Ok, what about literate, intelligent, thoughtful people? I understand that in this political climate it's easy to write off large swaths of the population as having nothing meaningful to bring to the conversation. But as polarized as we are, having only traditional media could mean sealing people into impenetrable bubbles, where they lack opportunities to find common ground, and be reminded of our shared humanity.
Maybe your experiences have been miserable, but mine haven't. Just because some, or many people don't utilize a platform in a preferred way doesn't mean everyone deserves to lose it.
Fair enough, but while an employment contract may shore up a legal obligation, does it dictate a moral and ethical obligation? I don't want to wax philosophic, but...
I don't think there is such a thing as a moral obligation to a company. Perhaps a moral sense of duty, but not if that duty requires violating a relatively higher held moral. Morals are our personal belief systems of right and wrong, and the relative rightness or wrongness. Our obligation is to ourselves, our god, and other people. And I think moral obligation ultimately trumps legal and ethical obligation in most situations.
Ethical obligations are based on usually the consensus of professionals of how one is to conduct themselves and perform their trade, especially with regard to the impact on others. Ethical obligations are developed by regulators and professional organizations, and usually those bodies have the power someone to account more than an employer. If a lawyer does not represent their client zealously, the client could fire the lawyer, but ultimately the Bar would determine if the lawyer was unethical.
In fact, I think a legal obligation, like an employment contract could mitigate one's moral or ethical obligations, along the lines of "just following orders".
I think it comes back to a love of the 'art'. A desire to protect the art from contamination, or a sort of guilt by association, of violent, abusive, harmful content; and a consensus among moderators that content with actual violence, abuse, or produced with anyone unable or unwilling to give meaningful consent does not constitute as art. And while I'm describing these obligations as towards the art, Xhamster is the virtual museum or library where the art is housed, or collected. Many, if not most libraries and Museums in the non-digital live world are run and maintained almost entirely by volunteers, and non-profit organizations; or, people that love them. (Yes, in some cases they do hire and pay handsomely people to curate their museums, but that is because of more tangible skills and specific knowledge of things like authentication, purchase and care of priceless works of art or scientific discovery that just doesn't apply to pornographic videos) Certainly the moderators could lose interest, or get tired of screening out what does not constitute art, or even venture out to create their own "museums", but how is that any different than a paid employee? Since Xhamster runs everything through the moderators before releasing on their site, losing their voluntary moderators would mean they have to modify their business model or close shop. And regardless of whether the moderators are paid or voluntary, xhamster has to be able to trust their judgement. Perhaps by creating a badge system, where the roll of moderator is earned by those who have demonstrated good judgement and developed a reputation is less risky than hiring someone based on a resume, interview, and limited information that can be gathered from references.
I don't think this model necessarily works for any and all sites hosting pornography, but it shouldn't be discounted just because there is no employer/employee relationship.
I think that there maybe a few holes in their model, like not getting the written certification that all performers are consenting adults as they claim to do, but otherwise they seem to have found a working solution for their site.
There is no such thing as an unbiased, neutral, professional moderator of art, especially art that can be lovingly crafted at home by hand, so to speak. It's impossible. And porn is a form of art. Those who earn badges that allow them moderate content are connoisseurs of sorts; people who enjoy the art and have developed vast knowledge and often a trusted sense of taste. While some pervert may temporarily get a moderator position, with a democratic structure that requires input from multiple people, they would quickly be discovered and outed. By relying on voluntary moderators, there are no performance metrics to burn people out, cause psychological fatigue or disturbance. They don't have to depend on reviewing content to pay the rent, and they can do as much or as little as they like. Moderators are incentivized by their love of the art and continued curation of content to share with other art lovers. If they are reckless about screening out what they suspect is csam, they risk seeing their "museum" shut down and their reputation damaged, and even personal liability.
Consider Back Page, and the networks of both consumer reviewers and sex workers that had developed. While not all abuse could be prevented using the platform, it did bring some victims out of the shadows where they might never had been found and ultimately saved. People who only wish to participate in or facilitate successful and satisfactory transactions between consenting adults did not want to lose their platform to do so by turning a blind eye to abuse and victimization of kids or non-consenting adults, which is why they worked with law enforcement.
It might not appear to some governments that a voluntary program is indicative of a company that truly cares about preventing csam, but policing themselves vigorously is one of the best ways to avoid being arbitrarily (or rightfully) shut down or policed by a government authority.
We need to stop complaining about the imperfections of moderation and continue to develop flexible solutions that can be tailored to meet varied demands.
