Facebook is like a fridge. You keep checking it, but there's nothing good. ~ facebook status

It was March 26th 2007 when I first logged into Facebook. And, after adding a few pictures to the family album, I spent the next couple months just browsing through the site reminiscent of my past , (some wannabe developer) and wishing that my name was Mark E Zuckerberg. But that was almost ten years ago! Today, in all modesty, I’m just happy to be the person I am. 

My first words posted on Facebook on July 26th 2007 were: : at home. I wasn’t really at home, least not the home I had hoped for, nor did I believe anyone actually cared. (Notably this was not one of the more happier times in my life!) Then along came Facebook.  Promising to connect the world, which at the time, I would have believed to be just another fairy tale. However once you were drawn in, you could then easily visualise the potential such an open community may have enabling communications around the world,  knowing very little if anything ,of the dangers it represents. It seemed like another world where one was free to privately share all their secrets, and interact freely with people all around the world. Or so we were led to believe.  Like I said previously, that was 10 years ago!

Then suddenly, everyone’s taking about it!

“Just weeks after the launch of Canada's largest-ever pro-privacy Coalition, it seems the whole country is demanding answers on the government's out-of-control surveillance.”

Not only was this happening in Canada, seems the NSA has been recording us for years without our knowledge. Thanks to Edward Snowden the NSA was exposed and shed some light on what really is going on in and around social networking sites, and Facebook in particular.

A exemplary article published by the ACLU, (American Civil Liberties Union) So you think you have nothing to hide... probably say’s it best when talking about our most personable and sensitive information!

Privacy isn't the same as secrecy. Privacy is about controlling information about you, including who knows what, under what circumstances, and when. Privacy is about being in control and in charge of your own life, and having the power to shape other people's perceptions of you. Today, we are effectively at the mercy of millions of unknown people who lord over us the power to destroy our reputations, relationships, and professional lives with the click of a button.

Yet when we look at the Facebook of today, it has become undeniably some kind of super informational commodity being bought and sold at the highest price! How subtle were the changes that led us down the path, silently robbing all civilization of our identities, whether intentional or not! I’m sure if you were to ask, your immediate response would be that is not of their intention. If like me however, you have been there from the beginning, you would now realize what a costly mistake we have all made and how Facebook , much like the other huge corporations, has slowly become just another evil empire.

What we once thought we had control over, has once again been taken over by corporate greed and the all mighty dollar. (Much like the Conservative Party has done to Canada…) Recently while touring around and trying to get a better understanding of how Facebook works, I’ve come to notice that changes are constantly and silently being made which can become pretty confusing at times for the best of us! Settings changed without notice, select posts showing in our news feeds. Missing entries in our timeline. Notes I assumed I had shared with only my friends had somehow become public for the whole world to see. Seems we have also lost the ability to share notes from one of our pages to another or share with a friend, which I must admit found a little unusual. The list of changes goes on forever. Yet like a true puppet master, Facebook has once again changed the rules to accommodate those of their shareholders who will stop at nothing , marketing our very existence to the highest bidder. Let’s just call it what it is… “Social Harvesting”

Personally, when I look at some of the newly implemented practices on Facebook,  I am deeply concerned. What showed promise to bring the world together and make it a more open and better place, is now robbing our children, and yes, even some of us other people, of our life and liberty, all while putting some imaginary price on our heads. As we all have probably seen in the coverage recently on numerous media outlets, No one is exempt It’s become our duty as parents in to instil better discipline in our children when it comes to social networking, and their online habits in general. We must teach them how to protect the very commodity they own, themselves! Not an easy task in this day and age, but a necessity. Our personal information is now fast becoming a valuable commodity, and for more reasons than one may expect.  You only have to open your mind to see the endless possibilities here.

On the other hand, I believe social networking does have it’s merits and plays an important part, as does the internet, in helping to bring people together and shape tomorrows' future. But still we must insist that our personal information remains just that, personal! Our information should not be freely shared across the web, unless of course that is what you choose. I believe that if we choose to share our personal information with sites like Facebook, Twitter,  and Linked-In etc.… Then it is they who should be held accountable and to make sure it is protected. Our information should not be freely shared at any cost, nor at any time…

Then again, who are we kidding! Welcome to Facebook in the 21st Century!

Powerful words… Seems commonplace these days but what do these two words really mean? 

Yahoo Answers: It means it's been put in a queue for a moderator (i.e. a person who checks the comments) to read it and check it's fit to publish. Like anything with a human element, it varies: a few hours is reasonable.

Not sure I would agree with the above answer, but you get the idea. Have you ever tried to comment on a ‘local or top news’ story only to see these two words appear? Frustrating is it not? Why do we even need a Moderator for public content? Do they not have scripts for omitting objectionable words that may be considered offensive? Who would even think that in todays technically advanced world we would even see these two words. After all, don’t they want to hear our side of the story? In most cases it would seem not! More and more news content posted these days seems to be moderated to the point where you must conform to their standards or not be heard at all. Seems like all big media do not like to play fair!

