Facebook has apparently determined the US Declaration of Independence qualifies as hate speech. As The Vindicator of Liberty, Texas counted down the twelve days to Independence Day and hit the tenth day, Facebook deleted the publication’s latest installment. Due to unsavory phrases, including “merciless Indian Savages,” directly clipped from one of America’s most important historic documents, The Vindicator’s post was flagged and removed. It was likely an automated response, which demonstrates the inability of filters to distinguish between incendiary hate speech and intellectual discussion. The post has since been restored, but the incident does little to help common users with little recourse whose accounts are erroneously flagged for offensive statements. It also highlights the growing move by social media platforms and ad networks, often in concert with governments like that of Germany, to censor alleged hate speech.
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“The Democratization of the markets” was a fairly common phrase only a few years ago. It was used by a significant number of businesspersons and economists to describe the ability of anyone to purchase stock in a company. It is was viewed as proof that the US and global economy were truly representative of the economic interests of the American People and many Peoples of the world. It was proof that capitalism and democracy were completely intertwined and indistinguishable. The democratization of the markets meant a “free market,” bolstered with “free trade,” were equitable to a free and open society. In many respects, it was actually a terribly offensive and misleading statement that helped undermine democracy and promote the illiberalizationing of the economy. It was used to legitimatize the policies that favor increased income inequality and the enrichment of wealthy global elites.
America’s trade partners are not reacting well to Donald Trump’s trade policies. Because it is in their interests to oppose all barriers to trade with the United States, they are obviously going to be against US tariffs, including Trump’s 25% tariff on imported steel, 10% tariff on aluminum, and 20% tariff on cars. Due to the reality that most corporations now rely on global supply chains and hope to boost their profits with trade, most high-profile businesses are not happy with Trump’s trade policies. Wall Street has certainly not been reacting well to the ill-effects of the emerging global trade war the US President appears to be orchestrating, which is expected as stocks and reports are largely a reflection of what investors, business analysts, and business leaders perceive to be in the interests of businesses. The most important question, however, is whether or not Trump’s policies are in the interests of the American People.
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April 2020
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