Nobody said Biden was perfect, or Harris for that matter, or that he represented an ideal candidate. But he is a decent, reasonable, moderate/centrist who is actually capable of handling the pandemic, especially rolling out the vaccine (because how-in-the-actual-fuck are we still not able to do as much testing as we should, still rationing PPE, and still don't have the capacity to produce enough needles to actually administer the vaccine 11 months plus into this nightmare). I don't see where he has shown any mental decline, and FFS at least he lives in reality.
Biden's stance on this issue was already known, as was Harris's. But there are shouts from both ends of the political spectrum to get rid of or curtail section 230, much of with the same "save the children" bent because pornography and prostitution are the eternal moral panic inducers, because someone will inevitably spoil things for everyone if we can't stop the spoilers, we have to take away the spoiled activity, and because one side of the isle is always going to feel unfairly targeted or insufficiently protected on any given day. Biden needs to be pushed to listen to better, more informed people on this issue, and I think he is capable of being swung in the right direction. That is only going to happen if you convince Democrats that section 230 is a good thing and force them to understand what is lost, especially for marginalized communities and the ability to show the reality of police brutality, without it.
And hell, Republicans should appreciate the amount of freedom they have had, because the conservative movement has amplified their voice significantly.
Of note, signing the search warrant was one of the first official actions of a judge appointed by DeSantis in September, to a civil court. According to the GOP lawyer who resigned over the raid, choosing this civil court judge to sign off on a criminal warrant points to involvement by DeSantis' office. It's not like criminal court justices routinely scrutinize or reject warrant applications, so there has to be a reason for going to this judge.
Aren't there enough "Florida people" doing terrifying and insane things from tossing gators through the drive thru window to wrestling each other while their pants and underwear struggle to escape leaving a bare ass for everyone at Wawa at 2am to be left with nightmares for years to come? I mean, priorities people. A raid because someone sent an ethical plea through a completely unsecured communication system, which apparently generated no action from the roughly 1700 people who received the message. Did the cop taking this ridiculous report look at the official explaining what happened the same way they look at people reporting their car was stolen, and they left it unlocked with a key in the visor?
I just hope she had all the data and information showing corrupt and illegal actions by the state backed up remotely or made sure she had copies saved with other trustworthy people. Because that evidence is as good as gone by now.
So I'm supposed to believe that even with Comcast's shameless jacking of prices, that it really wasn't worth the cost of installing the infrastructure to provide Fios (or that AT&T service that I think might only be in the West) to a wider customer base? Comcast was just too competitive in their pricing for giants like Verizon or AT&T, and the bean counters decided ROI was too little, too slowly realized. Right...
What really chaps my ass is that stupid broadcast TV charge is partially based on sports coverage, which no one in my home gives 2 shits about. Plus they charge late fees, and separate reconnection fees that I seem to remember being $10 each (because the bill was due on the 13th though we repeatedly tried to get changed to the 15th, payday, and it would revert back after a month or two) when the entire process of cutting the service, paying the bill, and turning it back on is done electronically!
And FFS, can Comcast provide any actual proof that any actual update is occurring during that stupid daily update? I believe it is just a scheme to make customers call for repair service, (because all the damn connections that can be accessed indoors without drilling and holes are screwed on tight and straight as I've checked them each many times) and enroll in a monthly service plan for more money or pay some ridiculous rate for a repair tech to come out. Not that I want to give them any ideas, but why my cable box, but not my modem, requires this daily update and restart?
I bet Comcast overtakes the airlines to reclaim their position of worst customer service ever.
Of course reports that could show how many consumers the monopoly has potentially left on the table because they can, and for future use to leverage more corporate welfare under the veneer of do-gooding for underserved communities are "proprietary". If competitors saw how many consumers weren't serviced under the monopoly, they would pitch competitive bids to connect more consumers for the same or even less tax dollars. That could cause irreparable harm to the monopoly's business model.
Seriously, if the installation cost and regulatory burdens around installation are as prohibitive as the the telecom/cable giants claim, then we should just claw back all the tax dollars for unfulfilled contracts, prorated as appropriate, and work it like any other utility where the lines and their maintenance is public, and the service comes from competitive providers. I bet just a threat, so long as it was legally backed, to claw back money for unfulfilled promises would show unprecedented broadband growth. I don't see how these many failures to honor contracts, or tax breaks taken for conditions that were not actually met is anything less than fraud and tax evasion, which are crimes for the rest of us.
