Although Elon Musk was unhappy with some of the activities Twitter had allowed on its platform prior to his purchase of the iconic social media giant his reason for trying to back out of his agreement to acquire it was financial rather than ethical (something both he and Twitter seem happy to allow to be quietly ignored, especially by the Main-Stream Media -MSM-), quote; "Musk’s argument largely rested on the allegation that Twitter misrepresented how it measures the magnitude of “spam bot” accounts that are useless to advertisers"; https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/elon-musk-offers-to-end-legal-fight-pay-44-billion-to-buy-twitter Caveat Emptor mister Musk, perhaps if your objections had been made on the grounds that such accounts are both ethically and morally dubious (a contentious point perhaps but nevertheless arguable especially if one intended to change the culture of the platform and was making the purchase on that basis -something Musk at least intimated-), your case would have had more traction. It is clear now that the noises Musk was making about wanting to democratise Twitter prior to the purchase were meant only for single-use public consumption, however, the chorus of protest against the actions of the new owner that has arisen from the ranks of those employed under the old regime smacks decidedly of sour grapes from those who are, undoubtedly, now getting the government they deserve, quote; "From the announcement of Musk’s bid to the day he walked into the office holding a sink, I watched, horrified, as he slowly killed Twitter’s culture*. Debate and constructive dissent was stifled on Slack, leaders accepted their fate or quietly resigned, and Twitter slowly shifted from being a company that cared about the people on the platform to a company that only cares about people as monetizable units. The few days I spent at Musk’s Twitter could best be described as a Lord of the Flies–like test of character as existing leadership crumbled, Musk’s cronies moved in, and his haphazard management—if it could be called that—instilled a sense of fear and confusion.": https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2023/02/elon-musk-twitter-ethics-algorithm-biases/673110/
*What culture? Twitter had already participated in the mass censorship of those opposed to the Globalised State's reaction to the Covid19 pandemic as-well as censorship of opinions and comments on other subjects which it felt could be labelled "Fake News".
I was unable to view the following piece of censorship when using Twitter's "Moment" function fortunately I posted some of my Moments on several message boards/fora and my fellow users reported seeing it whilst being unable to access any of the Moment's content. As far as I was concerned my Moments were functioning properly:
Prior to this I had also had been "locked out" of Twitter for a week or so due, I was told by them, to a "bot check" (something done to establish whether or not you are "artificially intelligent"), however, again thanks to fellow members of the "Lifeboat News" (message board), Twitter were caught in the act, quote; "Your link can't be read Gerard...archived message
Link says: "This moment cannot be viewed because of potentially sensitive content"": https://members5.boardhost.com/xxxxx/msg/archive/1562970679.html
I, however, was previously unaware of this, for presumably the same reason I had not been able view the banner above, being quite able to view my own content.
Clearly the Twitter administration had been unable to establish any legal reason to censor my articles on the possible use of tactical nuclear weapons in the Yemen by the Saudi/Egyptian/Israeli "Good Neighbour" alliance (see "Arafel" archive), and had backed off from their original position:
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| The picture above has become an Arafel exclusive simply because no other b**ger will publish it. My thanks to those in the Yemen who made it available to me! |
Go to: https://forum.5filters.info/t/dr-vernon-coleman-nuclear-war-is-coming/3880/11 for videos and Arafel link.
Many thanks also to Ken Waldron of the "Lifeboat News" for his help, for on both occasions he has been interested enough in my work to try and access it and once finding himself unable to do has reported the fact to both myself and the online community.
Nb. These breaches of my rights occurred before Twitter's purchase by the celebrated Mr.Musk!
In my post; "The Coming Storm from Forbidden America": https://www.arafel.co.uk/2022/02/the-coming-storm-from-forbidden-america.html I intimate that the raison d'etre for the American Right's protestations against the nature of the censorship to which they feel they are subject is not actually far removed from that which moves the British (and European), Left to object. This might, indeed, please Mr.Musk as he has oft stated his wish to aid Donald Trump in his "clearing of the swamp", quote: "The account, which Twitter banned following the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, was restored after Twitter CEO and new owner Elon Musk posted a poll on Twitter on Friday night asking the platform’s users if Trump should be reinstated.
“The people have spoken. Trump will be reinstated,” Musk tweeted Saturday night. “Vox Populi, Vox Dei,” Latin for “the voice of the people is the voice of God.”
