The Free Grift Economy

[cytg111]

I stumbled upon a vid, thought it good, wanted to discuss.

I suppose not really news: Social media is propelling a new generation of Ignorants into existence.

Point in case: Russell Brand

Dude has done a 180 in terms of politics and content in response to where the subscription money rolls in from.
In earlier more civilized times clowns like Alex Jones would have to restrain themselves on media or be banned from platforms.
No more.
There is a clear ecosystem of the "Free Grift Economy" too.
Alex Jones has his show on Rumble
Rogan has the biggest show on Spotify
Tucker gets millions of views on Twitter
Brand has 5+ million subs on Youtube and is on Rumble as well.
Dont get me started on Twitter and Elmo Fusk.
(well Elmo is a bit different, guy so dumb he doesnt understand he is in a grift and actually pours money into it rather than profits like the rest... Rogan is a great case officer here)
+ a Ton of minions doing lip service on those same platforms.

Tucker goes on Brand's show.
Brand goes on Rogan's
Rogan goes on Alex's
Alex goes on Tucker
Mix and match.

Effectively creating a shit-tsunami of disinformation alt right conspiratorial super grifts - that pulls out 10's 100's of million of dollars out of low information individuals and in turn further sucking information entropy out of an already barely functioning democratic eco system.

These people are parasites on the free world. No wonder Putin loves them.

(From Youtube sub money alone Brand is taking in ~1.4m usd yearly. That is without the advertising and everything else...*only* YT money)

So what do I want to discuss? How the fuck do we mitigate this mind-virus? Somehow we need to elevate and platform more of the videos above. How? And what else?

 

[Indus]

I stumbled upon a vid, thought it good, wanted to discuss.

I suppose not really news: Social media is propelling a new generation of Ignorants into existence.

Point in case: Russell Brand

Dude has done a 180 in terms of politics and content in response to where the subscription money rolls in from.
In earlier more civilized times clowns like Alex Jones would have to restrain themselves on media or be banned from platforms.
No more.
There is a clear ecosystem of the "Free Grift Economy" too.
Alex Jones has his show on Rumble
Rogan has the biggest show on Spotify
Tucker gets millions of views on Twitter
Brand has 5+ million subs on Youtube and is on Rumble as well.
Dont get me started on Twitter and Elmo Fusk.
(well Elmo is a bit different, guy so dumb he doesnt understand he is in a grift and actually pours money into it rather than profits like the rest... Rogan is a great case officer here)
+ a Ton of minions doing lip service on those same platforms.

Tucker goes on Brand's show.
Brand goes on Rogan's
Rogan goes on Alex's
Alex goes on Tucker
Mix and match.

Effectively creating a shit-tsunami of disinformation alt right conspiratorial super grifts - that pulls out 10's 100's of million of dollars out of low information individuals and in turn further sucking information entropy out of an already barely functioning democratic eco system.

These people are parasites on the free world. No wonder Putin loves them.

(From Youtube sub money alone Brand is taking in ~1.4m usd yearly. That is without the advertising and everything else...*only* YT money)

So what do I want to discuss? How the fuck do we mitigate this mind-virus? Somehow we need to elevate and platform more of the videos above. How? And what else?

You can take a horse to water, but you can't make it drink!

 

[cytg111]

You can take a horse to water, but you can't make it drink!

Take horse to water. Drown horse in water?

 

[feralkid]

The way of the future (hic) the way of the future (hic) the way of the future (hic) the way of the future...................................................


Some day, the majority of humans will be able to tell when they are being taken for a ride......


HA!

 

[outriding]

My first impression of Russel brand…

He made me angry at humanity for allowing him to get so popular

 

[mikeymikec]

Is RB's schtick more or less the same as these other right-wing clowns?

 

[cytg111]

Is RB's schtick more or less the same as these other right-wing clowns?

Indeed but they’re running their personal props as not to mistake them for the same person… And Elon really is the village idiot fumbling about without a clue.

 

[Jaskalas]

So what do I want to discuss? How the fuck do we mitigate this mind-virus?

This is the result of Free Speech and the Internet.
Perhaps the question is, do we trust in Truth to prevail and overcome the noise and madness of the masses?
Do humans even value and seek out the Truth, or do we merely delve into echo chambers and delusions?

America is founded on ideals of free speech, and yet this is the result. Is it a temporary malady, or are we destined to get worse, much worse?

My answer is that it will get much worse. We ignored human nature, pretended that we were better, that we could ignore it and press on with truth, justice, and the American Way(tm). In reality, mankind needs guidance to avoid dividing into separate Tribes and then wantonly slaughtering and enslaving one another. Free Speech must not exist in the wild, ad hoc, but must instead be hosted on a secure platform. Prior generations of Americans enjoyed news and information that was FILTERED through journalistic and scientific integrity. Ethos and ethics helped as guard rails for most of the 20th century. The 21st century is defined as us using modern communications to bypass that safety. We took the signal and buried it in noise. Rendering the Truth unknowable, everything and everyone suspect, and there can be no agreement among strangers.

