Well, we live in right now, and right now, mobile Linux just isn't suitable for many people, and the hardware that actually supports mobile Linux is a whole other story. It's certainly not possible to just not have a phone at all anymore, either. Calyx, Graphene and Lineage are the current best options. To say someone is stupid for using these is, well, stupid.
I didn't say that people who use Android are stupid and neither I intended to. What I meant is that Android is really enshittificated now. "It's certainly not possible to just not have a phone" is another story. I think relying on phones too much hurts people and the world a lot but again that's a whole new story
Okay, but saying "Imagine using Android" paints a certain picture. And, yes, relying on phones is dangerous. It's not that it's impossible to live without a smartphone, it's that arbitrary systems have been put up in society that have created a large dependence on them.
That's nonsense. You can pretty much deal with any unrooted Android phone with Android 9 and above with this smartphone guide. https://lemmy.ml/post/128667
What does stock even mean? No "factory" shipped phone is going to be ideal for privacy and security. Stock to me means the custom Android build firmware that company shipped on the phone. As long as I am merely uninstalling programs, modifying permissions and firewalling the system, without rooting or unlocking it, it still is a stock factory phone. Within minutes I can return it to its "factory" status.