The final poll results on Saturday night showed 51.8% in favor and 48.2% opposed. The poll included 15 million votes": https://edition.cnn.com/2022/11/19/business/twitter-musk-trump-reinstate/index.html
Yet does Mr.Musk actually understand what the reason might be for Ouroboros to swallow its tail? Quote;
"Wayne
Anderson, an Avionics Technician is interviewed by Rob Balsamo,
Co-Founder, Pilots For 9/11 Truth. Wayne reveals his observations of a
remote guidance test on a Boeing 757 in which technology was used to
control the aircraft remotely, while also being able to "Lockout" the
Flight Crew from overriding the autopilot system in order to regain
control of the airplane. The following interview discusses the details
of this test which was performed prior to September 11, 2001, the
violations of FAA regulations and the possibilities using such
technology." Go to: http://members5.boardhost.com/xxxxx/msg/archive/1512081442.html & http://members5.boardhost.com/xxxxx/msg/archive/1512033259.html , also see;
"The 9/11 Document that Launched US-NATO’s “War on Terrorism” in the Middle East" Go to: https://www.globalresearch.ca/the-mysterious-frank-taylor-report-the-911-document-that-launched-us-natos-war-on-terrorism-in-the-middle-east/5632874?print=1
(also from "The Coming Storm from Forbidden America").
Musk has also been equivocal about Covid19 vaccines, quote: "Tesla chief Elon Musk expressed support for COVID-19 vaccines despite previously raising questions about their safety and saying he wouldn’t get the jab himself.
The world’s second-richest man tried to clear up his vaccine views on Twitter after drawing ire last month for his vocal skepticism about two-dose regimens.": https://nypost.com/2021/04/08/elon-musk-says-he-supports-covid-vaccines-after-questioning-safety/ I wonder whether he is considering the reaction of his Trump supporting "fan base" when making such remarks.
I was, this time at least openly, censored by Twitter by being locked out of my account for Tweeting the comments of some of the more outspoken "anti-vaxxers" (such as Dr.Mercola: https://www.mercola.com/), and wonder, as I am sure many do, if myself and others like me would have attracted such opprobrium from the platform had it been in Musk's hands at the time.
Yet here's the rub, Musk seems keen to allow Twitter to be at least as anti-egalitarian as did his predecessors, if not more so. It seems that it is the nature of the beast that spawned globalist entrepreneurs like Musk, who are so wedded to the Social-Darwinist notion of individual transcendence, that its progeny are unable to express notions of social justice, quote: "Elon Musk defended “Dilbert” creator Scott Adams after hundreds of newspapers stopped printing the comic strip because of Adams’ recent racist comments.
Last week, Adams called Black Americans a “hate group” and suggested that White people should “get the hell away” from them. Adams effectively encouraged segregation in a shocking rant on his YouTube channel. His comments came in response to a poll from the conservative firm Rasmussen Reports that said 53% of Black Americans agreed with the statement, “It’s OK to be White.”
In response to a tweet about the controversy, Twitter owner Musk said Sunday that the “media is racist.” He didn’t criticize Adams’ comments, and Musk said without evidence that for a “very long time, US media was racist against non-white people, now they’re racist against whites & Asians.”
“Same thing happened with elite colleges & high schools in America,” Musk wrote. “Maybe they can try not being racist.”
Musk later agreed with a tweet saying Adams’ comments “weren’t good” but had an “element of truth” to them. He also accused the media of giving Black victims of police violence disproportionate coverage over White victims of police violence. Black people are more likely to die from police use of force than White people, according to multiple studies.": https://edition.cnn.com/2023/02/27/business/elon-musk-scott-adams-defense/index.html
Now he wants to verify the correctness of the steps of his geese by charging for the process, quote; "Elon Musk has indicated that a verified account on Twitter in the future could cost $8 a month, despite facing a user backlash over proposals to charge for the feature.
The new owner of Twitter described the current system for allocating blue check marks – which verify a user as a trustworthy source – as “bullshit”* in a Twitter post to his more than 110 million followers on Tuesday.
