OT - Censorship, Deplatforming, and Other Threats to C99

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 2:11pm

There are two segments to this and the first is broader and more general. Those paying attention have noticed that there has been a major assault on dissenting and/or otherwise non-conforming narratives and the creators of such by faceplant, tweeter, you tube and similar content transmission vehicles up to and including even pieces of the MSM like Faux News. People who have been part of the MSM simply get fired, effectively de-platforming them, and others get de-platformed or de-monetized, which is aimed at accomplishing the same thing. This is straight up Fascism. It isn't "creeping fascism", it's outright fascism.

Fascism isn't like pregnancy, where, famously, one cannot be a little bit pregnant. There is no bright line such that things are normal and then bingo!, Mussolini is in command of everything. As I am fond of pointing out fascism is "ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. "(FDR) And as Caitlin is fond of pointing out " whoever controls the narrative controls the world" So, arguably, whoever controls the narrative controls the government and Q.E.D. and all that, but is isn't that simple. Fascism is also "The merger of government and corporate interests" a statement attributed to Mussolini himself as well as many others.

In the US, money talks. We have a lot of oligopoly markets and an oligarchy, and the oligarchs and the lords of the corporate fiefdoms cycle in and out of government, blurring any purported divisions between our corporate overlords and our government. The government could, arguably, make life hell for various corporate interests, and they can in turn withdraw support from, undermine, sabotage and generally remove politicians from power. It is a symbiosis and, in that sense, a merger of their interests. Both have their own leverage and weaponry, and choose a vigilant truce and cooperative exploitation of everyone else. Beside that they have identical interests in some areas anyway, more wealth, more power, world domination, a subservient workforce, externalization of costs, and on and on and on. They don't need one towering figure like Mussolini that can be the focus of resistance, because they exercise great control over every aspect of our life far less blatantly and, in part through their control of the narrative, keep most of the populace ignorant of that fact. This, of course, brings us right back to their attempt to silence all of those voices, right, left , or elsewhere that are out of step with the preferred narrative.

This variant of fascism is very like a jigsaw puzzle with many interlocking segments, each controlling and running some segment of our lives and existence. One cannot confront it head on because that is like trying to push a giant wall of jello in some direction or another. What we can do is push back against various segments in various small ways, working on each little piece instead of the whole. One weapon we have is our voices, informing our fellow citizens of what is going on and what we think can be done about it and how. And, while we're at it, wee must defend ourselves from environmental collapse on many fronts, not the least of which is the climate emergency, but also the inundation of all life and nature by the vast stream of plastic trash and chemical toxins. Here too, communication is an important weapon.

I am of the opinion that this site, caucus99percent, is a valuable and important asset and potential (actual?) tool in this struggle. I don't see de-platforming as an immanent threat however, because we are not, as far as I know, on any of those platforms that are at the forefront on the war on independent communications of independent thinking. Also, we don't have anywhere near the outreach of some of those they've tried to silence. However, we can readily be De-monitized. We are, in fact, perpetually in a state of de-monitization in process because we are fully user funded and supported. Thus, only we, the site's readers and participants, can stave off a terminal lack of funding by periodically throwing some money into the pot. Some time ago I set forth a schedule according to which I should nag all of us (me included), and it slipped by, so today is, seemingly, the day. The little yellow oval labeled "Donate" in the upper left corner of your screen has directions, instructions and aids for making contributions to the site. Beyond what is there, I'm sure anybody needing some other way to do so can contact Johnny via internal mail (Click Messages and address your message to JtC) and work something out.

Thank you very much for reading all this, but, it is serious, both sections. Namaste.

be well and have a good one.

Tags:

Open Thread

censorship

de-platforming

de-funding

fascism

C99P

Vote

Comments

Submitted by thanatokephaloides on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 3:09pm

Excellent essay!

As a long-time advocate of a wholly de-monetized Internet, I've always supported such initiatives as c99, including with as much cash as I can.

I remember when the Internet was all about geeks experimenting with other geeks. (Remember email without spam?) News sources in the 'Net were all like c99 is today, where public eyes were what it was all about. When people started to use it to make a living, it went into the toilet IMHO.

c99 is a very important reminder of what all Internet news should be all about!

An excellent essay there, enhydra!

—

"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar

"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 3:20pm

Good afternoon deadhead, thanks. It's ok with

me if people who wish to be more or less full time journalists monetize their work in some way, especially if they're the sort of truth tellers that the MSM wouldn't hire, though I'm not crazy about ads before and after and especially during music videos that are a recording of somebody else.

be well and have a good one.

—

That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Submitted by QMS on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 3:57pm

agreed mr. el

@enhydra lutris

it is not about being (non) monitized
so much as being censored which,
as in the capitalized world of www,
is preventing the free flow of ideas
which we have to get around to keep
communicating about important issues

Kant made a buck on truth.

Submitted by RantingRooster on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 4:01pm

I applied for PPP loan,

if I get it, I send Jtc some $$$! (just got to make sure the expenditure looks like payroll lol)

—

C99, my refuge from an insane world. #ForceTheVote

Submitted by Lookout on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 6:25pm

C99 is a treasure in these times

...we best value it with money and otherwise...with our words and ideas...the real treasure trove of the site. Not many places anywhere that evidence is an essential part of the conversation.

Thanks to everyone for all the info, and the great community. I appreciate you!

—

“Until justice rolls down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

Submitted by Azazello on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 6:48pm

When this shit's over ...

We use this phrase all the time now.
I'm sure we're not the only ones.
Good on you for getting your vaccines.
There's no way in Hell we'll get ours
in time to join you on your desert trip.
In normal times such a meet-up would be no big deal.
When this shit's over ...

—

We wanted decent healthcare, a living wage and free college.
The Democrats gave us Biden and war instead.

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 7:46pm

Just totally sucks. Of course, it is pretty much an annual

@Azazello

thing, so there's always the future.

be well and have a good one

—

That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Submitted by ggersh on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 7:17pm

Hoping C99 survives the great purge

imo it's gone from interesting times to dangerous times see

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The website encountered an unexpected error. Please try again later.

EDIT: tweet was not allowed

EDIT: Adding a comment from Daniel Luepker from Hard Lens Media
"Sites being demonetized rhymes with books being burned"

—

I never knew that the term "Never Again" only pertained to
those born Jewish

"Antisemite used to be someone who didn't like Jews
now it's someone who Jews don't like"

Heard from Margaret Kimberley

Submitted by snoopydawg on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 12:16am

Emoji

@ggersh

The website encountered an unexpected error. Please try again later.

I’m thinking that there might have been an emoji in the comment

—

Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Submitted by Raggedy Ann on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 7:00pm

To me,

this is more important than deplatforming c99p: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2021/02/06/joe-biden-minimu.... What a jerk.

Let's see if Congress can get anything done. Interesting conversation with Ro Khanna:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQDobF_kaxM&list=PLL0ooGQ0asg4upSXzZA1Oi...

—

"The “jumpers” reminded us that one day we will all face only one choice and that is how we will die, not how we will live." Chris Hedges on 9/11

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 7:44pm

Like the $2,000 checks, I never expected it to get done.

@Raggedy Ann

Biden made a big thing, earlier on about "The word of a Biden", as in it is guaranteed. Well, long before he started making those miscellaneous promises he repeatedly promised the oligarchs "nothing will change" and, at one poiont when he told said oligarchs that they hae to "give the people something" he was quick to reassure them that he didn't intend to introduce any legislation to make them do so.

be well and have a good one

—

That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Submitted by snoopydawg on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 1:19pm

From the 1st link:

@Raggedy Ann

President Joe Biden says his proposal to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour is unlikely to make it into the final $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package after negotiations with republicans even tho they have no power nor are their votes needed for reconciliation which it qualifies for under the rulesofcongress.

Biden, who advocated for a minimum wage increase before the pandemic began, has pitched the idea as an effective way to help working-class Americans cope with the economic consequences of the crisis.

"No one should work 40 hours a week and live below the poverty wage. And if you’re making less than $15 an hour, you’re living below the poverty wage," the president told CBS Evening News host Norah O’Donnell on Friday. But he conceded that his plan to raise the federal minimum rate did not look likely to be a part of the new relief legislation.

"I put it in, but I don't think it's going to survive," he said. (you are the damn pres and if you want it in your bill then it can damn well be in the bill, but then do you really want it done? No, I thought not since an un-empowered working class is what you all want. -sd)

Many Republicans opposed Biden’s attempt to raise the federal minimum wage, and some Democrats also had concerns.

'Real people are hurting': Biden says weak jobs report shows why $1.9 trillion in COVID relief is needed

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., told reporters last week that he doesn’t support increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. But Manchin, a moderate Democrat, said he supports a smaller increase. (Well for one thing it doesn't go to $15 for 5 effing years not right away,, but don't say that out loud cuz of.... reasons and you don't really want it to pass right damn now. sd)

"I’m supportive of an increase that’s responsible and reasonable," Manchin said, "and in my state that’s $11." Manchin added that the increased rate should account for inflation. (see me above..-sd)

"The budget resolution the Senate passed today puts us on a path to finally raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour," Sanders tweeted Friday. "It is a moral imperative in the richest country in the world that no one is forced to live on a starvation wage, and the American Rescue Plan will get it done." (yeah again see above and why isn't Bernie saying the quiet part OUT LOUD so that we can get behind him and give dems cover...never mind see above.)

