Another day, and another high profile online platform for creators has slammed the ban hammer on members, using its “terms”.
Before anything though, let me get something straight: I’m a progressive. Or a “leftist”, or a “socialist”, or a “commie” if you wish so. I believe that anybody deserves de facto respect. Respect is a given and is to be lost.
I also know that it is my task to make sure that I accept that the world is full of assholes shameless people and the onus is on me to deal with that.
“Begin each day by telling yourself: Today I shall be meeting with interference, ingratitude, insolence, disloyalty, ill-will, and selfishness – all of them due to the offenders’ ignorance of what is good or evil. But for my part I have long perceived the nature of good and its nobility, the nature of evil and its meanness, and also the nature of the culprit himself, who is my brother (not in the physical sense, but as a fellow creature similarly endowed with reason and a share of the divine); therefore none of those things can injure me, for nobody can implicate me in what is degrading. Neither can I be angry with my brother or fall foul of him; for he and I were born to work together, like a man’s two hands, feet or eyelids, or the upper and lower rows of his teeth. To obstruct each other is against Nature’s law – and what is irritation or aversion but a form of obstruction.”
— Marcus Aurelius, yet again
Thus, if you’re a conservative who thinks that being considerate over the origins, the skin colours, or gender equality is so-called SJW’ing... I accept that. This emigrant, world citizen who has lived in 7 countries already, accepts your supremacy. Or, at least your right to express such sentiments.
I may not agree with it. In fact, more often than not I disagree with such sentiments. Yet, trust me... I’m always to be found for a not too PC joke too. Hey, I’m not a “beautiful unique snowflake” and I’m definitely not perfect either. But years of traveling, and being an immigrant in “lesser civilizations” have definitely broadened my horizon and made me look at things differently.
But you are entitled your feelings, and that is why this post.
This morning as I checked social disgrace shortform platform Twitter, a tweet by Jason Calacanis was highlighted:
In recent months everyone has heard about Silicon Valley’s political ban hammer, pleasing their advertisers and shareholders. It is good to see that people who disagree with such behavior are leaving the centralized organisations.
Because they disapprove of businesses who hold unilateral power to ban people. With or without valid reason. Rightly or Wrongly.
While it will be a long, and at many times a seemingly hopeless, battle... the world needs more decentralization.
And SteemApps... SteemApps need to invite those people.
Because censorfree is what we believe in on the blockchain. And that means that we should be open to invite those who have opinions we disagree with. Even if that means inviting Steve Bannon to spew his fake realities. We already have Roger K. Ver, what else could possibly go wrong, right?
Because everyone has the right to share and defend their opinions. Just as we have the right to ignore them. Such universal rights should not be taken away from us by customers or by shareholders.
Personally, I’ve always had a minor bias against Patreon and thus I fail to shed a tear over this. In as much as I failed to shed tears over Youtube and Google being constantly attacked over privacy issues and their application of their political ban hammer.
We are on the blockchain and it is time we start explaining people what that means. Even if it means we need to invite people, and will find people we disagree with in our feed. In the meantime, I can but hope that @prc will invite Sam Harris to @dSound. And maybe, maybe there’s another group of “creators” he can invite.
Blockchain, and Steemians, it’s time to disrupt centralized platforms.