“Twitter’s current lords & peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark is bullshit. Power to the people! Blue for $8/month,” he wrote, suggesting that a tick could be given to accounts that subscribe to the platform’s premium service, Blue, for $8 a month.": https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/nov/01/musk-charging-twitter-verified-accounts
Bullshit it may have been (as I said I'm no defender of the old regime), but relying on brute capital isn't the answer either. This is surely an example of the "anti-culture" to which the majority of us have been both encouraged and allowed ourselves to become so accustomed. Let's face it Twitter has never been an egalitarian platform, far from it, in-fact it has been an exemplar of cut throat laissez-faire since its inception. Americans, unsurprisingly, don't see it that way, being so wedded to the notion of;
"..."The pursuit of happiness", the phrase that appears in The Declaration of Independence that is held in the National Archives Museum in Washington, was not the phraseology that appeared in a preceding, and original, document (signed by possibly more -or the same number-, of the Founding Fathers than the other). Arendt would I think agree that as the upshot of "The American Revolution" was to see the instigation of, "perpetual war" between the republic and democracy and if, "by their works shall ye now them" it would not be surprising to discover that an earlier more egalitarian drafting of The Declaration existed. The notion that the learned elders were incapable of explicating from both the British and (at that time burgeoning), French revolutions a more egalitarian (and enlightened), conception of social well-being and social order seems most errant nonsense and is given no credence by the correspondence quoted in my previous post warning Washington of the influence of Illuminati, "free-marketeers" within the American Lodges. This "preceding document" to which I refer is supposed to have contained the phrase; "the pursuit of public happiness" rather than the shorter apparently more individualistic but apparently object-less (and therefore meaningless?)*, one that appears on the version that is extant, it has also been suggested that Washington and others were responsible for secreting the original document away from the centres of power and beyond-the-gaze of those who wanted its destruction. That we see now how America continually, "makes war on its children" should also give credence to the notion that The New World never did truly sever its links with the old and simply substituted a dictatorial republican hierarchy for a monarchical one, that these same republicans should have been relying so heavily on our queen in order to maintain the status quo and further their own social- Darwinist agenda in recent years also suggests that the full story of The American Revolution (and how it is not yet over), has been deliberately kept from the American people.": https://www.arafel.co.uk/2018/02/part-2-washingtonpost.html
*Quote; "Howard Mumford Jones said the pursuit of happiness is, “the ghastly privilege of pursuing a phantom and embracing a delusion.”" Go to: https://hac.bard.edu/amor-mundi/hannah-arendt-and-the-poetics-of-the-pursuit-of-happiness-2020-09-08
Nb. Pls. see bottom page re: font.
Anti-Culture
The anti-meritocratic nature of Twitter has been allowed to develop by both those who fail to appreciate that one does, indeed, "get the government one deserves" and those who appreciate the principle only too well. Take the notion of "promoting" Tweets. "Promoting" is a service provided on the platform by which the user's chosen Tweet receives greater exposure by being inserted into the feed of others, it is not, therefore, free, as such it is a true laissez-faire indulgence whereby preference is given to those who possess capital and is fundamentally anti-democratic, furthermore, the price of promotion is graduated by scale (degree of exposure).
When I joined Twitter I assumed that other users were participating on the platform because of the "organic" nature of its function, in other words, that Tweets would be routinely retweeted by one's followers who, in so doing, would recommend that Tweet to their followers and so on an so forth, for not only is such a function able to provide greater exposure for any Tweet it is also one of the essentials for attracting followers to the account of its progenitor. Should one's Tweet be retweeted by any of the users who are media celebrities (incl. specialists in their field etc.), who, already having a media profile, not only posses accounts which have a greater number of followers but also a greater percentage of those (than that of those of what one might describe as a "basic" account), will be of a (Twitter), demographic similar to that of the account holder, its content will ipso facto receive wider exposure. These principles seemed wonderfully egalitarian to me, however, I was to discover that the platform did not function this way in practice.
I have found that there is corruption throughout the organs of the body politic represented on Twitter and that the infection of laissez-faire has blinkered all but a small percentage of account holders. Social media is a microcosm of the macrocosm and one can observe the same fear inducing monetarist propaganda promoting conformist behaviours on the social media platforms as one can in the wider society. Such conformist behaviour is exemplified by the seeming inability of those less well resourced to realise that they posses terrific strength in numbers and that, if they work together, they will be able to overturn a culture that allows for the domination of the majority by a privileged elite.
