Anyone with heterodox views and a significant platform is a legitimate target. Chick-fil-A’s owners have the wrong religious views; tell them they aren’t welcome in certain cities. Chip and Joanna Gaines are forming a successful lifestyle brand; tell the whole world they go to the wrong church. Joe Rogan has the wrong guests on his show; pressure Spotify into deleting more than 100 of his podcasts. All of these moves aren’t just punishing the people involved; they act as stern warnings to the holders of capital: Do not invest in content that wouldn’t get approval from the Buzzfeed reporters in Brooklyn.

This also shows why “build your own” is an inadequate argument for the times. Conservatives are not able to launch niche competitors to take on Mastercard. These institutions never would have risen to their prominence had they started out as enforcers of a left-wing political orthodoxy. They have been pirated by progressive activists, who act from within and without.

And even if conservatives could create such a financial institution, the battle could transfer immediately to another field. How would one go about building their own SWIFT international payment system? Russia has had trouble doing this, and it is a nation-state with an urgent need. The logical endpoint of the build-your-own argument is this: Build your own government.