WE NEED A WILD WEST IN SOCIAL MEDIA... SADLY STEEMIT AIN'T IT.
At the moment the recent coordinated banning and shadow banning of conservative media groups has started a huge debate about free speech in the United States. Having lived both in the U.S and the UK and being a citizen of both countries I can't say that where this is going is surprising at all. I live in a country that is run by a government which daily shows it's nightmarish Orwellian fangs to its gelded public. The response from most Britons is to just shrug and refocus on reality television, football, and whatever red herring issues the media feeds them. If something tragic does happen the half way educated members of our public take to twitter for jibs and sarcastic commentary on behalf of their partisan views and in a week shrug and move on.
Where the United States is heading is altogether saddening. One of the great things about America has always been the ability to say whatever the hell you want and it's a freedom I don't have in the U.K but I do when I visit the states. When I'm there I can say if someone is fat, ugly, stupid, or all of the above and not risk imprisonment or being fined. When we begin to ask companies or governments to authorize what views are acceptable or allowed we always end up at totalitarianism in the end. Some are applauding the recent Info Wars ban but I can't help but see this clapping as short sighted. It may be working out for their side of the argument at the moment but it's a double edged sword that will eventually swing back their way.... maybe I'm wrong though. Maybe big companies and those who call the shots in government as well as special interest groups do have your best interest at heart.
I remember when I joined Steemit I had high hopes for it being a platform for free speech which of course it's not. It only takes one user with more money invested in exercising their opinion to flag anything I could say into invisibility if they disagree. Steemit does however have the ability to be a wild west though with a restructuring of the flagging system. I.e a thumbs down function to reflect the view on the content and a thumbs up for monetizing the approval. A flagging function could exist for plagiarized content as that can be bot managed with relative ease. Basically people could voice whatever they like whether agreed with or not and no one could silence or penalize them for the opinion.
Right now there are some whales on the platform who can say what goes with millions tied up in Steem, but by comparison to larger entities out there? These whales are small fish and if Steemit ever did attract those big entities attention as problematic or a place where opinions are being freely formed... well we would see what we are seeing with all other platforms out there at the moment.
I know I'm not the only one who has hopes that someone out there in the block chain world will create a place where people can legitimately say or do what they want. Where if someone disapproves then they can voice it, start a debate, and let the real truth of the matter come out through that process. Flagging into invisibility just kills the debate. It's a small scale version of what we are witnessing with big tech companies banning conservative views at the moment.
Yes, I know what I'm suggesting could provide an open source for hate speech and the like but I think in many ways that would be great. Let's you know where the morons are at. No amount of legislation or company policy is ever going to stop hate mongers from gathering or voicing their opinion. We all make the choice to click on what they have to say and invest ourselves enough into their views to let it effect us. If it's an open platform where everything can be viewed by everyone then the extremist, racist, or nut job wouldn't last very long anyway. Shitty ideologies don't fair to well in the face of transparency and free flowing debate. We all know this deep down.
I'm not saying that I agree with conservative media or I'm some sort of Alex Jones/Info Wars subscriber. I'm simply stating that free speech needs a wild west where anything goes. The ideas that can take pressure and hold truth would be the ones to survive in such an environment. For the most part it's just a rant post brought on by a sadness at watching one of the favorite things about one of my home countries slowly die. I live in a place where I don't have free speech and daily am amazed at those of my fellow citizens who don't even notice the loss of this natural right.... so yeah, a rant post. Me impotently trying to nail my vomit to a wall basically.
But having said all of this I'd love to know what you guys think. Do you think we need an anything goes social media platform? A wild west for ALL free flowing opinions both dumb and sound? Could or should the block chain be what delivers that?
Well guys that's it for now. Thanks for giving my post a read and as always keep on Steeming.
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Hello @mudcat36, Uhm... I don't think we need a wild west in social media anymore, we're on the wild west now.. people are killing each other using their words and profiles in social media. I'm sorry because english is not my native language.
so far, I've seen many people use their freedom of speech right in this platform, posting about their beliefs, ideas and people can choose to support or just ignore it.
where do you live? so sad to hear that, do you think because people are busy struggling to stay alive has make them not realize about this basic right?
