The “News” Media is the Dying Canary in the Coal Mine
I have lost respect for many institutions over the past few years. Not so much the members, but the leadership (which causes many member to fall silent). Exhibit A is our so-called "news" media. I have been collecting dozens and dozens of examples at my website, Dangerous Intersection.
It often boils down to these organizations failing to be curious about what is going on. Failing to question powerful people. Failing to vigorously cross-examine the leaders of the political parties they obediently serve. Journalists should be out there pissing off ALL of our leaders with probing questions, but they are too often serving as stenographers and megaphones for highly questionable positions. This great danger to our country is invisible as long as you cling to one side or the other (democrat serving or republican serving) "news" media.
I challenge anyone reading this to start reading "the other side" and, better yet, independent journalists, in order to get a much better view of what is going on. You'll find many of those independent journalists have left mainstream news to strike out on their own (e.g., on Substack), disgusted with what has happened to their employers.
Here's a recent example: Why were reporters failing to grill Pfizer executives and our political leaders on whether the vaccinations would stop transmission of COVID? How many dozens of bad policies resulted because our "news" reporters decided to parrot public officials rather than vigorously question them?
Statement by FIRE on Attempts by Venmo and PayPal to Deny Financial Services based on the Speech and Viewpoints of Users
FIRE Statement on Free Speech and Online Payment Processors Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression by FIRE (September 30, 2022):
The issue: Online payment processors like Venmo and PayPal often deny Americans access to these vital services based on their speech or viewpoints.
The concern: When these companies appoint themselves the arbiters of what speech and views are acceptable, shutting people and organizations out of the online financial ecosystem for wrongthink, they seriously undermine our culture of free expression.
Imagine you could no longer use PayPal, Venmo, or another online payment processor because you run an organization that defends free speech for controversial speakers, operate an independent media outlet that challenges mainstream narratives, sell erotic fiction or “occult” materials, or . . . tried to submit an article about Syrian refugees into a newspaper awards competition.
These are not hypotheticals. They’re real, and they illustrate why online payment service providers should stay out of the business of policing their users’ speech and views.
Follow the link for the entire article by FIRE. The article includes numerous examples of abuses by these financial services companies.
PayPal and Etsy Cancel Colin Wright Because He Teaches Basic Biology in his Writings
Biologist Colin Wright explains how PayPal and Etsy banned him for taking the position that there are only two sexes and that they are biologically grounded. He explains the PayPal actions at about the ten-minute mark.
Consider also the context: Colin Wright's background as a Ph.D student studying biology:
Min 8:04:
"I had maybe 100 applications out actually turned my my twitter I locked it down for maybe six months while I was applying for jobs um and when I was writing this one essay the first one I wrote for Quillette called "The New Evolution Deniers." I sent it to my advisor at the time and some of my mentors. They both came back and they said, "This is a fantastic essay. I agree with everything it's completely right, but you cannot publish this. This will ruin your career. If you do publish it don't put your name on it."
To me when the first thing they said was "this is fantastic and it's true." Then, to me, everything after the "but." If I would have not went ahead and published it, that would have just been--every reason that I wanted to get into science in the first place and to be a scientist to pursue truth, to pursue what's real about biology and the natural world--all of a sudden it seemed like academia really wasn't what I wanted it to be like. Do I want to work in an environment that is not going to allow me to say completely obviously true, things is that male and female exist? So really I no longer even wanted to have that job anymore given how much it's changed, since I had gone into it you know 12 years ago now at this point um so yeah so I was actually okay with it destroying my career um because I wanted to to be able to speak the truth."
PayPal: Not a Friend to Free Speech
Let this sink in. PayPal has the power and inclination to wreck the Free Speech Union. Report by FIRE:
Two weeks ago, PayPal shuttered the account of the Free Speech Union, a London-based organization founded by social commentator Toby Young to advocate for free expression. PayPal also closed Young’s personal account and that of his news and opinion website, The Daily Sceptic.On Tuesday, PayPal reinstated the accounts, but only after sustained public criticism of the company’s apparently viewpoint-discriminatory actions.
“Forgive me if I don’t leap for joy,” Young told The Telegraph newspaper. “The last two weeks have been a nightmare as I’ve scrabbled to try to stop The Daily Sceptic and Free Speech Union going under. PayPal’s software was embedded in all our payment systems, so the sudden closure of our accounts was an existential threat.”
In typically murky fashion, PayPal initially gave Young no reason for the bans other than to say that the accounts violated the company’s vague acceptable use policy. However, a PayPal spokesperson told the press, “Achieving the balance between protecting the ideals of tolerance, diversity and respect for people of all backgrounds and upholding the values of free expression and open dialogue can be difficult, but we do our best to achieve it.” Other reports indicate PayPal’s decision to close the accounts had to do with alleged COVID-19 misinformation.
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