I see it as the death of any democracy. It starts with a "hate speech" law and every time, without fail, the country begins spiraling on what is and is not acceptable behavior. What is and isn't okay for someone to see. What is and is not acceptable for something to think.

Restrictions become tighter on the individual, pressure increase on foreign countries to censor / control media because that country PERSONALLY finds the content distasteful. In response those countries either comply or black hole the traffic (This is already happening)

If things don't change FAST the (to quote Josh Moon) big I Internet WILL split into multiple smaller internets. That's a very scary prospect to me, as those "smaller" internets will be much easier to control, monitor and censor.

I predict in that world that Proxy/VPN/Onion routing service will become quickly outlawed. Speech will tighten even further and will extend far beyond random online users. I also see a world in which an "Online Identification Card" becomes a mandatory requirement to even obtain a router. This identification will be a requirement to sign-up to platforms as well, of course.

In England RIGHT NOW Apple backups are no longer end-to-end encrypted so that the U.K. government, if they so desire, can completely see what is/was on your device. In Germany the police are going to peoples homes who have posted "illegal opinions" and fining that person -- on top of this they CONFISACATE the device used to do it. The device is not returned.

Think that's bad? The UK is slowly trying to set precedent for jail time for posting things that aren't EVEN hate speech. Things that might upset people, or make them feel uncomfortable or even things that are false.

"Don’t give yourselves to brutes - men who despise you - enslave you - who regiment your lives - tell you what to do - what to think and what to feel!" - The Great Dictator