Hmmm. I don't believe people are using their words to kill each other as such. Yes words can be used to recruit others and yes we have seen extremism of various sorts spring up. The problem is that these platforms aren't open. I can't help but feel an open source model like we have on the steem block chain would allow for contraries to weigh in unlike what we have on most platforms. Opposing views grounded in reality tend to wither extremism, racism, and violence. It doesn't do away with conflict though. There is no utopia out there and man kinds search for a utopia is littered with the bodies of millions. Absolute peace is a noble ambition, but not a reality. Contraries and opposing views will always exist and if shoved into corners or oppressed fester and grow. By limiting what we say by force we are simply inviting more violence. It's not just the hate speech that's the villain on most sites. It's just one head on the hydra. The 11 million people who will die in Yemen as a result of western intervention aren't being killed by hateful bigots online, but rather by governments/special interest that endorse the suppression of free expression as well as anything else that is contrary to what they want the population to believe. So when people begin to question what is occurring it's simply shut down or silenced. However open platforms should exist for questioning of all things and the challenging of all views to occur. Yes people will advocate violence, yes people will say horrible hurtful things, yes we will always differing opinions. These things need to exist in the open where all can see them for what they are and what they represent. I do have faith that when given the choice most of humanity would make the right decision. The key thing is allowing a place for that decision to be made. Will words be used to incite violence? Of course. They always have been. It's how we get soldiers to go to war or someone encourages an act of violence against another. Will violence always exist and people die as a result of it? Yep. I wish it wasn't true but it is. These things have always and will always exist as a part of humans being humans. Is suppressing what people say a solution? No. It's never worked and there is no example in history where that type of measure doesn't result in deaths. People may use their social media profiles to recruit people to a belief, but these extreme beliefs already existed long before computers did. Bad ideologies have always existed and will always exist. But a truly open platform where nothing can be hidden and everyone has the chance to see it for what it is provides us all with an opportunity to deal with such things and make the choice. With all information open I'd like to believe that people would make the right choices. But the limiting of freedom of expression has never worked historically and usually grows into something far deadlier later on killing far more people than the hateful words someone uses online. Thank you so much for the taking the time to read my post. Your English is good by the way. :) In regards to where I live? I'm in the UK. I don't think people are focused as such on staying alive as much as their just happy and well fed into not caring about anything more than their self interest. Being told by government what they can and can't say doesn't bother them anymore than a camera on every street corner does. More arrest are made under our anti terrorism laws for things like dog fouling, littering, and similar low level offences yet the public believe these things exist to keep them safe. But again, historically these types of things have never worked well for the people of any country once they creep in. This is just my observation of course. Could be wrong. Thanks for the comment and keep on steeming. :)
absolutely agree with you! so do you think this platform just the same as other platform too, I mean in terms of "freedom of speech". well.. I am someone who believe that There's no absolute freedom in this world, real or virtual .. hehehe.
anyway... I have featured this post on the pay it forward curation contest this week, I'm attracted to your ideas and "rant", how can UK has something like that implemented, what's really going on? is that the price of globalisation and democracy?
Thank you so much for your kindness. :) In regards to absolute freedom? I kinda believe it's in our wiring as a species but 10,000 years of statism has kinda left us wondering around with that perpetual feeling of having lost our keys. lol. In regards to the UK... Well to piggy back a famous quote, the public exchanged their freedoms for safety and woke without either. I can't say if it's a bi product of democracy or globalization though. I'd like to point the finger at a lot but in reality we as a people allowed it to happen. So I guess the collective mirror is where I tend to look. I daily make efforts to be as self reliant as I can in my life here and give government the absolute minimum I have to. From how I source my food to how I manage my finances. I hate the idea of any of my tax money going towards fueling wars of aggression or feeding a corrupt banking system so I do my best to with hold my compliance by with holding as much as I can without crossing the lines of the law. If I had more of a choice I'd with hold more but I don't want to be fined or sent to jail. Sad and bitter realities I suppose. Again thank you so much for your support. I founded an initiative on Steemit called Newbie Resteem Day that's focused on helping other content creators out by providing free resteems to increase post exposure. We can be found at @newbieresteemday Always feel free to give me a shout if ever you have any posts you'd like some help with. It's all for free and community run. It's been a pleasure to meet you so don't be a stranger and always feel free to pop bye and say hi. :)
same here.. I hate it when our government and house of representatives raised the tax for a pack of cigarrette and at the same time they're tend to corrupt, living in luxorious life, buy a high end cars and blaming the poor people being in poverty because too much cigarretes consumption.
thank you @mudcat36, glad that I found another @newbieresteemday here. will do that in the future if I happened to create a good post like yours, hehehe. My best only on commenting but terrible on posting, LOL.