No matter where you go on the web today, it’s becoming commonplace to see these words, (or lack of in some cases) when ever you wish to have you say.  The hidden meaning behind these two simple words though is really more discriminating and should read: Comment Censored! Yes, censorship is everywhere these days which is a huge problem we all face.  Albeit, censorship in it’s worst form!  If we as a society are not even allowed to say what we may feel on news deemed worthy enough to go public, then we really are doomed.

Today, Censorship in it’s current form has become increasingly detrimental to sustaining a healthy society. If society is not freely allowed to share with one another their humble views on world issues, then it becomes a one sided street, with the advantage given to those who are in control… The Moderator. (aka The Media, The Government, and the Corporations who like nothing better than to supress the thoughts of those who in their eyes are deemed unworthy of an opinion)  In doing such, a dictatorship is formed and really, no one likes a dictator. Hence, this is the path we are on, spiralling out of control deep into the abyss of todays moderation.

“When you tear out a man's tongue, you are not proving him a liar, you're only telling the world that you fear what he might say.”
― George R.R. Martin, A Clash of Kings

There are many types and forms of moderation, each type shaped and moulded to suit the individual need.  Wikipedia describes moderation as the process of eliminating or lessening extremes. It is used to ensure normality throughout the medium on which it is being conducted.  Is that not censorship or is there even something more sinister at work here?  Read the description more carefully this time.  These two phrases jump out . (eliminating or lessening extremes, ensure normality throughout the medium) Sound’s to me like someone want’s to play GOD here! Oxford’s definition: the avoidance of excess or extremes, especially in one’s behaviour or political opinions. Although worded slightly different, still very powerful.  Myself, I find that kind of moderation to be deeply disturbing  if not downright controlling.

Moderation in another form may also be found today in many social media sites as the powers that be scramble desperately to try and stem the flow of discontent and solidarity happening all across the globe today. They fear the power of social media, and are now trying to curtail it’s use forcing  site owners to moderate it users content, and by enacting laws that will ultimately bring it’s demise. Modern day slavery? Perhaps, but disturbing none the less.  It’s this kind of moderation of society that is making a mockery of our democratic system and fuelling the flames for what is to surely come. What will happen then? When the voices of all the people are stifled by a selected few,  will there be anything left to say?  Can we as a society really afford to let that come to light? From all I have witnessed recently, it shall surely come to pass if society continues to sit idle and await further moderation!

With yet another holiday season upon up, many of us Canadians, not to mention millions of others around the world are once again feeling the pinch of the holiday season… (consumerism and corporate greed.)

Yes it is the end of another good year if you are the CEO or one of the top executives of some fortune 500 company. Yet for those of us far less fortunate, more and more we find ourselves nearing poverty, struggling to put those simple gifts under the tree or food on our tables, while millions of young children the world over suffer from famine. What should be a time of sharing, a time of compassion and giving, of brining families together to rejoice and reflect on the years accomplishments and celebrate life, has somehow transpired into something much less meaningful thanks to the world of consumerism and mostly, corporate greed. Instead we find that once again the true spirit of Christmas has been lost leaving so many of us with a sour taste in our mouths that we may not easily wash away.  Visions of sugar plums? Bah Humbug.

The “Corporate Grinch” hides his ugly head as he eagerly stashes away his new found wealth far from prying eyes as he plans his next diabolical move. Rubbing his greedy little fingers together while pondering yet more austerity cuts. Using cheap labour to amass his good fortune, he thinks no one has noticed his sinister ways. Yet in the real world of  “Whoville”, many people are awakening to find that perhaps the true spirit of Christmas means something a whole lot more!

 

With the ever increasing cost of maintaining our daily lives it’s not hard to see why so many of us feel overwhelmed during the holiday season. So much of our acquired wealth now goes to the “Corporate Grinch” that we can barely survive one holiday before the next one steps up to take it’s place. The vast majority of us struggle on a daily basis just to pay our ever increasing debt, leaving us feeling isolated and with little hope. Seldom do our meagre wages meet with the demand of todays modern world and yet each and every year we see a rise in expenses at every turn while the corporations who employ us reap huge profits. Almost yearly we see a increase in taxes, increased service fees, increases in food and housing prices, increases at the pump! And still they want more…

Is there a light at the end of the tunnel? (Perhaps Kevin Bloody Wilson say it best  with his tribute to the holiday season.) I believe there is and it is in the awakening of millions of people worldwide. People are becoming more aware and opposed to the “Corporate Grinch” than ever before. People are coming together to oppose all levels of corporate greed and we need desperately to keep this momentum going. We need to become more aware of our actions when we shop for certain items manufactured with the use of cheap labour. We need to learn better to understand our economy, and those who would control it. We need to band together, strive together to make sure that no one is left hungry or cold. That every man, woman and child may know the true spirit of Christmas.