[Newsbot]

Title: Bureaucrats eyeing online forums to correct information
Category: Political
Posted By: RUEZ
Date: 2010-05-23 07:52:29
Canadian

[RUEZ]

I can see this site getting a lot of attention.

[saturn_656]

Looks to be a FedGov deal only. Shame.

[BartSimpson]

Cool. Both Canada and the USA will have a Ministry of Information to make sure that only government approved opinions prevail.

[RUEZ]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

Cool. Both Canada and the USA will have a Ministry of Information to make sure that only government approved opinions prevail.

Wow, bringing out the nazi comparison a little quickly aren't you? This isn't even new. Governments in Canada have had people phoning radio stations talking government bullet points for years under the guise of being regular taxpayers.

[BartSimpson]

RUEZ RUEZ:

Wow, bringing out the nazi comparison a little quickly aren't you? This isn't even new. Governments in Canada have had people phoning radio stations talking government bullet points for years under the guise of being regular taxpayers.

Uhm, yeah. See what I put in bold here. Your government is surreptitiously manipulating public opinion and this doesn't bother you?

So, yes, that smacks of authoritarianism when the government decides to start controlling the people.

[andyt]

Actually it's a good idea - let them have their say, and see if they can take the rough and tumble of a forum such as this one. The only problem is now we'll all start accusing each other of being govt plants. I already know that Bart and Angler are employed by the Obama administration to make the other side look like the wing nuts they are.

Bart, you do know the rule that the first person to invoke the Nazis in an argument has lost, right?

[BartSimpson]

andyt andyt:

Bart, you do know the rule that the first person to invoke the Nazis in an argument has lost, right?

Except I wasn't arguing with anyone when I made the post and then the simple fact is that the comparison is valid. The governments of free countries absolutely do not try to control public opinion.

[andyt]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

andyt andyt:

Bart, you do know the rule that the first person to invoke the Nazis in an argument has lost, right?

Except I wasn't arguing with anyone when I made the post and then the simple fact is that the comparison is valid. The governments of free countries absolutely do not try to control public opinion.

Re-read your last statement and tell me if you still agree with yourself? If you mean control vs influence, well this initiative is about influence, not control. Tell me one country with a free media (such as it is) that doesn't use advertising and other ways to get it's message out. In BC, in the Basi/Virk trial, the discussion has been about how it is common to have party hacks call radio hotlines to lob softballs to govt ministers and express pro govt opinions. I would be very surprised if that only happened in our jurisdiction. Hell, in your country they out secret agents to try to control the information.

[PublicAnimalNo9]

BartSimpson BartSimpson:

andyt andyt:

Bart, you do know the rule that the first person to invoke the Nazis in an argument has lost, right?

Except I wasn't arguing with anyone when I made the post and then the simple fact is that the comparison is valid. The governments of free countries absolutely do not try to control public opinion.

Yeah, they just ignore public opinion instead. Seems to "work" for Canada anyway.

[BartSimpson]

Robert McChesney, the director of "Free Press" and an advisor to Obama's FCC 'Internet Diversity Czar' said the following:

$1:

1. "Any serious effort to reform the media system would have to necessarily be part of a revolutionary program to overthrow the capitalist system itself."

2. "There is no real answer but to remove brick by brick the capitalist system itself, rebuilding the entire society on socialist principles."

3. "We need to do whatever we can to limit capitalist propaganda, regulate it, minimalize it and perhaps even eliminate it."

4. "At the moment, the battle over network neutrality is not to completely eliminate the telephone and cable companies. We are not at that point yet. But the ultimate goal is to get rid of the media capitalists in the phone and cable companies and to divest them from control."

So forgive me if I do not think these people are benign.

[Scape]

So what if Tony Clement wants to post here? At least it's not spam...

[andyt]

Scape Scape:

So what if Tony Clement wants to post here? At least it's not spam...

Actually they're going to make bureaucrats do it. Probably the low guy on the totem pole, so if the discussion goes sideways they can blame him and get rid of him.

Don't worry Bart, these are Reformacons that have hatched this plan - so they'll be singing the praises of capitalism, not knocking it. Unless the topic is about socializing losses of businesses too big to fail of course.

[Benn]

Someone is going to pay me to surf message boards while at work?? Sign me up!!!!

Where else will you hear your boss saying "Smith what are you doing paperwork for, get back to screwing around on the internet or you'll be pounding the pavement!"

[BartSimpson]

Benn Benn:

Someone is going to pay me to surf message boards while at work?? Sign me up!!!!

Where else will you hear your boss saying "Smith what are you doing paperwork for, get back to screwing around on the internet or you'll be pounding the pavement!"

God point. I guess that's who the conservatives can stop this idea is by saying we'll be paying government employees to horse around on the net all day.

Another thought occurs to me...

Government Employee Government Employee:

I work for the government and what I posted is true.

Internet Sceptic Internet Sceptic:

Yeah? Well here's five documents I found from YOUR OWN AGENCY that proves you're full of sh*t!!!

So the next step for the government, obviously, is to arrest the 'Internet Sceptic' and send him/her to a re-education camp.