Build your own is absolutely feasible. Snapchat. Tiktok. Parler. Doesn't have to get all the millions of users of Twitter or FB, or else you'll just end up with the same demand to moderate according to the same preferences. Just has to reach the like-minded people.
Well clearly there's never any sort of cohesive, specific and direct plan of action coming from Trump. I mean, FFS, look at his word vomit answer to the softball question of what he wants to achieve in a second term.
But there is one thing Trump does understand, because he's a narcissist, and that is image. He knows he can't declare mission accomplished on the virus if people are walking around in masks, if schools and businesses are closed. So he throws Twitter tantrums, demanding economies and schools and churches open, that everyone votes in person. He demands the press Corp chairs be moved back together, ends temperature checks, and is careful to avoid being seen with anyone wearing a mask. It's all part of an illusion.
I'm sure the specific idea came from some henchman, and was pitched to Trump as a way to hurt both immigrants and college elite if they don't bend to his will, which brought a year of joy to his eye.
Hi everyone. My name is Erin, I'm 39 years old, and I fall down a Tiktok hole for hours at a time, and I really enjoy it. I know I'm not the only one, no need to be ashamed.
There are people of all ages, though I haven't seen any content of children that didn't come from the parents. And there are some really talented people out there, I am inspired. And I've been educated on some things I didn't know, and I have laughed to tears more in the last few weeks since I downloaded the app than ever in my life.
From what I can tell, this is a super supportive, very inclusive community, though that could be the algorithm I fit into. I read before that certain people were scrubbed from the app because of size, or handicap, and based on what I've seen it doesn't seem to still be the case.
I think this is all part of Trump's administration of blame and grievance selective attention span.
Your on the right path... But the point of the rule isn't to inflict pain on the students (it is a bonus though), it's to force colleges to return to normal, economic activity producing behavior, as if the pandemic is over. They are hedging their bets on the generally better health of college aged students won't spike the death rate, or overwhelm the hospitals. Just like pushing to end stay home orders way too quickly, and refusal to wear masks as well as mandate them nationwide; it's all about creating an illusion that everything is just fine, especially because election season will be getting serious in the fall. And while campuses probably lend themselves to much better physical spacing in the classroom, where college students live, both on and off campus, as well as general college lifestyle, coronavirus will spread faster than in nursing homes and meat packing plants. Exponentially faster.
And the Trump administration has all of higher education by the short and curlies, which we all know gives that segment of "society" an intense sadistic pleasure given their hate for the educated elite and liberals, because schools depend on the full tuition that foreign students pay to cover a lot of operating costs and provide reduced or free tuition to low income students. And while I think colleges need major restructuring to bring tuition down, this won't fix anything. This is wrong and immoral.
The one thing that I don't get is, if schools are indoctrinating kids to hate the US, churning out elite liberal snowflakes, and Republicans often drool over dismantling public education in favor of privatization, they sure are eager to get kids back to dystopia.
Race, with regard to humans is not a scientific category or classification. Humans use skin color for race classifications for completely unscientific reasons, usually our own irrational fear of others who appear different than us. Many, probably even most of us, want to believe we are colorblind, and do not see race; we don't have hate in our hearts. But we have subconscious bias, and it perpetuates the inequality that we tell ourselves doesn't exist. We cannot become colorblind until we actually are willing to see skin color, and then wrestle with subconscious bias that we hold ourselves, as well as point out to others when we see what they don't. And it's not going to be easy, but if we truly love our fellow man, we should be motivated.
Isn't it like SOP that whenever the press asks about an investigation, that often, no investigation will be confirmed or denied, and certainly no details would be released or discussed. Barr has been vague, but couldn't even vague reference jeopardize the investigation, like we are told about literally every other investigation on public interest?
And what really cracks me up is the failure of anyone, whether politically biased, or earnestly fearful that antifa mobs are going to descend on their town, to make even a nascent search to find out anything about antifa. Being that their overarching goal is to prevent the spread of fascist and racist ideology, by any means necessary, why would they show up ready for a fight when they agree with the point of the rally? Unless neo-nazis and the KKK plan on counter-protesting or disrupting BLM, antifa has no reason to show up any where as anything other than ordinary supporters of BLM. Antifa doesn't believe in violence as a first line tactic, but it is a tactic they will use if they think necessary. Just like every other movement, right down to the suffragettes.
