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Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

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Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#401

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Conservatives do seem to see themselves as people who don’t get offended. I wonder what causes that. There seems to be an idea that the things that offend them are, like, “naturally” abhorrent, so it’s not offense so much as, like... digust in satanic things, virtue in “common sense”, etc. There’s a whole language to talk about things that carefully avoids the concept of “being offended”.

As a conservative: What causes it is that you basically have to retreat completely from society to avoid seeing opposing views. I'd have to avoid all the late night shows, most newspapers and TV news stations, and most social media. It doesn't take long to get inoculated. As a left-leaning person, it's much easier to see almost exclusively your own ideas being reinforced. > There seems to be an idea that the things t…

I think you’re misunderstanding what it’s like to lean left.

You used the word “exclusively”... “As a left-leaning person, it's much easier to see almost exclusively your own ideas.”

I think you’re making a strange assumption here: some of my conservative ideas are almost universally rejected by the media around me, therefore many liberals must feel all of their ideas are universally accepted by the media.

That’s not true though. For example some liberals feel that capitalism is immoral. That idea is almost universally rejected in the media, and by most Americans.

I think your point—that some ideas which are important to you are being suppressed—is important to raise. I care about those ideas and seek them out. (Although I’m conservative in many ways)

But I think you really weaken your position in the debate by tacking on strong claims about how enfranchised leftists must feel in the media.

The people who feel comfortable with the media are really neither left or right. They are people who feel comfortable with the status quo, who feel most happy when everyone agrees and actively move away from discord. Non-ideologues. These people are neither left nor right.

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#402
post #395

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You're not much interested in real people, are you? :)

Could you please not do flamewars on HN? That commenter was way out of line to attack you based on nationality, and we've banned their account for trolling. But you also posted provocations in this thread, and we need people not to do that. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Yes, I'm sorry. Won't do it again.

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#403
post #400

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I think you’ll find that most conservatives actually just want the NFL to enforce their rules, which already prohibit political speech on the pitch. Something the NFL has enforced in the past against conservative political expression. So where do you think this no platforming of liberals is taking place? It’s not happening in the media. It’s not happening on social media. It’s not happening on the campus. It’s not ha…

No political flamewars on HN, please. Edit: it looks like you've been using HN primarily for political or ideological battle. The site guidelines explicitly ask you not to do that, and point out that we ban accounts that do. We have to, because flamewars consume everything if you let them. Please (re-)read https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and use the site as intended from now on.

I’d like you to elaborate on that, because I don’t think anything I’ve said would be considered flaming. This thread is about a political topic and I’ve simply presented my perspective on it, in what I think is a pretty level headed manner. I also don’t think I’ve been using this site for any sort of battle, I comment on any topic that interests me.

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#404

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Where is the "argumentum-ad-nauseam bullshit"? I'm didn't post this to argue about politics or what your political beliefs are, just that they do in fact, censor.

The thing about Hillary’s emails was COMPLETELY INFLATED by her opposition, since she was not the first person by a long shot to use a private email server. Inflation = distortion = bullshit.

Again, I wasn't here to debate your political opinions, I was just simply pointing out that Twitter does censor, and providing a US .gov sourced example.

Try Reddit for your garbage opinions.

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#405

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where is the "argumentum-ad-nauseam bullshit"? I'm didn't post this to argue about politics or what your political beliefs are, just that they do in fact, censor.

The thing about Hillary’s emails was COMPLETELY INFLATED by her opposition, since she was not the first person by a long shot to use a private email server. Inflation = distortion = bullshit.

Garden-variety political flamewar will get you banned here. Please don't post like this, regardless of your politics.

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#406

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The thing about Hillary’s emails was COMPLETELY INFLATED by her opposition, since she was not the first person by a long shot to use a private email server. Inflation = distortion = bullshit.

Again, I wasn't here to debate your political opinions, I was just simply pointing out that Twitter does censor, and providing a US .gov sourced example. Try Reddit for your garbage opinions.

Personal attacks will get you banned here. Please don't post like this again.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#407

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Conservatives do seem to see themselves as people who don’t get offended. I wonder what causes that. There seems to be an idea that the things that offend them are, like, “naturally” abhorrent, so it’s not offense so much as, like... digust in satanic things, virtue in “common sense”, etc. There’s a whole language to talk about things that carefully avoids the concept of “being offended”.

I'd say that to be offended by something you have to believe that things ought not to be that way and the fact that they are can only be a personal attack on you carried out by some evil forces. This is not too rational, so yes, most conservatives do not get offended. (Another reason could be that idea of loving thy neighbor as he is, not as you believe he should be.)

Lol

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#408

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The bias makes sense and I wouldn't call it a conspiracy theory. Where are the censors hired? Californians have a different idea about hate speech than people from Alabama who have a different view of hate speech than someone from Bangalore. So if you hire your censors from California you are going to see right wing rogue ideas considered hate speech.

I know tastes differ across space, but there must be some minimum standard that would satisfy almost everyone

Of course there is a minimum standard - but the problem is to have effective censors you need to give them a degree of leeway/self-judgement and in a politically charged environment this will lead to bias.

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#409

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Nationalism and white supremacism are not the same thing at all. Equating them and needlessly injecting race into it is bog standard Russian divisive propaganda.

In America, they are. Both are historical and current disasters; the icing on the cake of American white supremacism fueling American nationalism is extra gross, though. I do want to compliment you for the rhetorical twirl of trying to co-opt reality with the Russian specter, though. It's bold. Projecting...but very bold.

Please try to rephrase that by actually saying something. I'm genuinely curious why you think that absurd equality is so obvious it requires no evidence.

Re: Most Americans Think Facebook and Twitter Censor Their Political Views

#410
post #144

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Everyone applies "selective empathy". People on the left in the US care very little about employees of coal miners, oil companies, etc because of larger environmental concerns. In every case, there is some "more important cause" that someone prioritizes that makes it look like they don't have empathy.

This is the same sort of confusion that leads to ideas like "Blue Lives Matter." A life isn't inherently blue. A person isn't inherently a coal miner. I think you will find a lot of leftists caring deeply about the lives of people who are currently working in coal mines or in a police force, and concluding that the best answer for them is found in different employment. It is no lack of empathy to the life of a coal m…

It's a lack of empathy when they vote to end coal miner jobs without having job replacement though (which is exactly what Hillary promised for example).

It's the same with people on the right with this immigration issue. They care about immigrants, but they care about rigid immigration policies to prevent "free-riders" even more. That's why you will find very few right-leaning people against legal immigrants as opposed to the many against illegal immigrants.

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