On 01/28/2018 06:35 AM, aryt alasti wrote: > True though all of that is, if tens of thousands of people are relying on > Facebook for their connectivity to activism and dissident viewpoints, then > pressure should be put on Facebook to cease with its blatantly suppressive > practices.
As long as that "putting pressure on" means "cut it out of our lives entirely", then you and I can agree. Because, as I point out, that's the only thing that organizations like this understand. In fact, they even have a term for it: "unrealized profits". Unless you turn in this into "unrealized profits", nothing will change and any hope you have for change, is in vain. My position on FB, and things like it, is not just that they are a nuisance or that they have /some/ bad sides. My position is that they are fundamentally, irreparably evil and should be eradicated like we eradicate diseases or tumors: systematically and with unrelenting zeal. Any time we relent, we give it time to breath and grow. We don't need to fight FB on issue X or Y, we need to fight them, full stop. It saddens me that projects like Diaspora never took off but that cancers like Facebook continue to exist. Sure, we need/could use some new technology to help us with this, but that's not what we truly need, we need education first! P.S.: Consider bottom-posting instead of top-posting, you'll leave more friends in your wake that way... :) > On Jan 28, 2018 4:59 AM, "Thomas Delrue" <tho...@epistulae.net> wrote: > >> On 01/28/2018 01:05 AM, aryt alasti wrote: >>> I didn't realize to what extent activists in the Middle East are relying >> on >>> Facebook. >>> >>> http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/how-facebook-bans-free- >> speech-egypt-activist-social-media-april-6th-mubarak-1685366161 >> There are many parallels to be drawn between the content in the article >> you link to and some stories that I've heard of people who've been in an >> abusive relationship. I'm not saying these two are equivalent... I'm >> just saying that there's many parallels. >> >> On the subject of the usage of social networks in social activism, which >> the linked article is really about: very relevant content was posted >> years ago on LibTech which, I think, should serve as a lighthouse for >> anyone wanting to organize in any serious fashion, warning them that >> there are jagged rocks and danger ahead. >> For those around back then, I recommend a re-read of, and for those new, >> an initial read of the thread titled "when you are using Tor, Twitter >> will blocked your acc[ount]" >> >> You will find the initial message of the thread here (do go through the >> thread in full, the initial message is just the kick-off): >> https://mailman.stanford.edu/pipermail/liberationtech/2014- >> June/013791.html >> And the incredibly germane content I refer to in regards to this >> particular issue is right here: >> https://mailman.stanford.edu/pipermail/liberationtech/2014- >> June/013878.html >> >> And now for my usual rant against FB and the like: >> >> People need to grow up and realize that things like FB, Twitter and >> other social networks & centralized services are not working in their >> favor. They are doing a disservice to themselves, to their goals and to >> others by using these surveillance & manipulation platforms; by using >> these platforms, they cause damage to other individuals who they suck >> into these platforms. >> >> Facebook isn't there to 'connect us', Google isn't there to 'help you >> find things on the Internet'; they (and others) are there to sell you >> ads, extract revenue from you and to keep you docile so you can be shown >> more ads and so that more revenue can be extracted from you. If that >> means that anything that is bad for business is swept under the rug, >> removed, blocked... if that means cozying up to the current Power of the >> Day that provides them with access to this "set of eyeballs" but has a >> tendency to crush dissent... well so be it. >> Anyone who does not realize this yet continues to use facebook & their >> ilk is like a dumb leper who has lost his bell, wandering the world, >> meaning no harm... (if you'll forgive the re-purposing of that quote) >> >> I'll leave it at this for the moment... >> >> > -- Liberationtech is public & archives are searchable on Google. Violations of list guidelines will get you moderated: https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/liberationtech. Unsubscribe, change to digest, or change password by emailing the moderator at zakwh...@stanford.edu.