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| A tree does not grow from the canopy downwards it grows from the roots upward. |
Philistinism
There are examples of this kind of bias throughout the body politic and have been throughout history, previously, however, there have almost always been those who have been prepared to subvert the medium concerned and promote meritocracy rather than elitism yet, so far, this has not happened on Twitter. I have had a Twitter account for the past fourteen years, during this time I have continually striven to bring my work (esp. this blog), to the attention of those who one might describe as the "glitterati" or "intelligentsia" (whilst, hopefully, eschewing all vanguardist notions), in the hope that they may see its worth and, as a result, recommend (in other words "re-Tweet"), it to their followers on the platform. The only "re-tweeting" that has been done, however, is by me and that being from my former delusion that those more favoured than myself in terms of media exposure will be willing to support my work (and that of others), if they deem it to be of sufficient quality. Now one might argue; "well your work clearly isn't good enough!" Possibly but my other activities and qualifications would seem to give the lie to this, I've held responsible positions in more than a handful of societies and campaigning organisations. I am currently a member of SCIL "Spectrum"(an organisation dealing with the needs of those with a "spectrum" of disabilities), a community shareholder in our local community bookshop/resource "October Books" and am (at the time of posting), awaiting confirmation of my "UNITE Community" membership. I have been a local government representative for Southampton City Farm (as was), siting on Southampton Council's original (since defunct but fairly recently resurrected -which, speaking personally, I consider a vindication rather than a condemnation-), "Environment Forum"and have been working on the following recently: https://forum.5filters.info/t/harefield-community-centre-disgrace-so18hub-southampton-harefield/3738/3, https://forum.5filters.info/t/harefield-community-centre-disgrace-so18hub-southampton-harefield/3738/3 & https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/23353437.harefield-community-centre-left-state-neglect-decade/
.jpg) | |
| From left to right; Becky, Michael and myself at the "Spectrum" warm-space earlier this year. |
The wilful partiality I describe is a neoliberal disease, which Chomsky would describe as part of the "manufacturing of consent", as such it represents the denouement of an ("anti-"), culture of; self-regarding, self-aggrandising, self-centred and basically selfish, fear-induced navel-gazing! Worse many of those who behave in this manner continually posture their ethical and moral credentials to an audience who remain (unsurprisingly), for the most part, unaware of just what hypocrites those whom they trust to inform, educate and entertain them truly are!
If one does eschew participation in the terrible war of all against all that is the desperate scramble for influence on Twitter the result is that the maximum number of followers one is able to attract to one's feed tends to be approximately 3,000-4,000, accounts with numbers in the tens of thousand or more belong to users who have either promoted their work or to celebrities of national or international renown whose feed is actively sought out by general users. My account has attracted nearly 3,000 followers, a paltry figure considering both the length of time I have been an active user and the amount of time and effort I have put in to the quality and exposure of my account's output.
It cannot be considered equitable that those with the resources to do so can immediately dominate their chosen narratives simply by buying attention with no preference given based on the quality of the content of their feed to others. Yet, as I have stated, this is also a cultural problem; "It's the icon that says "retweet" you precious sh*t-heads, use it, that's what it's for!" The same applies to the other icon that says "follow"!
I do have one or two well-known followers (no names no pack-drill), but, here's the rub for the patriarchy, they are all female users. I have been blocked from the accounts of celebrities (usually those of a somewhat academic/specialist nature), far more often than I have been followed by them. I hasten to add that I am very careful that my Tweets do not appear to be either abusive or threatening (despite the obvious partiality oft displayed by Twitter's rules in these regards).
That no-one has raised these issues in the MSM should itself indicate the ubiquitous nature of the anti-culture I describe.
A fine exemplar of this Janusian attitude is the continual back-stabbing behaviour associated with the U.K's honours system. I have been repeatedly horrified when considering the yearly Honour's Lists at just how many people I formerly considered my "tovarisches" (and/or "kameraden"), have bent the knee whilst sticking a Churchill-ian two-fingers up at those who helped them attain such exalted status in our society.
I'd have to name them to make a list yet you should all know to whom I refer and I would rather not soil my keyboard, furthermore when the system can be corrupted to such an extent who would want to be associated with it anyway?
So having established that I would receive no joy by appealing to their altruism I began simply to insert my work into the feeds of the hypocritical crew I describe at every opportunity and/or construct associated Twitter threads of enormous length in the hope that the blinkered ingrates might discern that the organ that protrudes from the middle of whichever face they happen to be inhabiting at the time is, indeed, olfactory in nature. These "Wise Monkeys" are, unfortunately, not a joke, however, for they display their (undoubted), heroism by enabling our anachronistic system to continue well past the termination date that might have been acceptable to propriety.