Seems to me that it's unconstitutional for any level of government to have agreed to any collective bargaining that allows arms of the executive branch to violate the enumerated and implied protections in the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights are the explicit rules that restrict the government. The military prohibits unionization. And while far from perfect, as it is a world without the fourth estate as watchdog, seems to do well at not just training and preparing servicemembers, but also holding them to high expectations and accountability. For any policing that cannot be disbanded, as I still want an investigative agency able to arrest to suspects of murder, rape, theft- crimes with victims only- should be under the a very similar accountability program as the military. (For anyone who thinks the cops are the thin blue line between safety and chaos, who actually protect the innocent, and nothing you have seen over the past few weeks has changed that perception, you are going to be very disappointed if you ever call for their assistance. There's no situation that calling the cops can't make worse, speaking from experience)
I don't know where these neighborhoods are, but if this started last month, kids were still distance learning (the school year just ended in DE), and I'm pretty sure working from home is still happening for most people who can. Not to mention, very little activity outside the home has resumed, well until the protests. Is the idea to force people to watch cable TV more, to make more advertising dollars for those stations who are also keeping all that sports programming money when there are no sports? Is this to leverage schools and businesses to pay more to keep connection speeds up to demand? Who are they trying to milk more money from?
So I have a few thoughts about this whole reluctantly violating rights thing:
For the DEA, this is like having to hold all the bags while your friends get to ride the rollercoaster. Give them half a chance, they'll show them city boys how to use a flash bang grenade.
Or..
Everyone knows drug money goes directly to terrorists, and since antifa has been declared a terrorist organization, the DEA is defacto necessary
Or...
Hippies and black people, of course the DEA wants some of that action. It's what they were born for.
Or the DEA saw police stations and cars getting destroyed and knew the cops where going to have a shortage of drugs to plant on the thugs pretending to protest peacefully. They didn't realize that the cops no longer cared about a veneer of lawfulness when brutally beating and arresting the peaceful folk they kettled during a pandemic.
I suspect a mix of those things...
What's amusing is that antifa are far left, and are being called fascist for demanding equal rights and equal treatment, and some people also claim they are also anarchist, who want to impose communism or socialism, which cannot happen without a state to enforce it!
At the same time, a new paranoia is growing over boogaloo, who are mostly just gun enthusiasts who fantasize about civil war and apocalypse scenarios, and using those guns against an oppresive government. And yet they are considered far right.
Kinda seems to me that aside from some of the accelerationist fragments eager for blood, these people probably are just various forms of Libertarians. Both see the government as corrupt, inept, having far more power than it should and ultimately unsustainable. Neither likes the croneyism that we call capitalism. Both want freedom and generally to be left alone by the government. Of course neither group would is comfortable admitting they have anything in common, and will keep making the other into the boogyman.
Actually what makes the USPS successful but not necessarily profitable is the guarantee of last mile service. Offering last mile service for mail delivery, similar to broadband and other utilities, is not always profitable. But the post was such an essential form of communication that we put it in our constitution. Private competitors do a better, faster job for less money, until it comes to last mile, which just isn't profitable enough.
Re: Re: They *really* want to imitate CA's toxin labels?
Cute puns. But the labels mentioned here are on every imaginable product you might purchase that warn that it might be a carcinogen. And I mean everything, like the liquid in a snow globe, staples, dishes, coffee, and recently proposed for Tylenol.
On the post: Apparently Trump Refuses To Allow The Government To Do Anything At All Until The Open Internet Is Destroyed
Re: Re:
Ok, what about literate, intelligent, thoughtful people? I understand that in this political climate it's easy to write off large swaths of the population as having nothing meaningful to bring to the conversation. But as polarized as we are, having only traditional media could mean sealing people into impenetrable bubbles, where they lack opportunities to find common ground, and be reminded of our shared humanity.
Maybe your experiences have been miserable, but mine haven't. Just because some, or many people don't utilize a platform in a preferred way doesn't mean everyone deserves to lose it.
On the post: Content Moderation Case Study: Xhamster, The 22nd Biggest Site On The Internet, Moderates Content Using Unpaid Volunteers (2020)
Re: Re: Re:
Fair enough, but while an employment contract may shore up a legal obligation, does it dictate a moral and ethical obligation? I don't want to wax philosophic, but...
I don't think there is such a thing as a moral obligation to a company. Perhaps a moral sense of duty, but not if that duty requires violating a relatively higher held moral. Morals are our personal belief systems of right and wrong, and the relative rightness or wrongness. Our obligation is to ourselves, our god, and other people. And I think moral obligation ultimately trumps legal and ethical obligation in most situations.
