I'm not sure it's reduced, but point taken.
Up until 9/11, for North America, maybe. After the collapse of the Soviet Union things felt pretty good. In my social circle there was a lot of optimism.
But we were on a neoliberal tear. A lot of the benefits we were enjoying (of globalization) are the cause of the spasm of conservatism we're seeing today.
“I decided I launched [sic] these tools in the first place as a project to build the tool that could be use by LEAs [law enforcement agencies] and PIs [private investigators.]”
According to the developer, they’ve provided the tool to cops in Portugal, Belgium, and “other countries in Europe.” They told 404 Media that the website is meant for private investigators, journalists, and cops.
It sounds like they're actively peddling it to cops.
We see ourselves as a progressive country. It's an absolute embarrassment that we invite people into our country and then treat them like this. If Canadians can't/won't so the work, then we should ensure that the people who come in to fill those jobs have the same protections that a successful worker world have.
My response was (is?) tongue and cheek.
Generally, I think it's best for the GM to give the players an accurate, understandable, and consistent view of the world. If the local townsfolk have said The creature up the hill turns people to stone when they gaze upon it! then this is a perfectly reasonable course of action, even if the monster doesn't have a gaze attack, so long as the PCs trust the villagers. The villagers just happen to be wrong in this case.
If the PCs have a reason to doubt their senses (in D&D/Shadowrun that might be due to a charm, etc; or in Cyberpunk/Shadowrun it could be cyberpsychosis) then it's also pretty reasonable.
Can the GM do it once to troll the players? Sure.
Would it be annoying if the GM made a habit of it? Probably.
Is it funny for a meme? Yes.
I've always wanted to visit Killing Morocco.
finally, someone asking the right questions
According to Wikipedia
D-Link Systems, Inc. (formerly Datex Systems, Inc.) is a Taiwanese multinational manufacturer of networking hardware and telecoms equipments. It was founded in 1986 and headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan.
In his defense, he didn't try to seduce anyone.