In today’s world, our identities are shaped by the protections we’re granted, both in the physical and digital realms.
• Passports: Identity based on government-issued protections.
• Emails: Identity based on company- or server-issued protections.

The internet is like an endless ocean—every site a landing page, every page linking to another. These digital harbors cost money. Spending time on them requires payment; through advertisements, personal data, or monetary subscriptions. It’s the unspoken contract we all participate in.

Search engines like Google act as the naval guides of this ocean. They offer “free” navigation and access; at the cost of data, targeted ads, or even direct subscription fees. Sometimes all three, and sometimes more.

This mirrors how taxes work in society. You pay taxes in return for public resources and protection. It’s a spoken, structured contract:

“Pay your taxes, and be willing to fight for your country—for the people, by the people.”

Companies, however, are not for the people, nor by the people. They are more akin to Kingdoms:
• No democracy
• No balance of power
• No real accountability
• Only performance-based trust (e.g., “steal bread, we cut off your hand”; because there’s no real ‘police’ in place to mediate)

Historically, kingdoms were justified by religious authority. Kings ruled by divine right, held accountable to God; validated by priests or popes.

Today’s companies rule by capital. The more money you have, the more power you wield. You can buy influence, leaders, and sometimes entire systems; if they’re willing to be sold.

Now Imagine…
• Trying to travel the world without a passport
• Trying to use the internet without an email

Your digital identity is your passport to virtual existence.

Societies, physical or digital, will always form natural structures. The earliest civilizations were based on religion. Today, we lean into systems based on money.

But if we don’t look back at our past, we’re bound to repeat it.

The First Commandments of Identity

One of the oldest religious texts; the Old Testament; offered a warning, long before any government or corporation held power:

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
You shall have no other gods before me.
You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below…”

This wasn’t just about religion; it was about allegiance.

Whether to kings, companies, or capital, humans have always been tempted to place their trust in systems they can see and touch; even if those systems eventually enslave them.

So Ask Yourself…
• Who protects your identity?
• Who owns your data?
• And what gods; digital or otherwise; do you serve without even realizing it?

Maybe it’s time we rethink what we bow to.