Ethical obligations are based on usually the consensus of professionals of how one is to conduct themselves and perform their trade, especially with regard to the impact on others. Ethical obligations are developed by regulators and professional organizations, and usually those bodies have the power someone to account more than an employer. If a lawyer does not represent their client zealously, the client could fire the lawyer, but ultimately the Bar would determine if the lawyer was unethical.
In fact, I think a legal obligation, like an employment contract could mitigate one's moral or ethical obligations, along the lines of "just following orders".
I think it comes back to a love of the 'art'. A desire to protect the art from contamination, or a sort of guilt by association, of violent, abusive, harmful content; and a consensus among moderators that content with actual violence, abuse, or produced with anyone unable or unwilling to give meaningful consent does not constitute as art. And while I'm describing these obligations as towards the art, Xhamster is the virtual museum or library where the art is housed, or collected. Many, if not most libraries and Museums in the non-digital live world are run and maintained almost entirely by volunteers, and non-profit organizations; or, people that love them. (Yes, in some cases they do hire and pay handsomely people to curate their museums, but that is because of more tangible skills and specific knowledge of things like authentication, purchase and care of priceless works of art or scientific discovery that just doesn't apply to pornographic videos) Certainly the moderators could lose interest, or get tired of screening out what does not constitute art, or even venture out to create their own "museums", but how is that any different than a paid employee? Since Xhamster runs everything through the moderators before releasing on their site, losing their voluntary moderators would mean they have to modify their business model or close shop. And regardless of whether the moderators are paid or voluntary, xhamster has to be able to trust their judgement. Perhaps by creating a badge system, where the roll of moderator is earned by those who have demonstrated good judgement and developed a reputation is less risky than hiring someone based on a resume, interview, and limited information that can be gathered from references.
I don't think this model necessarily works for any and all sites hosting pornography, but it shouldn't be discounted just because there is no employer/employee relationship.
On the post: Content Moderation Case Study: Xhamster, The 22nd Biggest Site On The Internet, Moderates Content Using Unpaid Volunteers (2020)
Re: Re:
I think that there maybe a few holes in their model, like not getting the written certification that all performers are consenting adults as they claim to do, but otherwise they seem to have found a working solution for their site.
There is no such thing as an unbiased, neutral, professional moderator of art, especially art that can be lovingly crafted at home by hand, so to speak. It's impossible. And porn is a form of art. Those who earn badges that allow them moderate content are connoisseurs of sorts; people who enjoy the art and have developed vast knowledge and often a trusted sense of taste. While some pervert may temporarily get a moderator position, with a democratic structure that requires input from multiple people, they would quickly be discovered and outed. By relying on voluntary moderators, there are no performance metrics to burn people out, cause psychological fatigue or disturbance. They don't have to depend on reviewing content to pay the rent, and they can do as much or as little as they like. Moderators are incentivized by their love of the art and continued curation of content to share with other art lovers. If they are reckless about screening out what they suspect is csam, they risk seeing their "museum" shut down and their reputation damaged, and even personal liability.
Consider Back Page, and the networks of both consumer reviewers and sex workers that had developed. While not all abuse could be prevented using the platform, it did bring some victims out of the shadows where they might never had been found and ultimately saved. People who only wish to participate in or facilitate successful and satisfactory transactions between consenting adults did not want to lose their platform to do so by turning a blind eye to abuse and victimization of kids or non-consenting adults, which is why they worked with law enforcement.
It might not appear to some governments that a voluntary program is indicative of a company that truly cares about preventing csam, but policing themselves vigorously is one of the best ways to avoid being arbitrarily (or rightfully) shut down or policed by a government authority.
We need to stop complaining about the imperfections of moderation and continue to develop flexible solutions that can be tailored to meet varied demands.
On the post: Biden's Top Tech Advisor Trots Out Dangerous Ideas For 'Reforming' Section 230
Re: Democrats' biases showing
Nobody said Biden was perfect, or Harris for that matter, or that he represented an ideal candidate. But he is a decent, reasonable, moderate/centrist who is actually capable of handling the pandemic, especially rolling out the vaccine (because how-in-the-actual-fuck are we still not able to do as much testing as we should, still rationing PPE, and still don't have the capacity to produce enough needles to actually administer the vaccine 11 months plus into this nightmare). I don't see where he has shown any mental decline, and FFS at least he lives in reality.
