Tag Archives: Free Speech

Politics: Surveillance

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Why is it even important… and why should I care? I’ll get to the why…

Spy vs Spy

Spy vs Spy

Recently the Dems and GOP have been fussing about what is or isn’t spying. It doesn’t take exceptional intelligence to figure which side has staked their position in the debate in the Land of Dumb… Is it spying or surveillance? That seems to be the crux of the debate.

SPY ∙ verb

  • work for a government or other organization by secretly collecting information about enemies or competitors.
  • observe (someone) furtively.
  • discern or make out, especially by careful observation.

SURVEILLANCE ∙ noun

  • close observation, especially of a suspected spy or criminal.

Is there really a difference? Is any difference enough to matter? If not, then what is at play?
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The War on Free Speech Escalating

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This week I think the war on free speech is escalating. I read Drudge Report each morning. It tells me what mainstream media will be talking about tomorrow or the next day. Today it leads with 7 articles about attacks on free speech.

For those unfamiliar with the Drudge Report, it is a ‘news aggregator’. Very seldom does Mr. Drudge actually include any of his writing in the Report. So, it is like Feedly, Newsify, gReader, and other aggregators.

Image – Drudge Report is popular. The stats are approaching 1 billion page views per month.

Today it points to articles from; CNN, NYT, WaPo, The Sun (UK), Mirror (UK), Whimn (AU), The Hill, CBS Sacramento, Rolling Stone, Reuters, Yahoo News, Bloomberg, NBC, Daily Star (UK), Space.com, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, Zero Hedge (considered a conspiracy site), AP News, Axios, Politico, FNC, SF Gate, and that is just a partial list from today.

Drudge Page Hits – 8/7/2018

A number of sources proclaim Drudge Report as extreme right-wing. If you read the list above, you’ll wonder how that is possible. Blue is Left and Red is Right. Uncolored text is center or unknown. My list is taken from today’s Report and I took them as I found them. I skipped some like The Smoking Gun because I don’t recall ever seeing them in the Report and didn’t consider them representative. Those I listed I see almost every day.

The Report’s stories are pointed to without comment. Other than a modified headline which leaves little, if any, room for spin. So, Drudge Report bias, if it exists, can only come from their selection of articles. The significant majority of articles are from Left and Center-Left sources. So, it is the Left claiming one pointing to their words is extreme right-wing? Really!?!  Continue reading →

Free Speech to get Really Complicated

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Every so often I get on the subject of free speech. Second Life™ is said to be inhabited by more Liberals and Progressives than Conservatives and Traditionalists. But, no one knows, at least I have yet to see an objective study or assessment. I can see that we have more demonstrations of liberalism in SL. But, Conservatives have historically been the silent majority. Thus, the problem figuring out the actual demographics.

Google can't tell about information requests from China

Google can’t tell about information requests from China

Second Life is not a free speech area. It is a private area owned by Linden Lab(R). Speech is governed by the ToS. We are free to say whatever within those limits. It is up to the Lindens to decide what speech exceeds those limits. Their decision is final, there is no appeal.

In RL free speech is suffering from fake news that is confusing some people and adding extraneous information some mistake for facts. Part of which is that awful thing ‘Hate Speech’, which is an interesting spin on “Hate” and the prime tool for anti-speech proponents.

I think the recent Berkley riot and threat of riot are examples of people not understanding the US Constitution and the principle of Free Speech nor its importance nor how to protect it nor why. Continue reading →

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Second Life: Free Speech Ban in UK? No Sex?

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This year has seen many attacks on free speech. A new restriction is going into effect in the UK. UK to censor online videos of ‘non-conventional’ sex acts.

Beautiful in white

Beautiful in white

I’ve already been contacted by people in Second Life™ worried that it may mean SL will be banded in the UK. It gets complicated as banning requires ‘unconventional sex acts’ be defined and that age verification meet certain standards, which seem to be poorly defined and left to some bureaucrat to decide.  Continue reading →

Is America Losing Its Free Speech Rights?

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Most European countries have already given up their free speech rights, at least as Americans see free speech. I suspect most Europeans don’t even realize how much they never had and how much they have lost.

The Federalist has a good article on the sad shape of free speech in America: The Coming Free Speech Apocalypse. I am certain most have no idea how much Hillary and the Democrat Party are against free speech nor that they have plans for limiting speech in the Democrat platform. She has to hate repeatedly being called out on her lies. Continue reading →

Free Speech Attacks

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This past week has seen more and more attacks on free speech and civil rights than any time I can remember. I don’t see where anyone is actually tabulating the frequency or even the number of attacks. So, I can’t provide hard data to prove an increase. But, there is no doubt there are attacks and they are legion.

We expect attacks on or systematic elimination of citizen speech in Communist countries. But, I find it amazing Socialists are gaining support as they attack rights and Progressives are joining in…

Hate Speech is Free Speech

Hate Speech is Free Speech

Germany

Free Speech Under Attack

As our report shows, curbs on free speech have grown tighter. Without the contest of ideas, the world is timid and ignorant.

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In all areas of life, free debate sorts good ideas from bad ones. Science cannot develop unless old certainties are queried. Taboos are the enemy of understanding. When China’s government orders economists to offer optimistic forecasts, it guarantees that its own policymaking will be ill-informed. When American social-science faculties hire only left-wing professors, their research deserves to be taken less seriously.
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Poor Facebook – More Free Speech Attacks

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Zuckerberg can’t win. Unless you’re Independent or conservative that has chased down more balanced news sources you probably aren’t seeing the steady stream of news about Facebook’s bias. The real story isn’t that Facebook (URL to home page) is biased. The story is how prevalent the movement to ban free speech is. Everyone is missing that part of the story.

~unicorn centauress~

~unicorn centauress~

Facebook is a private company. It has the right within the USA to be biased. What it doesn’t have and what can verge on illegal is telling us the service it provides has no bias. There it can trip on truth in advertising laws. Breaking trust with customers, in this case ‘users’ is probably more descriptive, is always considered bad form.  Continue reading →

Facebook Suppression

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It is an election year. A key to the democratic process is a well informed electorate. The obvious reason politicians want to control the news is to shape the electorate’s thinking. We have seen that happen with Hamlet’s distorted Trump-Bernie article and how it was picked up and further distorted by the liberal media to serve their agenda.

Deception

Deception

The idea in a free society is that ideas are debated to find the best way of doing something and deciding what needs to be done. People are going to disagree. Some people will never change their thinking. Some people are morons. However, the majority of people will go with what works best. That is a problem for a Leftist that cannot defend their ideas. The Alinsky solution: lie, mislead, and silence those that disagree.  Continue reading →