01.11.21- BIG TECH and FREE THOUGHT
Over the weekend the free flow of information was under attack. It’s not really new, conservative thought has been oppressed on social media for some time.
But now the President of the United States was stopped from using Twitter and other social media at all. It was done, the masters said, for the safety of the country.
The first amendment is a restriction on government. These are private companies who are within the law by regulating their platforms as they choose.
I’m not sure the question should be if this is this right, or even if it’s fair. The question is whether or not the action is good for everyone.
The answer is only if everyone thinks alike. Quite simply, we don’t.
Until opposing views are given equal treatment, we will remain a nation of opinion haves and have nots.
Does anyone really believe this is a good idea?
01.12.21- Media Madness
Media madness is not a new phenomenon, but it may be a new pandemic!
It begins with an ABC political director calling for a “cleansing” of the Trump movement form the American political landscape.
Then a competing radio company to mine, under threat of termination, banned its talk hosts from discussing whether the 2020 presidential election was rigged.
Then social media, America’s preferred method of communication and connectivity, banned the President of the United States from its platforms in an unprecedented move.
And the Associated Press, long a standard for how news entities use the language, mischaracterized events in DC as well as communication about those events.
We’re connected through our devices and these entities control how. They are also controlling thought they don’t like.
That means we are underserved and under informed.
01.13.21- WORKING TO DIVIDE
America is as divided as I remember seeing her. And there are forces working to make sure the chasm widens.
Nancy Pelosi says Americans on the right have chosen their “whiteness” over democracy.
Joe Biden insists on comparing conservative legislators to Nazis as he calls them purveyors of “the big lie.”
ABC’s political director tweeted that the Trump movement should be “cleansed” from the American landscape. Talk about Nazi references!
Forbes magazine opined that Trump staffers should not be hired in corporate America lest those corporations then be equated to liars.
You’ve seen what social media has done to the president, to Parler and conservative users.
These folks prefer a divided America because divided we fall.
You have to wonder why they fear a United States that actually is.
01.14.21- Cancel Culture Cancelling You?
Thursday we talked division in the United States. Just who is leading the drive to keep us divided? We talked three groups.
Politicians on all sides work to push their own agendas and keep the fires stoked by citing things that don’t even apply- like Nancy Pelosi did with and the January 6thviolence in Washington.
The media is also complicit in the great divide. Forbes called for blacklisting former staffers of President Trump and PBS’ chief attorney said voters who supported the president should have their children taken from them and placed in reeducation camps.
Social media giants have shuttered Parler.
And then there’s education as a pair of Duke professors are urging President Biden to create a Ministry of Truth to determine what speech is allowed in in the country.
It’s more than division, it seems they want control. How soviet of us.
01.15.21- Responsibility & Accountability
With the Inauguration of Joe Biden coming next week DC and much of the country is concerned because of events on January 6that the Capitol.
The FBI has issued warnings of planned “armed” protests at state capitols between now and the inauguration. Many are skeptical of these claims.
People who were arrested for the events in DC are facing consequences for their actions not only in the courts, but in their employment setting as well.
There are others who were in DC simply to attend the rally and express their political opinion and support who also face consequences at home.
It's something to ponder heading into next week. Don’t allow yourself to be drawn in to something that you’re not comfortable with or that may be usurped by those without responsible intent.
It’s reasonable for government to prepare to protect these events and locations, just like it’s reasonable for us to be smart in how we act.