Biden's stance on this issue was already known, as was Harris's. But there are shouts from both ends of the political spectrum to get rid of or curtail section 230, much of with the same "save the children" bent because pornography and prostitution are the eternal moral panic inducers, because someone will inevitably spoil things for everyone if we can't stop the spoilers, we have to take away the spoiled activity, and because one side of the isle is always going to feel unfairly targeted or insufficiently protected on any given day. Biden needs to be pushed to listen to better, more informed people on this issue, and I think he is capable of being swung in the right direction. That is only going to happen if you convince Democrats that section 230 is a good thing and force them to understand what is lost, especially for marginalized communities and the ability to show the reality of police brutality, without it.
And hell, Republicans should appreciate the amount of freedom they have had, because the conservative movement has amplified their voice significantly.
On the post: Florida State Police Raid Home Of COVID Whistleblower, Point Guns At Her & Her Family, Seize All Her Computer Equipment
Re: Search Warrant
Of note, signing the search warrant was one of the first official actions of a judge appointed by DeSantis in September, to a civil court. According to the GOP lawyer who resigned over the raid, choosing this civil court judge to sign off on a criminal warrant points to involvement by DeSantis' office. It's not like criminal court justices routinely scrutinize or reject warrant applications, so there has to be a reason for going to this judge.
On the post: Florida State Police Raid Home Of COVID Whistleblower, Point Guns At Her & Her Family, Seize All Her Computer Equipment
Aren't there enough "Florida people" doing terrifying and insane things from tossing gators through the drive thru window to wrestling each other while their pants and underwear struggle to escape leaving a bare ass for everyone at Wawa at 2am to be left with nightmares for years to come? I mean, priorities people. A raid because someone sent an ethical plea through a completely unsecured communication system, which apparently generated no action from the roughly 1700 people who received the message. Did the cop taking this ridiculous report look at the official explaining what happened the same way they look at people reporting their car was stolen, and they left it unlocked with a key in the visor?
I just hope she had all the data and information showing corrupt and illegal actions by the state backed up remotely or made sure she had copies saved with other trustworthy people. Because that evidence is as good as gone by now.
On the post: Comcast Increases Prices And Bogus Fees In The Middle Of A Pandemic
So I'm supposed to believe that even with Comcast's shameless jacking of prices, that it really wasn't worth the cost of installing the infrastructure to provide Fios (or that AT&T service that I think might only be in the West) to a wider customer base? Comcast was just too competitive in their pricing for giants like Verizon or AT&T, and the bean counters decided ROI was too little, too slowly realized. Right...
What really chaps my ass is that stupid broadcast TV charge is partially based on sports coverage, which no one in my home gives 2 shits about. Plus they charge late fees, and separate reconnection fees that I seem to remember being $10 each (because the bill was due on the 13th though we repeatedly tried to get changed to the 15th, payday, and it would revert back after a month or two) when the entire process of cutting the service, paying the bill, and turning it back on is done electronically!
And FFS, can Comcast provide any actual proof that any actual update is occurring during that stupid daily update? I believe it is just a scheme to make customers call for repair service, (because all the damn connections that can be accessed indoors without drilling and holes are screwed on tight and straight as I've checked them each many times) and enroll in a monthly service plan for more money or pay some ridiculous rate for a repair tech to come out. Not that I want to give them any ideas, but why my cable box, but not my modem, requires this daily update and restart?
I bet Comcast overtakes the airlines to reclaim their position of worst customer service ever.
On the post: Cities Say ISPs Are Being Cagey About Low-Income Broadband Availability During Covid
Proprietary data
Of course reports that could show how many consumers the monopoly has potentially left on the table because they can, and for future use to leverage more corporate welfare under the veneer of do-gooding for underserved communities are "proprietary". If competitors saw how many consumers weren't serviced under the monopoly, they would pitch competitive bids to connect more consumers for the same or even less tax dollars. That could cause irreparable harm to the monopoly's business model.
Seriously, if the installation cost and regulatory burdens around installation are as prohibitive as the the telecom/cable giants claim, then we should just claw back all the tax dollars for unfulfilled contracts, prorated as appropriate, and work it like any other utility where the lines and their maintenance is public, and the service comes from competitive providers. I bet just a threat, so long as it was legally backed, to claw back money for unfulfilled promises would show unprecedented broadband growth. I don't see how these many failures to honor contracts, or tax breaks taken for conditions that were not actually met is anything less than fraud and tax evasion, which are crimes for the rest of us.
On the post: Blatant Hypocrite Ajit Pai Decides To Move Forward With Bogus, Unconstitutional Rulemaking On Section 230
Re:
Build your own is absolutely feasible. Snapchat. Tiktok. Parler. Doesn't have to get all the millions of users of Twitter or FB, or else you'll just end up with the same demand to moderate according to the same preferences. Just has to reach the like-minded people.
On the post: In The Middle Of A Pandemic, ICE Says Foreign Students Must Attend Physical Classes If They Don't Want To Be Kicked Out Of The Country
Re: Re: Re:
Well clearly there's never any sort of cohesive, specific and direct plan of action coming from Trump. I mean, FFS, look at his word vomit answer to the softball question of what he wants to achieve in a second term.
But there is one thing Trump does understand, because he's a narcissist, and that is image. He knows he can't declare mission accomplished on the virus if people are walking around in masks, if schools and businesses are closed. So he throws Twitter tantrums, demanding economies and schools and churches open, that everyone votes in person. He demands the press Corp chairs be moved back together, ends temperature checks, and is careful to avoid being seen with anyone wearing a mask. It's all part of an illusion.
I'm sure the specific idea came from some henchman, and was pitched to Trump as a way to hurt both immigrants and college elite if they don't bend to his will, which brought a year of joy to his eye.
On the post: Pompeo Says US May Ban TikTok; It's Not Clear That It Can
It's not just for kids
Hi everyone. My name is Erin, I'm 39 years old, and I fall down a Tiktok hole for hours at a time, and I really enjoy it. I know I'm not the only one, no need to be ashamed.
There are people of all ages, though I haven't seen any content of children that didn't come from the parents. And there are some really talented people out there, I am inspired. And I've been educated on some things I didn't know, and I have laughed to tears more in the last few weeks since I downloaded the app than ever in my life.
From what I can tell, this is a super supportive, very inclusive community, though that could be the algorithm I fit into. I read before that certain people were scrubbed from the app because of size, or handicap, and based on what I've seen it doesn't seem to still be the case.
I think this is all part of Trump's administration of blame and grievance selective attention span.
On the post: In The Middle Of A Pandemic, ICE Says Foreign Students Must Attend Physical Classes If They Don't Want To Be Kicked Out Of The Country
Re:
Your on the right path... But the point of the rule isn't to inflict pain on the students (it is a bonus though), it's to force colleges to return to normal, economic activity producing behavior, as if the pandemic is over. They are hedging their bets on the generally better health of college aged students won't spike the death rate, or overwhelm the hospitals. Just like pushing to end stay home orders way too quickly, and refusal to wear masks as well as mandate them nationwide; it's all about creating an illusion that everything is just fine, especially because election season will be getting serious in the fall. And while campuses probably lend themselves to much better physical spacing in the classroom, where college students live, both on and off campus, as well as general college lifestyle, coronavirus will spread faster than in nursing homes and meat packing plants. Exponentially faster.
And the Trump administration has all of higher education by the short and curlies, which we all know gives that segment of "society" an intense sadistic pleasure given their hate for the educated elite and liberals, because schools depend on the full tuition that foreign students pay to cover a lot of operating costs and provide reduced or free tuition to low income students. And while I think colleges need major restructuring to bring tuition down, this won't fix anything. This is wrong and immoral.
The one thing that I don't get is, if schools are indoctrinating kids to hate the US, churning out elite liberal snowflakes, and Republicans often drool over dismantling public education in favor of privatization, they sure are eager to get kids back to dystopia.
On the post: North Carolina Cops Fired After Their In-Car Camera Catches Them Talking About Wiping Black People 'Off The (Expletive) Map'
Re:
Race, with regard to humans is not a scientific category or classification. Humans use skin color for race classifications for completely unscientific reasons, usually our own irrational fear of others who appear different than us. Many, probably even most of us, want to believe we are colorblind, and do not see race; we don't have hate in our hearts. But we have subconscious bias, and it perpetuates the inequality that we tell ourselves doesn't exist. We cannot become colorblind until we actually are willing to see skin color, and then wrestle with subconscious bias that we hold ourselves, as well as point out to others when we see what they don't. And it's not going to be easy, but if we truly love our fellow man, we should be motivated.
On the post: Trump, DOJ Claim ANTIFA, Other Extremists Are Hijacking Protests. DOJ Filings Show No Link To Outside Groups.
No comment
Isn't it like SOP that whenever the press asks about an investigation, that often, no investigation will be confirmed or denied, and certainly no details would be released or discussed. Barr has been vague, but couldn't even vague reference jeopardize the investigation, like we are told about literally every other investigation on public interest?
