deontology
Consequentialism
Utilitarianism
Makers vs. takers
Political arithmetic
Production boundary
Banks as unproductive
Value extraction
Rent-seeking platforms
The neoclassical narrative
Value by circular logic
Billionaire Philanthropy
Tax and government
Wealth is power
Tax bills
Our task at hand
How does React benefit Facebook?
Beware the free hammers
Alternative-cost
What gives value in 10-20yrs?
The web ca 2003
Social silos
Building accessible alternatives
Evaluating time investments
Lowering barrier to entry
What we should do
World Wide Waste