Sanders has backed a phased minimum wage increase. Democrats proposed to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025, raising it in five steps in the coming years. (yeah that quiet part not being said again gdi -sd)

"Your reminder that 67% of Americans support raising minimum wage to $15 hour but it can be filibustered by 41 Republican senators" Robert Riech, former secretary of labor under the Clinton administration, tweeted Saturday. "The Senate is broken." (no it is not broken. It is working just like they want it too till the GOP can retake it in 2022. -sd)

Not much to further read since I gave the running highlights, but it is just damn kabuki and people should realize that by now and get on riding their buttocks until dems feel threatened of never having any power at all again amd for a very long time until dems restart fighting for the working class again gdi!!. It ain't rocket science. People don't hold dems accountable so they continue to mock us and our votes for them.

If this is discombobulated I will explain later today although it is damn late already for me. Later...

Thanks RA for giving me this stuff to work with.

—

Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Submitted by irishking on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 7:18pm

(No subject)

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sat, 02/06/2021 - 7:44pm

No Monarch

@irishking

—

That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Submitted by irishking on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 8:55am

good one!

@enhydra lutris

I meant to reply to JtC, but am glad I goofed.

Submitted by snoopydawg on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 12:12am

Kudos and accolades, el

Yeah it’s not something that just sneaks up on you and no red flashing sign that warns you that you are getting close to fascism, one day you just step over it and boom. We have been living in a police state for some time and yet people think that they are free. As the woman said, try moving and see how far you can move.

Fascism isn't like pregnancy, where, famously, one cannot be a little bit pregnant. There is no bright line such that things are normal and then bingo!

I so agree with this:

The government could, arguably, make life hell for various corporate interests, and they can in turn withdraw support from, undermine, sabotage and generally remove politicians from power. It is a symbiosis and, in that sense, a merger of their interests. Both have their own leverage and weaponry, and choose a vigilant truce and cooperative exploitation of everyone else. Beside that they have identical interests in some areas anyway, more wealth, more power, world domination, a subservient workforce, externalization of costs, and on and on and on. They don't need one towering figure like Mussolini that can be the focus of resistance, because they exercise great control over every aspect of our life far less blatantly and, in part through their control of the narrative, keep most of the populace ignorant of that fact.

And then when you have lots of countries that are just as involved with corrupt governments that are in politics so they can advance power for a select few and themselves and have sold out their country and citizens for money and power you also have fascism and prop up other corrupt governments... shudder. Not a world I thought I’d be living in.

Thanks everyone who writes essays and comments on here and to the linkers who lurk and read quietly.

—

Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 9:30am

Thanks Snoops. Yeah, corruption is seemingly almost all

@snoopydawg

pervasive and it's not so much the nation states as their elites. The central banks, for example.

be well and have a good one

—

That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Submitted by lotlizard on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 2:06am

The Convo Couch on being censored／de-monetized by Google＋YouTube

[video:https://youtu.be/_mTxI4xffbw]

One of the very few voices on the Left who had already seen this coming when Alex Jones was deplatformed, to general mainstream and left-liberal-progressive applause, and warned that anyone who approves of silencing views they don’t like is approving fascism, period, full stop.

Submitted by enhydra lutris on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 9:39am

Yep.

@lotlizard

—

That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --

Submitted by snoopydawg on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 2:09pm

T'will be a sad day when Jimmy gets the nix

@enhydra lutris

and how long until Krystal and Saagar get a talk from their bosses that tell them to knock off their content that upsets the elite? Cuz we all know it is coming.

BTW how many have had the conversation whilst teaching their dawgs about the uses of know and no? I can't tell her that she KNOWS better after I said NO not to jump on me. I said No and you Know what No means don't you? Ta hell you don't know better what no jumping on me means. You know better....after I say NO.. Yeah I got the You are silly look and jumped up to get her a milkbone. Good Dawg!!

LOL now she runs in and out the dawg door and expects to get one or is now jumping on me to get one after she did really well with hand signs and got one. I tell you teaching a dawg sure points out the silliness of our vocabulary. Now we are working on Mine and Yours... yeah not going well.

Did I mention how big she is already at 3 1/2 months? Here are 2 photos of Sam from at the Great Salt lake desert road trip to Nevada yesterday.

—

Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Submitted by The Voice In th... on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 7:12pm

Looks like our abandoned puppy, pumpkin

@snoopydawg
A whole litter had been left in the forest preserve and some teenagers with a beagle found them. We took one. So young her eyes didn't open for days. The vet checked her out and gave us a formula. It was distilled water, unsweetened yogurt and jar of Junior beef. it looked and smelled like barf. the puppy loved it! Once she got the hang of using the nipple (must have been newborn) she drained the baby bottle. i was afraid her little stomach would burst. she slept in the kitchen in dog basket lined with a baby blanket. No ctying or whimpering. once her eyes opened she followed my wife everywhere. I do believe she thought she was her mother. What would instinct say to a newborn puppy about the being they smelled when that nipple with the wondrous liquid was pressed into her mouth? When her eyes opened the first thing she saw was my wife grooming and petting her. She grew rapidly. After a month I had to go to my new job out of state. Before I left I started weaning her with strips of chicken pulled from a tub of Colonel sanders' and bits of bacon in the morning. She sniffed then inhaled that chicken and the bacon set her little tail to a blur. She grew fast and my wife gave her to her sister. I didn't see her for a year. She saw me and jumped on me, knocking me down and promptly sat on my lap like she used to do when I gave her the chicken and bacon. But now she was 160 pounds, fifteen more than me! (at that time0. What a good loyal and sweet dog. I wish we had taken her with us, but she had companionship with my father-in-law's dog that my sister-in-law also took in when died. They would sleep curled together, nose to tail.

How can somebody just leave little puppies in the woods to die from starvation, exposure or coyotes?

—

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Submitted by snoopydawg on Sun, 02/07/2021 - 11:28pm

Your nipple saga reminds me of my 2nd beagle

@The Voice In the Wilderness

Mom had a C-section after the biggest puppy got stuck and there were others still waiting and one puppy wasn’t eating and was being pushed away. I saw nothing wrong with her so I bottled fed her. But not without a fight at 1st. She fought against the nipple going in her mouth. I finally had to wedge her mouth open and put it in the back and squeeze the bottle so she knew what was in it. This went on until mom let her feed. I bonded to her and when no one in my family would take her I kept her. I even passed up a trip to Hawaii right after she was born. I couldn’t leave her. Silly I know, but it is what it was back then.

—

Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Submitted by The Voice In th... on Mon, 02/08/2021 - 10:01am

I've had beagle sized dogs

@snoopydawg
And your story doesn't surprise me. you really have to coax them to eat when they are small. Generalizing from my one big dog (and stories of others) they were born hungry. It was just the one time that she didn't know what to do. After that, no problem! I guess a dog has to eat a lot to put on 160 pounds in a year.

—

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Submitted by snoopydawg on Mon, 02/08/2021 - 2:10pm

I keep asking Sam if it hurts to grow this fast

@The Voice In the Wilderness

I swear I blink and she has grown another inch long and another inch up in height. I bet we can exchange fun dawg stories all week and never get done telling them. Life with dawgs....

Now tell me who's a good dawg when she let me sleep till noon yesterday? Got mixed up on nightly meds and after yakking less than 10 minutes after I took them I retook them. I didn't know they dissolved that fast. One day I wished she had moved enough to wake me up. She was just laying lying? beside me sleeping too. This morning a woke up with the BBQ brush on my face 30 minutes before I normal get up.Funny dawg.

—

Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Submitted by The Voice In th... on Mon, 02/08/2021 - 6:23pm

Dogs should inherit the Earth

@snoopydawg
and maybe share it with cats.

—

I've seen lots of changes. What doesn't change is people. Same old hairless apes.

Submitted by snoopydawg on Mon, 02/08/2021 - 6:40pm

You have to tell cats that dawgs were here first

@The Voice In the Wilderness

otherwise they will think that they are in charge. Anyone who has gotten a cat before the dawg knows what I’m talking about. 1st born will only tolerate the dawg, but if it 2nd it worships the dawg. I’ve seen this happen.

—

Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

Submitted by Sima on Thu, 02/11/2021 - 7:16am

Been loving your stories about Sam...

@snoopydawg
I have an older dog named Jaska. She's the pup in my avatar. When she was a pup, she jumped and jumped on me. Instead of telling her no, I knee blocked her. Not with rage, not with any feeling at all. Kind of the way a mother dog nips a pup to stop it jumping on her. It worked great. She only jumped a few times after that first block, and after tumbling to her butt those few times, she quit entirely. I told everyone else to knee block her as well. And it is just a block, gentle, knee up, pup tumbles down. No force on my part. Anyway, she stopped jumping right after the knee blocks started. Another thing I use(d): I would fold my arms across my chest, get a stern but kind look on my face and stand in front of what she was messing with and shouldn't be doing. I would say, 'No, MINE!' quietly but firmly, with my arms crossed and a very determined stance. She learned, almost immediately with that, to leave the cat litter box alone. I used it again to teach her not harass or chase our chickens. And, after a couple of weeks, she decided they were HER chickens, and she protects them, even now in her old age. And I do mean protects, from coyotes, bald eagles, and more. She does the same with our goats, although they taught her... not me. I let them bash her with their heads a few times, when she was a puppy. Yes, she yipped and went flying, but she learned to respect them and eventually she adopted them, just as she did the chickens.

—

If you're poor now, my friend, then you'll stay poor.
These days, only the rich get given more. -- Martial book 5:81, c. AD 100 or so
Nothing ever changes -- Sima, c. AD 2020 or so