Wednesday, March 8, 2023

Cartoon Realism and the Issue of Internet Censorship

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I think that pretty much everyone, except maybe Republicans, understand that the  internet can not be allowed to self-regulate. The world contains malign actors that will attempt to steal money, steal elections, and destabilize the country in many different ways.  How that will all work out, whether with legislation or merely secret cabals of justice loving cyberwarriors or something else is unknown at this point. I have no reason to have any hope that a reasonable system will come into place.  In the meantime, there are some ad hoc systems that claim to enforce community guidelines but maybe have the real purpose of protecting otherwise swine-like gangster capitalist companies from litigation.

As you know, this blog has been whacked several times by these guardians of all that is "good about our great country".  Although they cant tell me what they object to either specifically or generally, I am supposed to accept their judgment and go away and die or something.

One problem that we may be having is that the software used to make this judgment doesnt seem to have a sense of humor or a sense of irony or sarcasm.  I am pretty sure that is because the companies that implement this software dont have a sense of humor either.  

If I say that a certain former president with dyed orange hair should have a piano dropped on his head, will I be referred to the FBI because I am making a threat against someone's life? How about a safe?  An anvil? Ripe tomatoes? Nothing?

For more on the importance of the anvil in fiction, see: