It's time to boycott and de-invest from the US

Simon

It should be clear for everyone by now that the US has started its descent into full-blown fascism and authoritarianism, it has fully supported Israel's horrific genocide in Gaza since the start, and now it has illegally attacked Venezuela and kidnapped the country's President and wife. And don't forget how the US obstructs climate efforts and how it's actively sabotaging the world’s energy transformation and decarbonization. Just to mention a few things.

The US and Trump have now fully signaled to the world that it is a rouge state that will do whatever it wants - no matter how abhorrent the crime is. The US is a pariah state and the biggest threat to international peace and security in the world.

Now it's time to boycott and de-invest from the US.

But considering how strong US dominance is over our everyday life, no matter where we reside, that's obviously not an easy task, and it will take some time and real effort to fully move away from US products and services.

The easiest thing is to stop buying groceries that have been made in the US. There are usually better - and healthier - alternatives than US-made groceries anyway. The next step is to stop buying products or services that have been made or provided by US-owned companies. And that's a bit trickier.

Here is a handy guide that will help you get off US tech. It lists a bunch of non-US alternatives when it comes to everything from music streaming and email to hardware products.

If you're from Europe, like me, a good place to start is by looking for European alternatives for digital products. There even is a helpful website for just that here: european-alternatives.eu

If you know other alternatives to popular US products and services or have any tips on how to successfully boycott and de-invest from the US, please share them here in this thread.

Simon

Here are some related reading on this subject (from a European perspective):

The United States is a rogue state

As the sanctioning of ICC, UN, and European officials shows: digital sovereignty is paramount. The United States can cut off anyone from the technological systems its companies control, and it’s willing to use that power against anyone who tries to stand in the way of its interests, those of its client states, and largest companies. The bulk of that work must happen at the government level, to create the conditions, deploy the funding, and create the structures to rapidly build and deploy a new technological infrastructure. But individuals can still make a difference by pulling back from US tech services as much as feasibly possible.

Europe must now tell Trump that enough is enough – and cut all ties with the US

Will Europe finally choose between Europe and the US? Will its leaders have the courage to tell the full truth – that the US isn’t simply abandoning its allies and destroying the international order but is now in the position of active and hostile predation by force – and more importantly, to act on it?

Trump’s tariff shock suggests EU’s strategy of flattery and appeasement has failed

The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, last Thursday used a tried and tested formula to describe the US – calling it one of “our allies, our partners”. Only 24 hours earlier, Denmark, an EU and Nato member state, had warned that Donald Trump was intent on “conquering” Greenland, but the reflex at the top of the EU executive to describe the US as a friend runs deep.

Europe’s strategy of flattering and appeasing the US president has failed.

Trump’s threat to Greenland must be a wake-up call for Britain

In the longer term, we need a comprehensive security review that fully accounts for the serious threats facing the UK today. In the 140 pages of the government’s most recent Strategic Defence Review, the word ‘climate’ appears only twice, while ‘flooding’ and ‘wildfire’ are absent entirely. Yet senior military figures warn that the dangers posed by the climate crisis far outweigh those from other states. When discussing defence spending, these are precisely the threats we must assess and budget for – rather than simply acquiescing to America’s arbitrary demands for military expenditure, which flow straight into the coffers of US arms manufacturers.

Trump’s tariff threat leaves Europe with a choice: fight back or cease to matter

The EU has reached a moment of truth. If it cannot defend one of its member states whose most basic interests are under direct threat, then the EU is weakened as a geopolitical actor and emptied of purpose.

Even if Trump appears to have backed off from threatening to use military force, Europe must show that he has misjudged his opponent. The alternative is not peace or stability, but irrelevance and a Europe progressively picked apart by predators.