No more common ground because the only thing we care about now is wielding information like a weapon, truth be damned.

Without a filter on our information, we are no better than feral animals. Ones who will gladly end our society at the behest of false gods and idols.

 

[cytg111]

This is the result of Free Speech and the Internet.
Perhaps the question is, do we trust in Truth to prevail and overcome the noise and madness of the masses?
Do humans even value and seek out the Truth, or do we merely delve into echo chambers and delusions?

America is founded on ideals of free speech, and yet this is the result. Is it a temporary malady, or are we destined to get worse, much worse?

My answer is that it will get much worse. We ignored human nature, pretended we that were better, that we could ignore it and press on with truth, justice, and the American Way(tm). In reality, mankind needs guidance to avoid dividing into separate Tribes and then wantonly slaughtering and enslaving one another. Free Speech must not exist in the wild, ad hoc, but must instead be hosted on a secure platform. Prior generations of Americans enjoyed news and information that was FILTERED through journalistic and scientific integrity. Ethos and ethics helped as guard rails for most of the 20th century. The 21st century is defined as us using modern communications to bypass that safety. We took the signal and buried it in noise. Rendering the Truth unknowable, everything and everyone suspect, and there can be no agreement among strangers.

No more common ground because the only thing we care about now is wielding information like a weapon, truth be damned.

Without a filter on our information, we are no better than feral animals. Ones who will gladly end our society at the behest of false gods and idols.

I mean, as an analog/a parallel, this is why we have police is it not? On large and average scale the vast majority of us agrees that there needs to be rules if we are to co-exist, without rules, and representation and enforcement, we will be *no better* than feral animals, raping robbing and killing each other cause.. we're animals.

Since we're the sources of all this crap information - freely available and distributed information - I think its safe to assume it'll head to the crapper as well without some kind of rules and policing. To state that you're a free speech absolutist is... evident you havent really thought shit through. (looking at you Elmo).

 

[UNCjigga]

Being "brand"ed a sexual predator is pretty much an engraved invitation to suckle from the teat of right wing grift.

 

[hal2kilo]

The way of the future (hic) the way of the future (hic) the way of the future (hic) the way of the future...................................................


Some day, the majority of humans will be able to tell when they are being taken for a ride......


HA!

I see what you did there.

 

[Jaskalas]

To state that you're a free speech absolutist is... evident you havent really thought shit through. (looking at you Elmo).

Or, maybe they are inclined towards evil and believe chaos is a ladder.
It is, rather, they want to be the one to climb the ladder.

 

[Moonbeam]

It used to be that when a maggot

{this post was interrupted by Charilie-Cat who wanted a paws in the conversation to inject her opinion: (w3333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333332) and can continue now:}

appeared in society, the lack of corpses to feed on owing only to the immunity that is provided by the normal reaction of normal people to the smell of such offal that such vermin attempt to put under their noses instinctively warning them they are dealing with some random crack-pot, has been lost to the crown appeal afforded to collections of maggots that can congregate on social media presenting thereby, a sense that the imbecility they spout has already passed that filter and has obtained some social credibility.

This is a new avenue of infection that free societies face. They are morally committed to the idea of freedom of speech which maggots will promptly use to shit in our faces. Job one of society will of necessity become, how to treat this new form of sickness. Self haters have no issues with profiting from selling the gasses given off by a political system that is dying of its own tolerance.

Of course the left will rant and rave about their presence in society but will be powerless to act because of their own unwillingness to see their ranting and raving is a not dissimilar form of infection.

I suspect that in olden times the appearance of a social pariah of of the kinds that school today on the internet would have not awakened one morning having had his head crushed by a bolder during the night, thus ending any chance that infection would spread. But today we live in more civilized times. Now we depend of an impartial, fact-based judicial system and a tort system to insure that people play fair. Unfortunately and clearly to anybody with impartial judgment it looks also dto be eeply infected, especially at the head.

 

[gothuevos]

Just your typical late stage capitalism stuff.

If it's profitable, someone(s) will run with it, no matter how damaging to society.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

paradoxically, it would not have come to this but for an explosion of opportunity for self-expression and communication among billions of chimpanzees. So you also have a wider opportunity for hucksters such as the OP cites. Long ago, people wrote carefully crafted letters to their elected politicians, but now any moron can sling s*** on X, twitter, Facebook or wherever they wish to spew.

A few days ago, I heard a withered old lady in South Carolina insist that Vlad Putin is not such a bad guy -- "He just wants to get back what's his [Ukraine]." She insisted that Zelensky is a corrupt elitist. There are histories of the KGB -- one of them based on the Mitrohkin Archives of a truckload of documents stolen from KGB and smuggled into Britain. I'm sure the old lady's sense of things is inspired by -- nearly nothing. She must resent Zelensky because he can read.

