This Day in History 1869: “First-Class Men” Torture and Try to Kill Congressman Who Voted for President Grant

Documented in the 1872 Joint Select Committee to Inquire into the Condition of Affairs in the Late Insurrectionary States, Abram Colby was an elected member of Congress called to testify on domestic terrorism: Colby: On the 29th of October 1869, [the Klansmen] broke my door open, took me out of bed, took me to the … Continue reading This Day in History 1869: “First-Class Men” Torture and Try to Kill Congressman Who Voted for President Grant

Meta Slavery: It’s Time to Stop Blaming Surveillance

If someone continuously shames surveillance (as if pursuit of knowledge is a bad thing inherently) they’re headed down the dangerous and dark path of criminalizing knowledge. Let’s be honest here. Facebook’s business model is not surveillance, it is slavery (an extreme form of debt capitalism). Here’s how a paper from 2016 laid out the problem: … Continue reading Meta Slavery: It’s Time to Stop Blaming Surveillance

Simple Guide to Regulating Social Media: How to Breakup Facebook

Separating communication and contents is like saying the water utility shouldn’t be in the business of turning your taps into coke machines. That’s the whole thing in a nutshell. Status (like money, ideology and ego) is power, which is a question of authorization and consent. Very different from generic content. Nobody should want 1950s “Mad … Continue reading Simple Guide to Regulating Social Media: How to Breakup Facebook