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  • Guillem Leonguilevi@dragonscave.space
    Oct 10, 2026, 11:22 AM

    🧵

    I'm willing to accept the general de-nuanced views against smart glasses and those who profit, economically and in clout, from disparaging them and the people who make use of them.. I'm willing to accept that they're a cancer on society and I'm willing to accept violence against those who make them and use them. Under one condition. That you grant me this: I am fully blind. Anytime I go out in public, I am acutely aware that an overwhelming majority of people have at least one device on them with a camera. Their cameras and microphones could have disco lights going off every time they take a picture or start a recording and I'd be none the wiser. I do not know whether someone is taking pictures of me, videoing me, or even whether they are holding this machine in their hand or not. A train carriage full of people minding their business feels the exact same as a train carriage full of people pointing their evil anti-privacy, anti-blind machines at me. It does not make a difference whether they are big or small tech. It's absolutely trivial to turn any audible alert off. What's more, even if you do happen to have your GoodSmallTech™ made-in-the-EU ethical anti-AI anti-fascist anti-nazi phone's audible alerts at full volume, a selfie and a photo straight at my goddamn face sound the same to me. And you know what the funny part is? That I have no doubt, no damn doubt in the world, that people take pictures of me without my knowledge or consent at least somewhat regularly. I'm blind, I'm gallivanting around with a cute dog, crossing streets and going on trains... How inspiring, how interesting! And after all, I'm blind, so I'm not gonna notice! I firmly believe that at least a decently sized sector of the population does not assign the same level of personhood to a blind person, or probably any disabled person, than to "normals".

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Replies

  • Guillem Leonguilevi@dragonscave.space
    Oct 10, 2026, 11:23 AM

    Go on, ask me for sources. I've got stories aplenty! Like that lady who I accidentally bumped past two days ago who turned toward me and said to their companion "oh shit, he's blind!" in a very audible voice. How about the lady that stopped me at a crossing last week to talk to me about how praiseworthy I was, how much my dog took care of me, how he's my best friend, "right?" while I was running late to an appointment? Wait until I tell you about the lady who shouted across the street when the traffic light went green "ARACELI! QUE VIENE EL CIEGO!" (Araceli! The blind one/blind man is coming!). Are you looking for examples specific to pictures/videos? On multiple occasions, my sighted friends and mobility instructors have had to tell me about people openly taking pictures of my dog and I on trains and in stations, and on a couple of those have had to tell those people off. Are you sighted, like the great overwhelming majority of people are? Check your privilege. You can tell when someone is wearing smart glasses. I can't tell when someone is holding their fucking phone. I can't even tell when people are gawking at me for being an inspiring superperson with a supercane or a superdog (okay Sid is actually a superdog). It makes me uncomfortable and guess what? The not knowing doesn't make it easier. If I were a more vindictive person, I could be saying "hah, now you know what it's like". Stop whining. Or at least, have some humility and adequate your whining to the world, not just to the able-bodied majority. It is so, so typical of the Fediversal Good to leave entire sectors out of the equation out of simply not thinking about them.

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  • Guillem Leonguilevi@dragonscave.space
    Oct 10, 2026, 11:23 AM

    You know who else does that? EVERYONE. Everyone and their mother is guilty of this. I am guilty of this. I cannot think of everyone in every situation. I'm probably offending someone right now. We can talk about that when the ideas I express in this post reach the popularity and generate the quasi-fanaticism that anti-glasses ideas have. Somehow, I think that people will be much, much more hesitant to talk shit about phones with cameras on them than about smart glasses. But hey! Sighted people are the many, blind people are the few. We will continue to graciously accept that everybody has a potential camera on them at all times, because it would be ridiculous to lobby for phones to not have cameras anymore, wouldn't it?

    Disclaimer: I had Meta glasses for a week and returned them. I found no benefit in using them myself, and I do not like Meta in general. I also know people that have found very good accessibility-related use cases for them. You know what I usually utilize for those use cases? My phone. Wow! Nuance! Or is that hypocrisy? The lines are so blurred nowaadays...

    This written after coming back from the gym where somebody talked to me for 2 minutes about how much merit it had that I was doing what I was doing. I'm self-conscious as fuck at the gym. Should I write one about AI next? Should I? Should I?

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  • Elena Brescacinelettrona@poliversity.it
    Oct 10, 2026, 1:45 PM

    @guilevi @TheQuinbox Talking about privileges, a blind man could even be more privileged than a blind woman. I'm a blind woman and, besides camera equipped phones / glasses, the paranoia can affect me for ordinary eyes. Working in a place where the majority is of male co-worker, has induced me to be more and more careful when I dress myself. Shoes are mostly with velcro or other ways to fasten, rather than strings. Because if they unfasten and I bend over, who tells me if someone stares at my ass?
    If I walk someone could stare at my breasts, so I tend to wear quite large skirts. Same for trousers and dresses. Never something too short.
    Not because I feel ashamed of my body, but because it's the only thing I can do from my part. I don't care to feel attractive or what, I need to live my life in peace. Then, true, my co-workers are people I trust, I do not feel any predators. But we can never know.
    And yes, I'm very cynical when I feel sighted folks complaining about glasses. Those without glasses, feeling uncomfortable because they feel spied. But, I just say, welcome to the world. Feeling powerless in front on a supposed bigger power.

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  • Erik the short (vi)kingbright_helpings@mspsocial.net
    Oct 10, 2026, 3:20 PM

    @elettrona @guilevi I am legally blind but can see a little and when I started using a white cane in my 30s (not because my sight changed, but because my perspective on disability changed), one of the most startling things I noticed is how much more obviously men stared at my breasts.

    The things people (especially men) do when they believe themselves to be unobserved are stunning and dispriting. (This is one reason I don't like the idea of self-driving taxis; people feel free of consequence!)

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