Hey mudcat, please stop shouting or I will have you arrested!
Seriously though, shouting? WTF, never knew that was a crime! I will go have my tonsils removed now:)
I completely agree with the flagging alterations you mentioned there. In fact I had the same idea ready to be posted at some point in the future! Downvotes with no visibility or monetary penalty. Otherwise, what's the point right?
It would be awesome to see a shift in flagging practices mate. Give me a shout when you do a post and it and I'll hit with some resteems and a bot vote happily. In regards to shouting... yep. Also if you are perceived to be attempting to insight someone into a state of anxiety you can be charged here as well. It's bloody mad.
Hello @mudcat36 its great I come to know about you from @pifc curation contest where @cicisaja featured you. Its a great way to feature bloggers you can also join this contest.
Wow. I just checked it out and it looks awesome! I like the pay it forward initiative! Definitely going to give it a more in depth look after lunch as I love community initiatives like that. Thank you so much for stopping by. :)
That's one reason they still say this site is in beta. They don't have it working as it should yet... Could that be on purpose?
It is pretty much to late for America. Free speech has been crippled. Free speech as you say on steemit is crippled, the only person that has any real free speech is haejin and ned, no one can grey them out. One because of his reputation, one because of the amount of steem he has. Everyone else is subject to the bully brigades. Plagiarism should be dealt with by a group, as it is now. From my point of view they do a good and a fair job.
The only thing that should be flagged are excessive rewards, and the flag/loss of funds should be directed at the person that gave the reward to begin with not the poster.
The rest should be open to all, no one should have to be threatened to remove comments because someone did not agree with them. If someone wants to make an ass out of themselves then I say more power to them, let them ass off themself as much as they want.
Here here my friend. I watch those flagging wars and the parties involved a lot and it's a head scratcher no doubt. I would love it if we just let lose and have true community regulation by allowing progress to emerge from contraries... I mean let's face it, not everyone is always going to agree so letting everyone be free to disagree and agree where they like without fear of being stifled would be awesome. In regards to free speech being crippled... Yeah. It's saddening to watch. Half of my family is American and I grew up there from 10 years old and lived there until my twenties. Watching what's creeping in now over there does just cause a profound sadness.
Since when did shouting become synonymous with hate crimes??!!! Years ago I watched with horror the cameras going up in the UK, all under the guise of protection, and now, in both the US and the UK, people seem oblivious to all of it, and like you say, go back to their fake reality tv or other nonsense, and don't pay any attention to any of it. Orwellian indeed, but also, a lot like Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. If you've never read it, check it out. You will be shocked and saddened at the similarities in today's world.
As far as social media goes, yes please. There needs to be a place where people can say what they think without fear of being censored or shut down, but also a place where others can tell them that they're being an ass too :)
How are you @mudcat36? :) I guess I should have started with that haha
I found your post because @cicisaja featured you in her Pay it Forward Curation contest entry (I'm one of the judges:). Please feel free to check it out and join us if you'd like!
How lovely to hear from you @lynncoyle1! How are things with you? I haven't been on discord much lately but at some point we most certainly should connect for a good natter. lol. In regards to cicisaja, yes she is a lovely young lady and I really enjoyed her commentary on the post. Great dialogue in truth. I love the pay it forward concept as well. It's amazing how all the cool stuff on Steemit really does come from the community isn't it? In regards to the post and topic... It's a horrible reality really but most don't seem to mind it over here. Contained subversion of the population by the powers that be was a roaring success and today in Britain people get more outraged if you offend their favorite football team or celebrity than they do about the chains that they allowed themselves to be bound in. We've become a gelded nation in short. But I think most call that gelding "progress" which leaves me scratching my head to the point of patch baldness. lol.
We're hanging in there @mudcat36, but overall, things are pretty good. I love this pay it forward group I'm involved with, especially since all the participants have the same selfless approach to things. And yes, the topic at hand. It leaves me shaking my head and you scratching yours haha
Nice chatting with you, even it's a quick one like this!
Interesting topic!
While I fully support freedom of speech, I do not think wild west ALL free flowing opinions will solve the concerns that you have brought up. Why? Lack of regulations, policies or rules (since all free flowing) will lead to chaos and abuse of freedom. I have seen this case many times in my country.