 

[DaaQ]

I stumbled upon a vid, thought it good, wanted to discuss.

I suppose not really news: Social media is propelling a new generation of Ignorants into existence.

Point in case: Russell Brand

Dude has done a 180 in terms of politics and content in response to where the subscription money rolls in from.
In earlier more civilized times clowns like Alex Jones would have to restrain themselves on media or be banned from platforms.
No more.
There is a clear ecosystem of the "Free Grift Economy" too.
Alex Jones has his show on Rumble
Rogan has the biggest show on Spotify
Tucker gets millions of views on Twitter
Brand has 5+ million subs on Youtube and is on Rumble as well.
Dont get me started on Twitter and Elmo Fusk.
(well Elmo is a bit different, guy so dumb he doesnt understand he is in a grift and actually pours money into it rather than profits like the rest... Rogan is a great case officer here)
+ a Ton of minions doing lip service on those same platforms.

Tucker goes on Brand's show.
Brand goes on Rogan's
Rogan goes on Alex's
Alex goes on Tucker
Mix and match.

Effectively creating a shit-tsunami of disinformation alt right conspiratorial super grifts - that pulls out 10's 100's of million of dollars out of low information individuals and in turn further sucking information entropy out of an already barely functioning democratic eco system.

These people are parasites on the free world. No wonder Putin loves them.

(From Youtube sub money alone Brand is taking in ~1.4m usd yearly. That is without the advertising and everything else...*only* YT money)

So what do I want to discuss? How the fuck do we mitigate this mind-virus? Somehow we need to elevate and platform more of the videos above. How? And what else?

Don't give it clicks, don't share it so it gets more clicks, work the algorithm. If you wind up on such a video give it a thumbs down.

I watch videos I am interested in, if the algorithm starts trying to inject this kind of crap into my upcoming videos, I hit home button and search something that I would listen to. One of them is a morning radio show that live streams to youtube. Some times I will rewind it to the beginning and listen to that till it's over while working. Some days it may be music, afternoons it will be some other content creators. I kind of like the Midas Touch Network. Just depends, but I will absolutely stop a video and retune the algorithm if I find it's starting to inject the extremist RWJW garbage into the upcoming playlist.

BTW sorry cant give RB a click even if it was to give a thumbs down.

 

[trenchfoot]

From what I've been seeing the GOP propagandists going about their business, they've managed to make an argument that they're being denied their 1A rights of freely lying their asses off in order to make war against the facts and the truths about them that reveal who they really are, who they actually represent, who their masters are and the fact that they have nothing of value to give the working class other than (what else) tax cuts for the wealthy and their efforts to popularize racism along with their party's Christian nationalists that believe God put a supermajority of their ilk in the SCOTUS so they can turn our nation into a heavenly theocratic dictatorship led by a known convicted rapist and tax cheat "For Our Own Damn Good".

 

[HomerJS]

paradoxically, it would not have come to this but for an explosion of opportunity for self-expression and communication among billions of chimpanzees. So you also have a wider opportunity for hucksters such as the OP cites. Long ago, people wrote carefully crafted letters to their elected politicians, but now any moron can sling s*** on X, twitter, Facebook or wherever they wish to spew.

A few days ago, I heard a withered old lady in South Carolina insist that Vlad Putin is not such a bad guy -- "He just wants to get back what's his [Ukraine]." She insisted that Zelensky is a corrupt elitist. There are histories of the KGB -- one of them based on the Mitrohkin Archives of a truckload of documents stolen from KGB and smuggled into Britain. I'm sure the old lady's sense of things is inspired by -- nearly nothing. She must resent Zelensky because he can read.

She hates Zelensky because MAGA told her to. There is a long list of boogeymen (people who have done no wrong to anyone) they create to fuel their bonfire of hate. When the fire dies they add a new log on the fire. Logs include names like

Volodymyr Zelensky
Taylor Swift
LeBron James
Colin Kapernick

There are many others. These come to mind now

 

[soulcougher73]

Maybe we need a Ministry of Information. All posts, news stories etc go thru them to determine if what you are saying is factual and then they can approve the post etc ....

 

[cytg111]

Maybe we need a Ministry of Information. All posts, news stories etc go thru them to determine if what you are saying is factual and then they can approve the post etc ....

Not as to suppress speech but to give it a certified disinformation checkmark. Ok.

 

[nakedfrog]

This is the result of Free Speech and the Internet.
Perhaps the question is, do we trust in Truth to prevail and overcome the noise and madness of the masses?
Do humans even value and seek out the Truth, or do we merely delve into echo chambers and delusions?

America is founded on ideals of free speech, and yet this is the result.

Well... no. These are private platforms, they could easily be removed from the platforms without violating their free speech.

 

[APU_Fusion]

Maybe we need a Ministry of Information. All posts, news stories etc go thru them to determine if what you are saying is factual and then they can approve the post etc ....

We have that already don’t ya know. The only truth. It is called Fox News