> Finally, moving our content behind authentication allows us to better protect instructor intellectual property from “pirates” who have reused content for personal profit without consent.
Or maybe there are other considerations at stake.
> For better or worse, large portions of society (especially those found in academia and cities) have decided that a level playing field is more important than having any playing field.
That's completely false. What people has decided is that sometimes is worth having a small cost for the big benefit for everyone that it is to have accessibility. Without a more careful case your arguments falls into the Straw Man fallacy. (This fallacy includes an attempt to "prove" an argument by overstating, exaggerating, or over-simplifying the arguments of the opposing side and attacking that "straw man" argument instead of the original one.)
> This sort of stuff makes me furious and it's only going to keep happening.
It is about helping them, not about making things difficult for the rest. If you have the opportunity to talk with some disabled people that have seen their lives improved thanks to this measures probably you are going to be less furious and more happy about it. :)
Or maybe there are other considerations at stake.
> For better or worse, large portions of society (especially those found in academia and cities) have decided that a level playing field is more important than having any playing field.
That's completely false. What people has decided is that sometimes is worth having a small cost for the big benefit for everyone that it is to have accessibility. Without a more careful case your arguments falls into the Straw Man fallacy. (This fallacy includes an attempt to "prove" an argument by overstating, exaggerating, or over-simplifying the arguments of the opposing side and attacking that "straw man" argument instead of the original one.)
> This sort of stuff makes me furious and it's only going to keep happening.
I hope that this video helps you to understand what's suggested for help people with disabilities: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdPymLgfXSY
It is about helping them, not about making things difficult for the rest. If you have the opportunity to talk with some disabled people that have seen their lives improved thanks to this measures probably you are going to be less furious and more happy about it. :)