People march along the streets as protest against the government for some petty matters. They blame the government because they do not have this and that. They cause commotion, add to our already killing traffic problem and cause inconveniences to many who are minding their own business. But if you try to dig deeper into what they are fighting for, it boils down to their laziness. And if you tell them about the bigger problem that they bring, their answer is that they are exercising their right to freedom of speech. The heck with their rights and freedom. Causing more trouble to others is abuse of freedom!
There is no difference in social media. If we strike all controlling factors, there will be bigger problems. Instead of striking all controls, the governing body should instead revisit and revise those controls so all legit and humane reasons are considered.
Hmmm. An interesting take. So in regards to your statement
"The heck with their rights and freedom. Causing more trouble to others is abuse of freedom!"
The way I can't help but look at it is as follows. If you feel that others expressing a view or opinion is an inconvenience then what is the root? Somewhere it will be down to a conflict with your ideals and/or what you see as the correct mode of behaving or voicing beliefs or disgruntlement. That mode you see as appropriate is not what is adhered to or is causing inconvenience to others so it's abuse of freedom. I'm sorry but this is flawed logic to an extent. If you were wishing to express an idea in a crowd or as part of one then the other side could just as easily state you are abusing your freedoms as well. I'm not saying people don't act irrationally, or use freedom of speech as an excuse to do irrational things. I'm simply stating that voicing ones views or opinions as long as it is peaceful should be permitted. No matter how much we disagree with it.
The statement you made:
"There is no difference in social media. If we strike all controlling factors, there will be bigger problems. Instead of striking all controls, the governing body should instead revisit and revise those controls so all legit and humane reasons are considered."
Again I disagree. Social media unlike a protest houses opinions and creates a space where there are no bullets, no damaged properties, no harmed bodies. A line is created between the virtual world and the one outside of your front door. IF someone chooses to act irrationally on flawed logic then that is their choice. Asking for more governance to govern what we as human beings should govern ourselves seems.... well, cyclic. We have been begging people to govern for us for centuries and it doesn't work out to well. Vertical collectivism still exist. The Hegelian dialect is still used for purposes of control and division with the population. Person versus person and a benevolent nod from an outside party dictates what occurs and who is right. But abuses of all sorts across a broad range of spectrums still occur. Why is this? Isn't an act of supreme laziness to outsource our morality? To ask others to make decisions and deem which opinions mean what and are legitimate? Is it really that horrifying a concept that we should each take responsibility for our own views and being willing to test their worth against others in an open and transparent non violent environment? Or god forbid have an open dialogue about all things without restraint and see where it goes without an outside party holding controls like an impatient parent? Do we really believe ourselves to be children incapable of self management or real self governance? The experiment of absolute free flowing debate without moderation in a non physical environment hasn't happened yet. Others expressing their point of view causing pressure isn't an abuse of freedom. It's a biproduct of freedom itself. Every ecosystem around us evolves on the basis of pressure. Pressure begets growth. Now are people lazy? Yep. If given the choice many tend to be. Belief in a need to be governed and outsourcing personal responsibility for generations can do that. It's a biproduct of governance by outside parties. I do appreciate your comment and can see where you're coming from. But I'm by no means eager or do I feel that human growth should be stifled simply because we still believe in the myth that we need governance or an outside party to judge the worth of what people say. I could be wrong. Perhaps human beings aren't that mature. Perhaps a world where a selected few decide what can be said and can't be said should be the model. Perhaps we really do need to clutch our blankets and put our thumbs in our mouths and cry for moderation because what some one SAID online upset us. Dunno. But what I can say is that for 10,000 years of human beings begging for governance it hasn't worked out terribly well.
I agree with you... and having, twice, been victim of attacks by a whale who didn't like my opinions, I have felt that on my own skin.
If a rich kid with money can silence others just because he doesn't like to be contradicted, this platform won't ever be the censorship free Social Media we've been promised.
I still like SteemIt... I simply understand that this is not the platform to freely share our opinions, specially political ones.
PS: I've found your article after reading this post by @cicisaja
Loved the post @mudcat36 I agree. Sadly it's either fight to have your voice heard or someone gets butt hurt over a raised voice (smh) A downvote because you don't support what someone is saying is idiocy. Downvote abuse and misuse not expression.
I go caught up in the downvoting ring due to following @steemcleaners. How lame that was. I thought I would be safe expressing my opinions, but I don't think anywhere is safe anymore. People have become too judgemental and totalitarian it honestly make me sick.
I just got done watching the first 2 seasons of A Handmaid's Tale. Sadly I see this happening. It deals with the totalitarian ideals and how quickly it took over, relatively unnoticed until it was too late.