Should We Really Crush The Resistance?
A discussion on why the recent banning and restrictions on Alex Jones and other right-wing personas may not be the best answer.
|Note: These views, funnily enough are not completely the ones I share. I tried to step in the shoes of some people who I have interacted with over the past few days who have a somewhat of a slight left to slight right political beliefs for fun! Appreciate any feedback, and happy reading!|
“If you are receiving this transmission… You are the resistance… It’s Alex Jones.”
First of all, what kind of introduction is that? I can’t even imagine many movie scenes that are more ominous than the beginning of an InfoWars episode.
And second of all, I think I can safely say that during the last couple of days… the resistance, well, got crushed, by none other than the Empire.
The Empire of Technology that is. Or the Empire of Social Media. Or the Empire of Communication. Not sure, but it’s definitely a powerful force.
And well, if that’s not scary to you, then I don’t know what is.
Discourse is necessary for any healthy nation. Every major decision, no matter how intelligent or how absurd in the world, was decided and implemented via some form of discourse. Free speech has always been a hot topic, but suppressing it, (almost) never has been — until now.
This nation has always had its fair share of conspiracy theorists, dissenters, and all types of people who are in a way, unrepresentative of our overall nation. Americans were never identified by these conspiracy theorists, so why are we making it an issue now?
When just a few corporations have the ability to shut down entire viewpoints and personas, is that not reminiscent of the very own enemies our nation and its allies have been fighting against for years? These corporations are based in California, a very left-oriented state. These corporations also consist of majority left-leaning workers, employees, and executives. So why do they want to promote their agenda by limiting another?
That answer may be obvious, but for me it’s ludicrous.
Don’t get me wrong, I wish our entire nation would be blue one day, but I do not think it will happen anytime soon. Will I be sad? Will I be devastated?
No.
I have faith in my fellow citizens and politicians that no matter what happens, we will always be fighting for democracy, liberty, and opportunities for everyone to succeed. That perspective is a fundamental American ideal. And even some of the most outspoken left-leaning regions in the nation, like the Silicon Valley, share the same mentality. In fact, many of my family members, who are heavily invested in Silicon Valley, also share the same views. They vote blue, but if an election doesn’t go their way, they just go back to working as if nothing happened, a privilege that few can share.
One of the very compromises we make while living in this country is respecting the political impact of every other citizen, regardless of socioeconomic or geographic status. An urban lifestyle is equivalent to a rural one. A colored man’s vote is the same as a white man’s. An Indian women can vote for whoever she wants, and that vote matters as much as her father’s, or her husband’s, or her uncle’s.
This is why it is so crucial that we ensure people, no matter how idiotic, conservative, or unconventional can get the same platforms to project their beliefs as their respective counterparts.
I wish there would be no people who choose to state or be involved in conspiracies, but unfortunately, that will most likely not be the case. But before I get some angry responses, let me clarify; the major issue I face with this rash decision, well, has almost nothing to do with the fact that a couple of corporations in select industries have the complete power to restrict the outreach of any citizen. It, more or less, revolves around the concept that there are significant effects of usually suppressing those on the right and why these corporations should not believe that shutting down or banning accounts is indeed the correct approach.
This week might be known for Alex Jones, but conservative commentator Candace Owens also got shut out of her Twitter this week, for well, hate (all her tweets were direct replications of a new New York Times journalist Sarah Jeong). And who can forget other notable conservative social media presences like Diamond and Silk being attacked by the very own sites they commentate on.
Shutting down voices on one side, who have exact polar versions of themselves on the other doesn’t make any sense. As a so-called member of the Moderate Left, I believe we are creating an enemy for ourselves, and a talking point that will forever be there in the form of “Double Standards”. In fact, almost any political argument can nowadays be construed and effectively argued with
identity politics, anti-Trump, socialism, and, because of recent decisions, suppression of the freedom of speech.
As the saying goes, “you can’t fight fire with fire”. But what we are doing is not fighting fire with fire, but rather giving our political opposition the fire to burn us down. People can observe there is a huge private sector advantage for the Left, and that distends our difference between the electoral votes that cost us past elections, something no true politician should ever desire.
I also believe banning entire social media accounts is not the right method to even address these sensitive issues. Just think of the consequences if a popular figure is indeed shut down.
Won’t it just fuel up their audience? Won’t it just further the hate in those groups? Won’t it just justify their notion that they are disenfranchised by the “elitists”?
Yes.
It is quite possible for all of those to happen. These tech and social media giants need to delete the specific instances of posts and content that creates hate but still allow the content creator to have their platform. Sure, eventually, there will be some lines that must be made, but when Facebook and Twitter and Apple have so many staff members open for “content management” or “content maintenance”, the job can be done. It is up to the companies to accomplish it.
Conservatives like Owens and lunatics like Jones will always exist in the current version of America, and any nation which has the freedom of speech and opinion. I cannot fathom to understand how someone like Jones could spout the words he does. But what is more worrisome is that banning him will be like call for action to his viewers. Until we have Trump, or any other Republican heavyweight, denounce Jones, it will most likely be better to paint them as fellow debaters, resulting in further opportunities for reconciliation and unity with those people who treat the Left as their enemies.
Of course in some cases, there will be no success. And for those people who simply have the notion that the “Leftist world” and its followers are the enemies, compromise will not be made. But, if the Democratic and liberal figures really want long-term success, they should give their opponents the opportunity to speak… and politely defeat (annihilate) them.
