@Ben Pate ? This isn't about Google. This isn't about search-indexing.

Imagine Tootfinder being non-opt-in, non-opt-out like the earlier centralised searches. Imagine Tootfinder firmly embedding itself into every last Fediverse project from Mastodon to Streams to the point of everyone and everything relying on it.

Now imagine Google buying out Tootfinder in a hostile takeover.

This would mean that Google ASSUMES FULL CONTROL over the entire Fediverse.

This is what we want to keep from happening. This is why we don't want anything central in the Fediverse.

We do NOT want the Fediverse to be controlled by any one central instance. Especially not by Google. Or Apple. Or Facebook. Or Amazon. Or Microsoft. Or any other corporation. Or some greedy VC vultures.

Or imagine Google assuming full and direct control over all e-mail. Not only Google Mail, but also Outlook Mail, Yahoo! Mail etc., including privacy-oriented paid providers in Europe, including every last little private personal mail server run by geeks in their homes.