Elon Musk buys Twitter for $44 billion

[Hibernia&Alba]

I don't do social media, I've never used Twitter. Musk says his ownership will result in less censorship and greater free speech, but is it healthy to have a global communication network entirely in the hands of the world's richest person? Will 'greater free speech' merely mean more of the type of speech he endorses? Will less 'censorship' lead to more cyber bullying and hate speech? How will it work in practice?


I find extreme concentrations of wealth and power troubling, so my immediate reaction is one of suspicion. Aye, I'm a cynical bassa :greengrin. Those of you who use Twitter, do you think it will change, and for better or worse?

[BroxburnHibee]

Expect Trump to be allowed back on ASAP

[Stairway 2 7]

It's worrying its in one person's hands. He's saying some good things like tackling bots. He says he wants everyone to prove they are human so perhaps take away anonymous accounts. That's perhaps good for anti bullying, but bad for whistle-blowers

[Hibernia&Alba]

Expect Trump to be allowed back on ASAP

Yes, it's a possibility. Trump was banned for constantly posting disinformation, as were others. If they are allowed back on Twitter and do the same, you will again have very influential people who have millions of followers, peddling lies and conspiracy theories. It's the old idea that freedom has responsibilities and where the line is drawn.

[Mon Dieu4]

he's talking a good game, like the sound of them going open source etc so everyone can see the algorithms and you won't get all of the bannings and the creation of the current echo chambers

I have mixed feelings about Musk, I think he's a bit of a prick but if I had his **** you kind of money I'd probably be a million times worse

[Mon Dieu4]

Yes, it's a possibility. Trump was banned for constantly posting disinformation, as were others. If they are allowed back on Twitter and do the same, you will again have very influential people who have millions of followers, peddling lies and conspiracy theories. It's the old idea that freedom has responsibilities and where the line is drawn.

Works both ways though, twitter banned the New York Post for posting links to the Hunter Biden laptop story as it didn't fit their agenda(which was their right as a private company)

Major companies of that size are not our or anyone else's friend, they will always suit their own agenda, I think I'd rather just see a total free for all car crash than have a massive company try and force feed me their agenda on the sly

[Hibernia&Alba]

Works both ways though, twitter banned the New York Post for posting links to the Hunter Biden laptop story as it didn't fit their agenda(which was their right as a private company)

Major companies of that size are not our or anyone else's friend, they will always suit their own agenda, I think I'd rather just see a total free for all car crash than have a massive company try and force feed me their agenda on the sly

Isn't that another of those lunatic conspiracy theories of social media? There was the infamous 'Pizza Gate' conspiracy, where right wingers on social media spread a story that a paedophile ring involving Democratic Party politicians was operating out of a pizza shop in Washington DC. Some guy went down to the shop with a gun - I think people were killed. That's where totally unpoliced social media can end up.

[Hibernia&Alba]

Isn't that another of those lunatic conspiracy theories of social media? There was the infamous 'Pizza Gate' conspiracy, where right wingers on social media spread a story that a paedophile ring involving Democratic Party politicians was operating out of a pizza shop in Washington DC. Some guy went down to the shop with a gun - I think people were killed. That's where totally unpoliced social media can end up.


Another example of the power of unpoliced social media - the Q-anon lunacy that has taken hold of millions of Americans and had infiltrated the Republican Party. Again paedophilia is central to the conspiracy: a cabal of Democratic politicians and liberal Hollywood stars are kidnapping thousands of children and trafficking them for sex before killing and eating them in Satanic rituals! That's just one of their conspiracies amongst many, and a number of GOP politicians across the states and in Washington D.C. are on board with it. Didn't Q-anon begin on Twitter?

[Mon Dieu4]

Isn't that another of those lunatic conspiracy theories of social media? There was the infamous 'Pizza Gate' conspiracy, where right wingers on social media spread a story that a paedophile ring involving Democratic Party politicians was operating out of a pizza shop in Washington DC. Some guy went down to the shop with a gun - I think people were killed. That's where totally unpoliced social media can end up.

To be honest I haven't looked too much into it, thought I'd read conflicting reports from the Post and Times that there was some evidence to say it may well be true, Either way the NY Post was banned on twitter from posting links about it, Jack Dorsey has since come out and said they shouldn't have banned them for it and admitting it was a mistake.

I treat all social media with the contempt it's due but think it's mental that you can ban all the "right wing" zealots but it's perfectly acceptable to have "left wing" zealots sending death threats, inciting violence, burning down buildings in a city, doxxing people and getting away with general mayhem, that's coming from someone who's views are very left leaning

I preferred the early internet when it was the Wild West, other than inciting violence or dodgy things with kids then anything should be fair game, that's not to say there shouldn't be social consequences for spouting pish, could end up with the sack, a sore face or other things but I will defend anyone's right to say what they want whether I agree with it or not

[Hibernia&Alba]

To be honest I haven't looked too much into it, thought I'd read conflicting reports from the Post and Times that there was some evidence to say it may well be true, Either way the NY Post was banned on twitter from posting links about it, Jack Dorsey has since come out and said they shouldn't have banned them for it and admitting it was a mistake.

I treat all social media with the contempt it's due but think it's mental that you can ban all the "right wing" zealots but it's perfectly acceptable to have "left wing" zealots sending death threats, inciting violence, burning down buildings in a city, doxxing people and getting away with general mayhem, that's coming from someone who's views are very left leaning

I preferred the early internet when it was the Wild West, other than inciting violence or dodgy things with kids then anything should be fair game, that's not to say there shouldn't be social consequences for spouting pish, could end up with the sack, a sore face or other things but I will defend anyone's right to say what they want whether I agree with it or not

I would be shocked if anyone has said that's okay, just as long as those responsible are of the extreme left. It's outrageous, but if a total free for all is allowed, then it's inevitable that the lunatic fringe will run amok. Free speech must be protected as far as is practicable, but it comes with responsibilities, and where is the line drawn?

[greenginger]

GG[QUOTE=Hibernia&Alba;6938432]Isn't that another of those lunatic conspiracy theories of social media? There was the infamous 'Pizza Gate' conspiracy, where right wingers on social media spread a story that a paedophile ring involving Democratic Party politicians was operating out of a pizza shop in Washington DC. Some guy went down to the shop with a gun - I think people were killed. That's where totally unpoliced social media can end up.[


The Hunter Biden laptop and all it’s emails are genuine. Even the NewYork Times and The Washington Post have confirmed it.

They wanted Bidon to win the last election, but not stand for the next one.

[brianmc]

Anyone posting on social media: be it Twitter, Facebook or hibs.net then immediately quoting and replying to their own posts is clearly a wrong un.

[Hibernia&Alba]

GG[QUOTE=Hibernia&Alba;6938432]Isn't that another of those lunatic conspiracy theories of social media? There was the infamous 'Pizza Gate' conspiracy, where right wingers on social media spread a story that a paedophile ring involving Democratic Party politicians was operating out of a pizza shop in Washington DC. Some guy went down to the shop with a gun - I think people were killed. That's where totally unpoliced social media can end up.[


The Hunter Biden laptop and all it’s emails are genuine. Even the NewYork Times and The Washington Post have confirmed it.

They wanted Bidon to win the last election, but not stand for the next one.

I haven't followed the story, but I've heard the phrase 'Hunter Biden's laptop'. Without wanting to divert things, what's supposed to be in the e-mails?

[Hibrandenburg]

I don't do social media, I've never used Twitter. Musk says his ownership will result in less censorship and greater free speech, but is it healthy to have a global communication network entirely in the hands of the world's richest person? Will 'greater free speech' merely mean more of the type of speech he endorses? Will less 'censorship' lead to more cyber bullying and hate speech? How will it work in practice?


I find extreme concentrations of wealth and power troubling, so my immediate reaction is one of suspicion. Aye, I'm a cynical bassa :greengrin. Those of you who use Twitter, do you think it will change, and for better or worse?

I can't see it not changing. Musk will have his own influence on how it works and that alone will drive millions to find an alternative just because it's him. I think he's just bought the patent to the social media equivalent to the Betamax Recorder.

[Ozyhibby]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20220426/7ab635a7221f1621fcc7e6064fac0399.jpg


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[Pretty Boy]

Despite all the chat about algorithms and the like t's really just the 21st century equivalent of someone like Rupert Murdoch buying up swathes of the print and broadcast media.

When people of such wealth and influence talk about free speech what they really mean is speech that pushes the narrative they want pushed. Anyone believing Musk is some white Knight of righteousness riding in to save democracy is deluding themselves.

[s.a.m]

Okay... it's possible I'm being histrionic because I'm ill and haven't slept, but this has a dystopian End of Days sci-fi movie feel for me:

Gifted but emotionally, socially and mentally naïve (also thin-skinned) inventor takes control of the world's biggest mass communication platform in the belief that unhampered free speech will save us. However, he fails to recognise the nature and spread of True Evil (cut to Steve Bannon et al chortling, each stroking their own white cat while thousands of minions batter away on keyboards in the background), which can now exploit the platform's 'freedoms', which lesser but more tuned-in mortals were trying (not necessarily successfully, but nevertheless...) to reign in, and unleashes a tsunami of hatred and bigotry on a world that doesn't have the political unity or technological solutions to fight back effectively.

tldr: we're ****ed.

Away for a lemsip. Somebody reassure me :greengrin

[Stairway 2 7]

The richest have owned the media for centuries. People said they would stop using insta and WhatsApp when Facebook bought it, but didn't. If everyone is still on twitter they will use it.

Musk is a smart businessman he'll not do too much that makes his investment lose too much value. He'll probably get bored of it in time

[Smartie]

Okay... it's possible I'm being histrionic because I'm ill and haven't slept, but this has a dystopian End of Days sci-fi movie feel for me:

Gifted but emotionally, socially and mentally naïve (also thin-skinned) inventor takes control of the world's biggest mass communication platform in the belief that unhampered free speech will save us. However, he fails to recognise the nature and spread of True Evil (cut to Steve Bannon et al chortling, each stroking their own white cat while thousands of minions batter away on keyboards in the background), which can now exploit the platform's 'freedoms', which lesser but more tuned-in mortals were trying (not necessarily successfully, but nevertheless...) to reign in, and unleashes a tsunami of hatred and bigotry on a world that doesn't have the political unity or technological solutions to fight back effectively.

tldr: we're ****ed.

Away for a lemsip. Somebody reassure me :greengrin

We've been here before.

Different guises, at different times (see comment about Murdoch hoovering up other media outlets in the late 20th century).

The world didn't end.

[s.a.m]

We've been here before.

Different guises, at different times (see comment about Murdoch hoovering up other media outlets in the late 20th century)*.

The world didn't end.

Thanks for trying :greengrin

*(However, Murdoch hoovering up media outlets here and in the US has arguably led us down a pretty dark path to the hyper-partisan, disinformation and conspiracy-theory fuelled reality we're dealing with today, no? The world didn't end, but a lot of damage has been caused.)

[Pretty Boy]

We've been here before.

Different guises, at different times (see comment about Murdoch hoovering up other media outlets in the late 20th century).

The world didn't end.

The world didn't end but we have seen a frightening and seemingly irreversible jump to the right over the last few decades. Views that would once have been extreme are now largely mainstream.

Part of that is down to a misrepresentation of what freedom of speech is. It's most definitely not a right to say whatever you like without challenge. 'That's my opinion and I don't have to justify it to anyone because I have freedom of speech' has somehow become an acceptable counter argument to challenge. It's also led to crackpot conspiracy theories being presented as comparable to peer reviewed study or just basic common sense by people who's interests are served by such things.

[greenginger]

[QUOTE=greenginger;6938457]GG

I haven't followed the story, but I've heard the phrase 'Hunter Biden's laptop'. Without wanting to divert things, what's supposed to be in the e-mails?

Theres a lot about his business dealings with China, Ukraine , etc when his dad was Vice President and how the payments were to be split up.
Theres a reference to 10% to the big guy in the lists and one of Hunters business colleagues says the big guy refers to Joe Biden.

Hunter Biden is under federal investigation for his tax affairs presently.

[Smartie]

The world didn't end but we have seen a frightening and seemingly irreversible jump to the right over the last few decades. Views that would once have been extreme are now largely mainstream.

Part of that is down to a misrepresentation of what freedom of speech is. It's most definitely not a right to say whatever you like without challenge. 'That's my opinion and I don't have to justify it to anyone because I have freedom of speech' has somehow become an acceptable counter argument to challenge. It's also led to crackpot conspiracy theories being presented as comparable to peer reviewed study or just basic common sense by people who's interests are served by such things.

I'm certainly not arguing that Murdoch's control of the media wad a good thing.

I was mainly just a case of making the point that the media/ propaganda / the press/ the narrative being mostly controlled by the rich and the powerful is nothing new.

It has always been the case, and this twitter business is just the modern day manifestation of it.

When it ventures too far, there is invariably a correction of sorts.

So it might be something to be feared, it might do things that are certainly undesirable.

But none of it will be terminal.

[nonshinyfinish]

Okay... it's possible I'm being histrionic because I'm ill and haven't slept, but this has a dystopian End of Days sci-fi movie feel for me:

Gifted but emotionally, socially and mentally naïve (also thin-skinned) inventor takes control of the world's biggest mass communication platform

Not even in the top 10 according to this: https://www.statista.com/statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-number-of-users/

[s.a.m]

Not even in the top 10 according to this: https://www.statista.com/statistics/272014/global-social-networks-ranked-by-number-of-users/

Fair enough. Though looking at the list, a decent number of the ones above it are either a different kind of platform with different focus (don't know the right word for this, because I'm not in touch with social media terminology), or are - I'm guessing - Chinese, which will make them largely inaccessible outside Chinese speaking areas, and if I'm right, may also reflect restricted access to other platforms in China. You're right to pick me up on my lazy inaccuracy though - I was focussed on my sleep-deprived cinematic narrative over accuracy, but it's no excuse for not looking stuff up :greengrin

[Pretty Boy]

It is worth considering that big financial moves for social media platforms have gone horribly wrong before. AOL paid $850M for Bebo in 2008 and it was a bust before 2010 was out. MySpace once had 115M unique users, by 2019 it was getting 7M total site visits a year.

MySpace, Bebo, Facebook, Instagram and plenty others have all enjoyed periods of success and prominence in the market. All of them have been usurped or seen their demographic shift. I doubt Twitter will be any different, nothing lasts forever.

[Mon Dieu4]

It is worth considering that big financial moves for social media platforms have gone horribly wrong before. AOL paid $850M for Bebo in 2008 and it was a bust before 2010 was out. MySpace once had 115M unique users, by 2019 it was getting 7M total site visits a year.

MySpace, Bebo, Facebook, Instagram and plenty others have all enjoyed periods of success and prominence in the market. All of them have been usurped or seen their demographic shift. I doubt Twitter will be any different, nothing lasts forever.

Scary thing is Musk is worth $273b, even it it goes tits up and he loses the $43b then he will still comfortably at the moment be the richest person in the world, could just well be a punt and a bit of a laugh from him

[Hibernia&Alba]

Judge a man by his friends? As already stated, if social media platforms become a hotbed of conspiracy theories and bigotry, it can have serious consequences.


https://youtu.be/8dsEQA__NGY

[Keith_M]

I think I'll just stick to Telegram.


No, I don't mean the internet thingy, I'm talking about the wee letters fae the post office.

[Stairway 2 7]

Could get a ham radio like Tony Hancock

[Kato]

Could get a ham radio like Tony Hancockhttps://youtu.be/LnunhozizjM

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[cabbageandribs1875]

i only joined twitter so i could start reading posts without a damn log-in screen that started appearing 5 or 6 weeks back


if Trump gets back on he can join my already extensive list of blocked tw@ts

[Stairway 2 7]

Elon Musk
@elonmusk
By “free speech”, I simply mean that which matches the law.

I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law.

If people want less free speech, they will ask government to pass laws to that effect.

Therefore, going beyond the law is contrary to the will of the people

[s.a.m]

Elon Musk
@elonmusk
By “free speech”, I simply mean that which matches the law.

I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law.

If people want less free speech, they will ask government to pass laws to that effect.

Therefore, going beyond the law is contrary to the will of the people

That approach brings its own problems. Personally, I wouldn't want to see a barrage of legislation to stop stuff that could be moderated with internal standards, and the alternative is a cesspit. We apply standards to behaviour that falls short of illegal in all common areas and activities, whether it's workplaces, pubs or on here, just to make them safe and usable and useful for the vast majority of people who just want to go about their business.

It's never going to be perfect, but I think people would prefer that to the alternative, should it be allowed. I don't think limiting the definition of 'the will of the people' only to what's covered by legislation honestly reflects 'the will of the people', or is even helpful.

One thing we've definitely learned in the past 5 or 6 years is the way that powerful and rich individuals with dangerous agendas have found ways to use social media platforms and the data they produce to spread disinformation to destabilise democracy, without doing anything technically illegal. Then there's 'stochastic terrorism', where an individual (let's call him Ronald Frump, just as an example) demonises a group or organisation in the knowledge that he'll inspire some nutter somewhere to rise up and take up his fight for him. Ronald has been distanced from any illegality, even though he knows the likely consequences of his bigoted rhetoric.

And if he follows a legislation based approach, that puts him in a position where, in the likes of China and Russia, he's actively opposing freedom of speech - which may or may not reflect 'the will of the people'. They may never get to find out, because of legislation.

[Hibernia&Alba]

That approach brings its own problems. Personally, I wouldn't want to see a barrage of legislation to stop stuff that could be moderated with internal standards, and the alternative is a cesspit. We apply standards to behaviour that falls short of illegal in all common areas and activities, whether it's workplaces, pubs or on here, just to make them safe and usable and useful for the vast majority of people who just want to go about their business.

It's never going to be perfect, but I think people would prefer that to the alternative, should it be allowed. I don't think limiting the definition of 'the will of the people' only to what's covered by legislation honestly reflects 'the will of the people', or is even helpful.

One thing we've definitely learned in the past 5 or 6 years is the way that powerful and rich individuals with dangerous agendas have found ways to use social media platforms and the data they produce to spread disinformation to destabilise democracy, without doing anything technically illegal. Then there's 'stochastic terrorism', where an individual (let's call him Ronald Frump, just as an example) demonises a group or organisation in the knowledge that he'll inspire some nutter somewhere to rise up and take up his fight for him. Ronald has been distanced from any illegality, even though he knows the likely consequences of his bigoted rhetoric.

And if he follows a legislation based approach, that puts him in a position where, in the likes of China and Russia, he's actively opposing freedom of speech - which may or may not reflect 'the will of the people'. They may never get to find out, because of legislation.

Good post. Following the letter of the law would require different moderation of posts for different nationalities. The USA, with it's First Amendment, is very reluctant to curtail speech; Canada, next door, has hate speech laws. It would be impossible to govern.

[cabbageandribs1875]

https://scontent.fman1-2.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/279018108_10224554309497504_7387705315628627992_n. jpg?_nc_cat=100&ccb=1-5&_nc_sid=5cd70e&_nc_ohc=tn2HaxlNr1QAX8Cinnl&_nc_ht=scontent.fman1-2.fna&oh=00_AT_IBsgSOhnmUz707-Sh5WGcB5usnYRDHbogvRUktdvHDw&oe=626DEE1D




:hilarious ach freely available no doubt

[Stairway 2 7]

Elon Musk
@elonmusk
·

Even though I think a less divisive candidate would be better in 2024, I still think Trump should be restored to Twitter

[Ozyhibby]

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/05/13/tech/twitter-deal-on-hold-elon-musk/index.html

Deal on hold over what he says is a problem with bot accounts. I think more likely the fall in Tesla share price since it was announced has changed the calculations with the people financing the deal.


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[147lothian]

I wonder if the Taliban will still be allowed to post on Twitter if Musk takes charge, and if you still get the pile on's from usual suspects with "be kind" in their hash tags, who scream transphobe at anyone who misgenders a man with a beard and ***** who wants to go into the ladies shower room?

[Stairway 2 7]

I wonder if the Taliban will still be allowed to post on Twitter if Musk takes charge, and if you still get the pile on's from usual suspects with "be kind" in their hash tags, who scream transphobe at anyone who misgenders a man with a beard and ***** who wants to go into the ladies shower room?

Gb news is what you're looking for

[Hibernia&Alba]

I wonder if the Taliban will still be allowed to post on Twitter if Musk takes charge, and if you still get the pile on's from usual suspects with "be kind" in their hash tags, who scream transphobe at anyone who misgenders a man with a beard and ***** who wants to go into the ladies shower room?

Whit? :confused:

[Mon Dieu4]

Gb news is what you're looking for

I caught a bit of that for the first time last night whilst channel hopping and I'm not making this up, it was Farage and Jim Davidson in a pub in Portsmouth drinking pints doing an interview while a guy from the pub sang don't you want me by the Human League

[Hibernia&Alba]

I caught a bit of that for the first time last night whilst channel hopping and I'm not making this up, it was Farage and Jim Davidson in a pub in Portsmouth drinking pints doing an interview while a guy from the pub sang don't you want me by the Human League

GB (Gammon Bigots) News :greengrin.

I also saw it referred to as GBeebies, which I liked.

[Stairway 2 7]

I caught a bit of that for the first time last night whilst channel hopping and I'm not making this up, it was Farage and Jim Davidson in a pub in Portsmouth drinking pints doing an interview while a guy from the pub sang don't you want me by the Human League

😆 sounds like Alan partridge, wallopers

[147lothian]

Gb news is what you're looking for

It's good for discussion and debate if you prefer that to rolling news coverage.

I like free speech nation on a Sunday, where the host Andrew Doyle and two comedian guest discuss the weeks news from a lighter angle and make fun of the Woke world were living in.

[Hibernia&Alba]

It's good for discussion and debate if you prefer that to rolling news coverage.

I like free speech nation on a Sunday, where the host Andrew Doyle and two comedian guest discuss the weeks news from a lighter angle and make fun of the Woke world were living in.

But what do you actually mean by woke? I've never heard anyone define it.

[Ozyhibby]

But what do you actually mean by woke? I've never heard anyone define it.

Anyone who doesn’t think the Royal Navy should be sinking dinghies in the English Channel.


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[Hibernia&Alba]

Anyone who doesn’t think the Royal Navy should be sinking dinghies in the English Channel.


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Damn, guilty. Must I now dye my hair purple and identify as non-binary?

[Kato]

It's good for discussion and debate if you prefer that to rolling news coverage.

I like free speech nation on a Sunday, where the host Andrew Doyle and two comedian guest discuss the weeks news from a lighter angle and make fun of the Woke world were living in.Trump, Boris, Vladimir... yeah the world is well woke.

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[Keith_M]

Damn, guilty. Must I now dye my hair purple and identify as non-binary?


You'll need to decide on one of the following first, He/She/They/Thee/Thou


Personally I've gone for Thou

[147lothian]

But what do you actually mean by woke? I've never heard anyone define it.

Woke is identity politics, it came out of the most prestigious universities in America where upper middle class people can claim they are oppressed because they have been misgendered or their something has been said about their identity which hurts their feelings. It has now made it's way to the UK and you are much more likely to find woke campaigns to get people banned in Cambridge Oxford or Edinburgh than you are at less prestigious universities, which shows that it's an upper middle class obsession with identity.

For me a mistake a lot of people make is thinking that Identity politics is left wing, and just about social justice if this was the case I would be woke but its not. Woke is not left wing because it has nothing to do with class its all about identity.

[bigwheel]

Woke is identity politics, it came out of the most prestigious universities in America where upper middle class people can claim they are oppressed because they have been misgendered or their something has been said about their identity which hurts their feelings. It has now made it's way to the UK and you are much more likely to find woke campaigns to get people banned in Cambridge Oxford or Edinburgh than you are at less prestigious universities, which shows that it's an upper middle class obsession with identity.

For me a mistake a lot of people make is thinking that Identity politics is left wing, and just about social justice if this was the case I would be woke but its not. Woke is not left wing because it has nothing to do with class its all about identity.

It’s been turned into a pejorative term..such as how you are using it now. Woke has been used for decades , long before posh universities in the states were using the term - originally utilised by African Americans to be “awake” to the challenges of justice and equality….

Now being used as a weapon by those with different political beliefs or agendas…. Sure, there may be those who over think the purity of it..but it is far from simply identity politics. That would gives no recognition of those who have fought, or continue to fight, equality and justice reform.


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[lapsedhibee]

you are much more likely to find woke campaigns to get people banned in Cambridge Oxford or Edinburgh than you are at less prestigious universities, which shows that it's an upper middle class obsession with identity.

So it's actually a bit of a plot by liberal elites then, and not at all made-up culture-war pish.

[147lothian]

So it's actually a bit of a plot by liberal elites then, and not at all made-up culture-war pish.

I don't think you have a liberal elite who sat down with a plan, my guess is that in the absence of class politics, the nutty ideas about identity coming out of elite universities like, that a man who identifies as a woman is literally a woman, ie transwomen are women, can gain traction, this is because the class politics of left and right don't really mean anything anymore.

One thing is for sure identity politics has now captured all the major institutions from the civil service to the police force, the judiciary and education from nursery to university.

[Stairway 2 7]

I think identity politics is a really really small issue in the real world, amplified by angry people

[147lothian]

I think identity politics is a really really small issue in the real world, amplified by angry people

I tend to agree, I don't think that someone's identity should be important at all, I hate it when someone says as a black person, as a non-binary person, as a blah blah person as if that is more important than what they are about to say, its what someone says that is important to me not how they identify.

Identity politics is also connected to cancel culture, digging up what someone has said 10 years ago, smearing them and trying to get someone cancelled or fired, this doesn't make you the good guy.

[Kato]

I think identity politics is a really really small issue in the real world, amplified by angry peopleThat idea that identity politics is solely down to a few unis is laughable. Before there was class politics flag-****ging was all there was. "There is no such thing as working class anymore" is a trope invented by the rich - and here we are back in an age of flag- ****ging again.

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[Hibernia&Alba]

I think identity politics is a really really small issue in the real world, amplified by angry people

'Identity politics' is another phrase that is never defined. We all identify as something. If human beings had no sense of identity, we would all be lost. I identify as Scottish, socialist, Hibs fan, amongst other things. Everybody's past will influence how they see themselves and the world. I suspect all of these terms are another way of bemoaning so called 'political correctness'. Many now using 'woke' as a slur are the same people, some of whom are just bigots, angry they are being pulled up for being racist, homophobic, misogynistic etc. Anyone who objects is 'woke'.

[Dalianwanda]

'Identity politics' is another phrase that is never defined. We all identify as something. If human beings had no sense of identity, we would all be lost. I identify as Scottish, socialist, Hibs fan, amongst other things. Everybody's past will influence how they see themselves and the world. I suspect all of these terms are another way of bemoaning so called 'political correctness'. Many now using 'woke' as a slur are the same people, some of whom are just bigots, angry they are being pulled up for being racist, homophobic, misogynistic etc. Anyone who objects is 'woke'.

Identity is just a temporary mind made label which only aids division not inclusion....Were all jock tamsons bairns existing in one consciousness..Trouble is we identifiy with what we are aware of rather than what is aware. :agree:

[Hibernia&Alba]

And now he wants to back out. Hmmm....


https://youtu.be/wnWvqRw2eck

[cabbageandribs1875]

lol

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FXOjrz5WAAADK0d?format=jpg&name=medium

[Ryan91]

lol

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FXOjrz5WAAADK0d?format=jpg&name=medium

Twitter finally decided they've had enough of his pish?

[sleeping giant]

Twitter finally decided they've had enough of his pish?

It's fake.

[He's here!]

Musk reported to be cutting 4000 jobs at Twitter. That's approximately half the workforce.

[Keith_M]

Musk reported to be cutting 4000 jobs at Twitter. That's approximately half the workforce.


Apparently it includes the teams associated with filtering out questionable content.


Sounds rather worrying.

[Ozyhibby]

He’s paid $53 a share and it is apparently only worth about $13 a share. And that’s before the advertisers start to flee if it becomes toxic. I think Musk has bought a one way ticket to bankruptcy.


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[Stairway 2 7]

Loads of verified accounts are changing their name to Elon musk on twitter, to show how easy it will be to buy an account and impersonate a person government or company

https://mobile.twitter.com/MattHelgeson/status/1588574566951301121
Elon Musk
@MattHelgeson
·
Big week at Twitter, the team is working hard on new features. We're currently working on having Steely Dan's "Two Against Nature" autoplay when you are on the site or app, can't wait for you to hear it

https://mobile.twitter.com/ChrisWarcraft/status/1588556124726251520

Elon Musk
@ChrisWarcraft
There is nothing better than waking up and enjoying a fresh, steaming cup of my own urine. Such a tangy way to start the day, and it’s scientifically proven to help brain cells grow. If you want to be like me, drink your pee.

16.5K Retweets
1,955 Quote Tweets
160.5K Likes

[Ozyhibby]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20221105/39f543c1573a9dff6a09667366785655.jpg


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[DaveF]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20221105/39f543c1573a9dff6a09667366785655.jpg


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What the hell was / is Tumblr? That must be the worst deal in history (well not for the sellers...)

Edit - see it's a blog site.

[Pretty Boy]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20221105/39f543c1573a9dff6a09667366785655.jpg


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Bebo was another onw. Bought by AOL for almost $850M, sold not long after for less than $10m and went bankrupt a couple of years after that.

I don't know much about Musk's business dealings. He seems like a total weapon of a man though. One of those guys that really agressive, repulsive to women, conspiracy loving online creeps seem to idolise because he's 'alpha'.

[Ozyhibby]

Bebo was another onw. Bought by AOL for almost $850M, sold not long after for less than $10m and went bankrupt a couple of years after that.

I don't know much about Musk's business dealings. He seems like a total weapon of a man though. One of those guys that really agressive, repulsive to women, conspiracy loving online creeps seem to idolise because he's 'alpha'.

This latest nonsense will likely hurt Tesla as well. It’s already way over valued and the type of people who buys Tesla cars likely don’t want to be associated with this kind of behaviour.
Tesla currently valued at three times what Toyota is. There is a long way to fall for that company.


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[Stairway 2 7]

As expected people are paying $8 for a blue tick and impersonating celebrities

https://mobile.twitter.com/theserfstv/status/1590593334216916992

[grunt]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FhO6fheXoAYexxh?format=jpg&name=medium

[greenginger]

This latest nonsense will likely hurt Tesla as well. It’s already way over valued and the type of people who buys Tesla cars likely don’t want to be associated with this kind of behaviour.
Tesla currently valued at three times what Toyota is. There is a long way to fall for that company.


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https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Automobiles/Tesla-earns-8-times-more-profit-than-Toyota-per-car

Maybe this is why Tesla is valued way more the Toyota.

[Stairway 2 7]

Pretty extraordinary. A fake lilly account tweeted it was making insulin free for all. After this lillies stock lost billions. Not just due to the tweet, but the fact the tweet went viral and highlighted the vast profits made from insulin.

https://mobile.twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1591168147792728065

[The_Exile]

Pretty extraordinary. A fake lilly account tweeted it was making insulin free for all. After this lillies stock lost billions. Not just due to the tweet, but the fact the tweet went viral and highlighted the vast profits made from insulin.

https://mobile.twitter.com/DrEricDing/status/1591168147792728065

This is likely for another thread, but as a type 1 diabetic I do know a little bit about insulin manufacturing. It costs $9 to make, and they sell it for (on average) $283 (This may have changed slightly as the paper I read this from was over a year ago). The patent was sold for $1 in 1923 as the team behind the discovery said that it belonged to the world. There's no real words you can put to that, greed obviously isn't strong enough, it's pre-meditated murder of poor type 1 diabetics in the US as far as I'm concerned. Although I think there are people out there who are trying to get it cheaper (Off the top of my head, the state of California sell it now for much cheaper, and Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas NBA team I think? He runs an "cost-plus price" pharmacy and is very keen to start offering insulin to people for a much lower cost, can only presume there's a lot of red tape to navigate before that particular cash cow is allowed to die).

Anyway, if stuff like this can go on in a country full of people who own multiple weapons to "protect muh freedoms", then I'm not sure how bad the abuse of their freedoms would have to get before capitalism was in danger of being set aboot. The fact Eli Lilly lost $20 billion off their market cap did bring a chuckle this morning though.

[Bristolhibby]

This is likely for another thread, but as a type 1 diabetic I do know a little bit about insulin manufacturing. It costs $9 to make, and they sell it for (on average) $283 (This may have changed slightly as the paper I read this from was over a year ago). The patent was sold for $1 in 1923 as the team behind the discovery said that it belonged to the world. There's no real words you can put to that, greed obviously isn't strong enough, it's pre-meditated murder of poor type 1 diabetics in the US as far as I'm concerned. Although I think there are people out there who are trying to get it cheaper (Off the top of my head, the state of California sell it now for much cheaper, and Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas NBA team I think? He runs an "cost-plus price" pharmacy and is very keen to start offering insulin to people for a much lower cost, can only presume there's a lot of red tape to navigate before that particular cash cow is allowed to die).

Anyway, if stuff like this can go on in a country full of people who own multiple weapons to "protect muh freedoms", then I'm not sure how bad the abuse of their freedoms would have to get before capitalism was in danger of being set aboot. The fact Eli Lilly lost $20 billion off their market cap did bring a chuckle this morning though.

Lockheed Martin also took a dip after a verified account called @LockheedMartini stated they were stopping selling to Saudi, Isreal or the US due to human rights violations.

J

[Ozyhibby]

https://twitter.com/nexta_tv/status/1591870304439222279?s=46&t=3ULhVlDr8bQPmiTvFEAVLQ

Musks downfall will be fully deserved.


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[DaveF]

https://twitter.com/nexta_tv/status/1591870304439222279?s=46&t=3ULhVlDr8bQPmiTvFEAVLQ

Musks downfall will be fully deserved.


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That is horrific. Surely you must be able to cut the power or override the automation, no?

[wookie70]

I've long said that the way the people will even up society and make the world fairer was to start bringing corporations down by moving money etc. I thought it would take millions swapping their energy provider or moving banks etc. Who would have thought it only actually need $8 and and 280 characters

[AgentDaleCooper]

https://twitter.com/nexta_tv/status/1591870304439222279?s=46&t=3ULhVlDr8bQPmiTvFEAVLQ

Musks downfall will be fully deserved.


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This is why i hate new cars with buttons for keys and handbrakes. Give me a 2009 Yaris any day of the week.

[Glory Lurker]

Crazy what's happening at the company now. He took in the kitchen sink but is it all about to go down the bog?

I wouldn't shed a tear for him if it does.

[grunt]

Crazy what's happening at the company now. He took in the kitchen sink but is it all about to go down the bog?

I wouldn't shed a tear for him if it does.No tears for him, but in destroying a social media success story, one which has been useful for millions of users, then I'm sad for Twitter users.

[bigwheel]

No tears for him, but in destroying a social media success story, one which has been useful for millions of users, then I'm sad for Twitter users.

It’s quite incredible . It’s a great example of someone confusing have lots of money and power with knowing how to run a new company they’ve bought . What a disaster he has made of it .

[neil7908]

It’s quite incredible . It’s a great example of someone confusing have lots of money and power with knowing how to run a new company they’ve bought . What a disaster he has made of it .

It won't but this should really shred any lingering deification of guys like him, Zuckerberg, Bezos etc.

They are in fact just mortals like us who may be above average intelligence, but have also got incredibly lucky and have inflicted immense damage on society.

Musk is especially frustrating as at one point I really hoped he would be a force for good. Now he's pound shop a Bond villain.

[Ozyhibby]

My whole Twitter feed right now seems to be people telling everyone where to find them on other social media networks. [emoji23]


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[cabbageandribs1875]

Mastodon are picking up a lot of twitterers :greengrin last week it picked up over 230k new accounts, irvine welsh being one


had a quick look at what Mastodon was all about a few weeks back reading for the first time about it sounds complicated but probably not, it's made up of several different servers run by various individuals with them all connecting with each other


you can then make Toots rather than Tweets :hmmm:

Which is the best server to join on Mastodon and which celebrities can I follow? (hitc.com) (https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2022/11/08/which-is-the-best-server-to-join-on-mastodon-and-which-celebrities-can-i-follow/)


sigh

[Bristolhibby]

It won't but this should really shred any lingering deification of guys like him, Zuckerberg, Bezos etc.

They are in fact just mortals like us who may be above average intelligence, but have also got incredibly lucky and have inflicted immense damage on society.

Musk is especially frustrating as at one point I really hoped he would be a force for good. Now he's pound shop a Bond villain.

Seems to have folded into the Nutter Republican cabal now too.

J

[JeMeSouviens]

From his email to employees:


Going forward, to build a breakthrough Twitter 2.0 and succeed in an increasingly competitive world, we will need to be extremely hardcore. This will mean working long hours at high intensity. Only exceptional performance will constitute a passing grade.


They had to sign up to agree with this or automatically take 3 months severance. What a dick.

[cabbageandribs1875]

ach twitter can be nice and pleasant, sometimes



https://scontent.fman1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/315160480_5712438318812952_6583548490365566289_n.j pg?_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5cd70e&_nc_ohc=h6s7zH4pqcIAX8kZnii&_nc_ht=scontent.fman1-1.fna&oh=00_AfAUNMsSJG6nLmo6fsOJtXQSfidKtLL-Rr5kT-3gpStFQA&oe=637C97BD

[Ozyhibby]

ach twitter can be nice and pleasant, sometimes



https://scontent.fman1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/315160480_5712438318812952_6583548490365566289_n.j pg?_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5cd70e&_nc_ohc=h6s7zH4pqcIAX8kZnii&_nc_ht=scontent.fman1-1.fna&oh=00_AfAUNMsSJG6nLmo6fsOJtXQSfidKtLL-Rr5kT-3gpStFQA&oe=637C97BD

He lasted less than a week back on it.[emoji23]


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[Keith_M]

If you just want a useful app for chatting to your mates, I can recommend Telegram.

I use it basically as a free replacement for mobile texts, and for (restricted access) group chats with family members. It now works brilliantly for phone calls as well... also for free.

[Hibbyradge]

If you just want a useful app for chatting to your mates, I can recommend Telegram.

I use it basically as a free replacement for mobile texts, and for (restricted access) group chats with family members. It now works brilliantly for phone calls as well... also for free.

I tried it, and it's fine, but Telegram to WhatsApp is like Yahoo to Google. It just doesn't have enough users. That may change, but it's hard to improve on WhatsApp.

[CyberSauzee]

Interesting thread quoting an article from an advertiser's perspective about why they're pulling advertising. It's not surprising to hear about no Twitter staff to service the advertisers.

https://twitter.com/ChrisO_wiki/status/1597336026007015424?t=FgDGGqrSqNFWY6BFvcYXkQ&s=19

[WeAreHibs]

Anyone else fascinated but unsurprised with this?

https://youtu.be/QMCbvw5MEw0

This is going to blow up. Was this what Musk meant by "free speech"?

[Rumble de Thump]

Tucker Carlson is so creepy.

[Ozyhibby]

https://maxburns.substack.com/p/elons-twitter-enters-the-red-zone

I enjoy Twitter but I think I’m going to enjoy watching its demise. There will be something to replace it soon enough.


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[grunt]

One of the things I like about Twitter is how often people can summarise events succinctly.
There's a few posts about Musk's purchase of Twitter that have elicited some quite clever (IMO) comments:


There's something very Edgar Allan Poe about the whole Musk story. Richest man in the world gets bored and buys plaything which ends up consuming his fortune and his mind.


Read a brilliant description earlier ‘thin skinned man buys criticism factory’

[Ozyhibby]

https://twitter.com/ericfreyss/status/1604538198054535169?s=46&t=4--zw6SklYw4G-j0eXbe2A

Head of French cyber crimes unit.


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[cabbageandribs1875]

wonder if he will indeed stand down as CEO after this poll :) Will Elon Musk quit as Twitter CEO? (yahoo.com) (https://uk.news.yahoo.com/elon-musk-quit-twitter-ceo-175304146.html)

Until recently the world’s richest man, Elon Musk has proved to be a controversial CEO of Twitter since he bought the company for $44bn.
And on Sunday he ran a poll on the platform asking users to vote on whether he should step down from his role in charge of the company, saying he would abide by their judgement.
The result showed 57.5% of the 17.5 million people who voted said he should go.

[Ozyhibby]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20221227/29bc48fc007966425b87b19c062691a4.jpg


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[Paul1642]

Apologies in advance for resurfacing an old thread however it wasn’t worthy of a new topic.

In the last few months I have becoming more and more aware of a lot of alt right posts on my “for you tab” on twitter. On most websites this would suggest that I follow lots of right wing pages (I Absolutely do not) but on twitter i literally only follow some sports pages, new outlets (normal ones such as BBC and Sky) and a few celebrities who do not post this type of nonsense.

Yet when I click on the for you tab it’s the same pages coming up, mostly of the pro trump, end “wokeness”, anti trans and climate change denial type. Is this happening for anyone else and is this just the way thta Elon Musk has taken the company?

[Lendo]

Apologies in advance for resurfacing an old thread however it wasn’t worthy of a new topic.

In the last few months I have becoming more and more aware of a lot of alt right posts on my “for you tab” on twitter. On most websites this would suggest that I follow lots of right wing pages (I Absolutely do not) but on twitter i literally only follow some sports pages, new outlets (normal ones such as BBC and Sky) and a few celebrities who do not post this type of nonsense.

Yet when I click on the for you tab it’s the same pages coming up, mostly of the pro trump, end “wokeness”, anti trans and climate change denial type. Is this happening for anyone else and is this just the way thta Elon Musk has taken the company?

Main reason I quit and closed my Twitter account. Had exactly the same issue. It’s no coincidence, there is a concerted effort to push this stuff at people. Whether that is directly coming from Musk or not I have no idea.

[wookie70]

Apologies in advance for resurfacing an old thread however it wasn’t worthy of a new topic.

In the last few months I have becoming more and more aware of a lot of alt right posts on my “for you tab” on twitter. On most websites this would suggest that I follow lots of right wing pages (I Absolutely do not) but on twitter i literally only follow some sports pages, new outlets (normal ones such as BBC and Sky) and a few celebrities who do not post this type of nonsense.

Yet when I click on the for you tab it’s the same pages coming up, mostly of the pro trump, end “wokeness”, anti trans and climate change denial type. Is this happening for anyone else and is this just the way thta Elon Musk has taken the company?

I'm not a frequent user. I only post teh odd photos and look when I am very bored. My for you is pretty much what I would suspect given who I follow and what my interests are. I have posted a few times in teh last month on the left side of arguments on left minded pages and there is a bit of political stuff offered up but nothing that feel at odds with where I have visited. My wife doesn't really do politics on Facebook or elsewhere and she gets bombarded with Trump/Brexit rubbish and even gets some Britain First type crap through the door. The algorithms will be getting pretty sophisticated these days so maybe they see my wife as having little interest, not true, and able to be convinced but given my public views on multiple platforms they are wasting money trying to change my views.
If you have no political persona on these platforms they may try to hit you with lots of teh usual Right Wing garbage

[Mon Dieu4]

Apologies in advance for resurfacing an old thread however it wasn’t worthy of a new topic.

In the last few months I have becoming more and more aware of a lot of alt right posts on my “for you tab” on twitter. On most websites this would suggest that I follow lots of right wing pages (I Absolutely do not) but on twitter i literally only follow some sports pages, new outlets (normal ones such as BBC and Sky) and a few celebrities who do not post this type of nonsense.

Yet when I click on the for you tab it’s the same pages coming up, mostly of the pro trump, end “wokeness”, anti trans and climate change denial type. Is this happening for anyone else and is this just the way thta Elon Musk has taken the company?

I don't often use For You but just checked it and like Wookie mine is what I'd expect and pretty much people I follow or similar, strange thing is that although I don't follow many of them, I actually click on lots of mental right wing things etc as I like to see what they are up to, none of that at all shows up on my For You at all

[Pretty Boy]

My for you seems to be full of cyclist moaning about HGVs parking in cyvle lanes and people biting back at them.

[speedy_gonzales]

My for you seems to be full of cyclist moaning about HGVs parking in cyvle lanes and people biting back at them.

If you follow any Hibs media/groups then it's probably because a lot of the cycling/parking threads for Edinburgh/Leith attract a lot of tweets from fellow Hibees. There's definitely a significant percentage more 1875 rather than 1874 Twitter names on those threads.

[Kato]

I don't often use For You but just checked it and like Wookie mine is what I'd expect and pretty much people I follow or similar, strange thing is that although I don't follow many of them, I actually click on lots of mental right wing things etc as I like to see what they are up to, none of that at all shows up on my For You at allIt's the direction they want to take people ie set them on each other. If they are doing that there will be little chance of any solidarity and we will end up an oligarchy. Lookin in on GB News just now and they are discussing the "fact" that Nicola Sturgeon has covered up her criminality with "years of attacking England and the English". Utter rubbish but mud sticks and they have billionaires financing grifters and fascists with platforms to throw as much mud around as possible. It doesn't matter where the mud sticks as long as there is mud their billions are secure.

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