And what really cracks me up is the failure of anyone, whether politically biased, or earnestly fearful that antifa mobs are going to descend on their town, to make even a nascent search to find out anything about antifa. Being that their overarching goal is to prevent the spread of fascist and racist ideology, by any means necessary, why would they show up ready for a fight when they agree with the point of the rally? Unless neo-nazis and the KKK plan on counter-protesting or disrupting BLM, antifa has no reason to show up any where as anything other than ordinary supporters of BLM. Antifa doesn't believe in violence as a first line tactic, but it is a tactic they will use if they think necessary. Just like every other movement, right down to the suffragettes.
On the post: Behind Every Terrible Police Officer Is An Even Worse Police Union Rep
Seems to me that it's unconstitutional for any level of government to have agreed to any collective bargaining that allows arms of the executive branch to violate the enumerated and implied protections in the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights are the explicit rules that restrict the government. The military prohibits unionization. And while far from perfect, as it is a world without the fourth estate as watchdog, seems to do well at not just training and preparing servicemembers, but also holding them to high expectations and accountability. For any policing that cannot be disbanded, as I still want an investigative agency able to arrest to suspects of murder, rape, theft- crimes with victims only- should be under the a very similar accountability program as the military. (For anyone who thinks the cops are the thin blue line between safety and chaos, who actually protect the innocent, and nothing you have seen over the past few weeks has changed that perception, you are going to be very disappointed if you ever call for their assistance. There's no situation that calling the cops can't make worse, speaking from experience)
On the post: Major ISP Cox Begins Throttling Entire Neighborhoods for 'Excessive Usage'
But why?
I don't know where these neighborhoods are, but if this started last month, kids were still distance learning (the school year just ended in DE), and I'm pretty sure working from home is still happening for most people who can. Not to mention, very little activity outside the home has resumed, well until the protests. Is the idea to force people to watch cable TV more, to make more advertising dollars for those stations who are also keeping all that sports programming money when there are no sports? Is this to leverage schools and businesses to pay more to keep connection speeds up to demand? Who are they trying to milk more money from?
On the post: DEA Wants In On The Fun, Asks DOJ To Give It Permission To Surveil George Floyd Protests
Sarcastic takes
So I have a few thoughts about this whole reluctantly violating rights thing:
For the DEA, this is like having to hold all the bags while your friends get to ride the rollercoaster. Give them half a chance, they'll show them city boys how to use a flash bang grenade.
Or..
Everyone knows drug money goes directly to terrorists, and since antifa has been declared a terrorist organization, the DEA is defacto necessary
Or...
Hippies and black people, of course the DEA wants some of that action. It's what they were born for.
Or the DEA saw police stations and cars getting destroyed and knew the cops where going to have a shortage of drugs to plant on the thugs pretending to protest peacefully. They didn't realize that the cops no longer cared about a veneer of lawfulness when brutally beating and arresting the peaceful folk they kettled during a pandemic.
I suspect a mix of those things...
On the post: #NoRightsMatter: US Postal Service, Law Enforcement Team Up To Seize 'Black Lives Matter' Facemasks
Re: Antifa
What's amusing is that antifa are far left, and are being called fascist for demanding equal rights and equal treatment, and some people also claim they are also anarchist, who want to impose communism or socialism, which cannot happen without a state to enforce it!
At the same time, a new paranoia is growing over boogaloo, who are mostly just gun enthusiasts who fantasize about civil war and apocalypse scenarios, and using those guns against an oppresive government. And yet they are considered far right.
Kinda seems to me that aside from some of the accelerationist fragments eager for blood, these people probably are just various forms of Libertarians. Both see the government as corrupt, inept, having far more power than it should and ultimately unsustainable. Neither likes the croneyism that we call capitalism. Both want freedom and generally to be left alone by the government. Of course neither group would is comfortable admitting they have anything in common, and will keep making the other into the boogyman.
On the post: #NoRightsMatter: US Postal Service, Law Enforcement Team Up To Seize 'Black Lives Matter' Facemasks
Re: Re: Morons at the USPS
Actually what makes the USPS successful but not necessarily profitable is the guarantee of last mile service. Offering last mile service for mail delivery, similar to broadband and other utilities, is not always profitable. But the post was such an essential form of communication that we put it in our constitution. Private competitors do a better, faster job for less money, until it comes to last mile, which just isn't profitable enough.
On the post: Utah State Rep Unveils Bill To Force Porn To Come With A Warning Label
Re: Re: They *really* want to imitate CA's toxin labels?
Cute puns. But the labels mentioned here are on every imaginable product you might purchase that warn that it might be a carcinogen. And I mean everything, like the liquid in a snow globe, staples, dishes, coffee, and recently proposed for Tylenol.
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