Free Speech Should be Free
So this is the thing and what an exemplar it is of the parlous nature of the (globalised), state we are in. It also gives the lie to the safety of much of the technology that enables this "via negativa" for one cannot make a silk-purse out of a sow's ear, quote; "The National Bullying Helpline has told Sky News there (is) an ‘escalating problem of children filming violence against other children then uploading to social media’.
The half-brother of a 13-year-old girl from Greater Manchester who was dragged to the ground by her hair and kicked in the head by other youngsters has issued the stark warning, saying ‘a child could be killed’.
The victim was leaving school and heading home at the end of the day when she was attacked at the gates.
A video of the assault circulated online as children in Rochdale shared it with others, just before the Easter holidays.
What appears to be two dozen other children are gathered around yelling and cheering.
An adult witness told Sky News there were around 40 kids present at the attack, which experts say is becoming a ‘sickening’ and ‘growing’ trend in Britain’s schools.
The motive for the attack was quite
possibly the videos themselves — with a moment of notoriety on social
media with content shared in private chats on WhatsApp, TikTok and
Snapchat.": https://propermanchester.com/news/child-could-be-killed-as-sickening-trend-of-kids-filming-attacks-on-other-kids-grows/
When the instant gratification of one more push of the pleasure button is all that concerns one then, like all addicts, one cares not either who or what is damaged in the process of the drug's procurement.
In a meritocracy (Mr.Musk), people's work must be judged upon its merits! It should be impossible to buy influence, the "influencers" should have gained that status by their own efforts (those efforts having been acknowledged by an impartial audience). As I have said, though, this problem has beset man since the apple was propagandised and the solution has always been for those who actually posses moral compass to redress the balance by speaking truth to power. This is why it is so important that speech should be free.
First They Came – by Pastor Martin Niemöller
"First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me"
I received a privileged education at a prestigious establishment (I also received a first class extra-curricular one not associated with the institution), and I can justify the use of some of the scant resources at my disposal to promote my work. Having to do so is (as I hope I have intimated it would be), a source of great annoyance not to say sorrow; "Well it's only a few Dollar/Pounds either to promote your work or get verified! What's your beef?"
Edit 07/08/2023: Oh the naivety of idealism! When I finally did decide to peruse the promotion process properly I discovered, to my horror, that even one promoted Tweet, on one occasion on one day, costs £10 (or around $13 dollars at the current exchange rate). There are many millions around the world to whom £10 represents a-lot of money and it's no small sum for anyone living on welfare payments here in the U.K either.
This £10 "one shot wonder" is the very cheapest option available:
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So who gets to speak freely? Only those with no voice.
I receive sickness/disablement State Benefits and the standard of living crisis has affected me as much as it has the majority of the U.K's citizens. How, I ask, is one meant to become an appropriately well-scrubbed "contributing member of society" if one's work remains unacknowledged (for it is surely only by my writing and associated artistic endeavours that I might one day make an "honest crust")? This is no joke either as my chronic conditions are aggravated by my lack of resources and I regularly fall sick, am injured by some contaminant or in a domestic accident (as I was two weeks ago when I had to have my thumb cauterised in A&E following a breakage in my tiny kitchen). Actions have consequences people and I make my remarks not just for my own sake but on behalf of all those who find themselves voiceless in our society (I know d**n well that many of my Twitter followers and their associates -in other words those who do actually get to read this article-, will know only too intimately the problems I describe). Like I said I had an (at least half-decent), education though which puts me in a better position than that of many also experiencing marginalisation at the hands of the stenching hypocrites. It is with sadness, therefore, that I announce here that "Arafel" and my other work could be receiving promotion on Twitter from now on. I have been handed a fait accompli I must pay for the privilege or remain (for the most part), silent. I have "endeavoured to persevere" over the years only to receive either no response or downright aggressive blocking of my account from those whose circumstances presuppose that they posses a sense of responsibility commensurate with their influence. It is beholden upon me, however, to continually restate the case against such inequalities and to make every effort to address the issue of freedom of speech on whatever platform I may be treading. I trust, therefore, that my readers will help me police my own actions and will unhesitatingly remind me should I betray the principles to which I have avowed.
"Send men to summon worms!" Stilgar the Naib, Dune, Frank Herbert.
Nb. The various font problems I routinely experience on Blogger are just one example of the consequences of under-resourcing (& being a one-man-band), I hope my readers will indulge me and continue to endeavour to persevere!
Quote; “Remember that all through history, there have been tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they seem invincible. But in the end, they always fall. Always."
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