IAB Brings 56 Small Internet Publishers, including AboveTopSecret.com, to Capitol Hill

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


I have a radical suggestion for you, which I'm sure will fail as others have, but it would make the gravity of this clear to the vast number of internet users.

Silent protest!

You ATS owners, and a large consortium of other sites, and internet publishers select a date and time of your choosing... and collectively shut down your sites for a period of time, with all displaying the same single page which will inform all users about what is going on here.

A blackout, before the blackout.

Do it, and do this right, then watch the people take it from there.

Sometimes people don't realize what they have until it is GONE!

Originally posted by XmikaX
advertising doesn't rime with freedom of speech

it rimes with freedom of lying

However, advertising does rhyme with "free rein vocalizing"!!!

There, now you have a fitting catch phrase that rhymes (since rhyming seems to be such an important issue to you).



Thanks for the effort S.O. & Springer!

Let's hope your message penetrates through the wall of lobbyist blinders those guys on the hill seem so attached to.

Originally posted by Fractured.Facade
You ATS owners, and a large consortium of other sites, and internet publishers select a date and time of your choosing... and collectively shut down your sites for a period of time, with all displaying the same single page which will inform all users about what is going on here.

Something similar has been discussed more than once.

However, we felt that denying access (even for a brief time) to our users in order to make a political/economic statement comes across a bit selfish, and might be irritating -- most agreed.

The online advertising industry has done an excellent job of self-correcting to the market pressures, and is a much better solution than forced-legislation that benefits a few and harms a great many.

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord

how do you define success ? by the amount of bandwidth consumed and the ad money generated ?

In our current culture, is there a better way?

lol,

corporate globalization paradigm & religion : your "culture" only man ! (but that's losing the real meaning of the word really)

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


What we need to do urgently is to awaken and make more people aware of what is happening and what may come about if they do not start doing something now.
We,with the combined vibrations,energies and powers of All beings who cares are behind you and True Freedom shall be materialised in the future but the fight must start Now.
Good work and keep on trying

7seven

Originally posted by XmikaX
corporate globalization paradigm...

Reflexive dismissiveness for no purpose other than appearing contrarian and disruptive.

No style. No substance. No surprise.



Given that you appear to be one who is against the efforts to ensure that the independent web remains viable by protecting its only source of revenue, may we assume you're a "corporate globalist" in disguise? Because... large corporations are the only entities who will benefit from the proposed legislation.

After all, so far, you've not provided anything of substance, only rote/parroted buzz-words.

reply to post by SkepticOverlord


you talk about advertising then you dare to mention culture

after all your "intellectual twists", you could obviously not fear adding more contradiction to your system of thought.

how can that happen ?

I tell you : it is a lack of consciousness, a lack of culture

otherwise you would know, for example that advertising has destroyed culture everywhere it had been. has destroyed the independent craft man to the profit of the corporation.

but once again that's out of your scope just now... maybe you should see the world, with fresh eyes & mind, study some ancient artistic form of expression, learn languages... but unfortunately you are probably too old for those kind of challenges.

our discussion is useless because that very realization i'm talking about, that deep understanding of "paradigm" and how it conditions our perceptions, how our intellect is conditioned by it is not something i could ever convince you or anyone of your facebook followers about with words, it is something you only can realize within yourself through spiritual progress, experience, adventures... in other words, through life, its real deal.

philosophically, spiritually speaking, we are not evolving at the same level; you're a very average, superficial thinker, just get over it.

ps: lol the censorship of my posts in other threads, i like your conception of freedom of speech ! another "twist" of yours... in fact the anti-piracy bill is much more dangerous to your freedom yankee people than the advertising bill; have you been to capitol hill for that one too ?

look like i got the final word lol,

so let's conclude :

1. the twists of your reasoning remaining a bold & worrying question for those with some critical spirit

[to summarize & reword the (far-)fetch in question : how fighting for freedom to spy on users behavior without their consent and with the help of google is equal to fighting for those same users freedom of speech?]

2. i have to confess my ego enjoyed too much this almost alone against the facebook cattle situation... [which is a really bad thing and i'm ashamed of it; damn ego, i'll have to work on this to become a better person]

3. this thread gave me the energy to finally complete a philanthropic project for artist & free thinkers that i had to let down for too long because i got too busy with other and more important philanthropic projects (local ngos in poor countries, setup and run by locals and working on local issues with local frame of mind)

[that project motto : 0% advertising, 0% corporation; and if it happens that one day we face bandwidth problem guess what : we'll try to find innovative solutions instead of crying at the government door]


[POST EDITED: ATS is not to be used for recruitment]


at the end (1+2+3) all this was therefore not useless at all so thank you very much & good luck

Originally posted by XmikaX
you talk about advertising then you dare to mention culture

Certainly. Advertising in all forms has been part of the cultural lexicon for a long, long time. So much so that the pinnacle of advertising, Times Square, was "saved" by an alliance of outdoor/wildlife and cultural institutions from a massive rezoning some decades ago -- it was deemed a "national treasure" and today new buildings must have a minimum of very-bright advertising space.

otherwise you would know, for example that advertising has destroyed culture everywhere it had been.

That statement seems tied more to naive hopefulness than pragmatic reality.

Certainly, there is much to loath about many specific advertising campaigns. However, without the revenue of advertising, there'd be no newspapers, magazines, radio, television, or Internet -- at least, not as we know it today.

study some ancient artistic form of expression

Certainly have... pastel painting, pen & ink drawing, etc. Even two award-winning children's picture books which are now available free online.

that deep understanding of "paradigm" and how it conditions our perceptions

And just what philosophical framework could be formed to influence your perceptions of global culture and parochial strife without independent media outlets (existing because of advertising) to provide the core learning needed?

i like your conception of freedom of speech !

We (and I) vehemently support free and open expression of provocative ideas, with some very-minor limitations -- purposeful off-topic drift is one such limitation. "Free Speech" is not guaranteed here, however, free expression is supported and defended.

how fighting for freedom to spy on users behavior without their consent and with the help of google is equal to fighting for those same users freedom of speech?

You're parroting an exaggerated misconception. No one is "spying." No one is tracking specific "users." Our privacy policy is clearly linked on every page, by using the site, you consent. If you don't like the situation, you're free not to use the site.

This is a very important free speech issue, because:

(1) The government seeks to impose specific laws and regulations on ONE FORM of targeted advertising, which is the ONLY FORM of targeted advertising that is anonymous.

(2) The government seeks to impose those laws in an inequitable way such that major online media will benefit, while independent online media will suffer if not disappear.

(3) The government seeks to use these laws to silence the independent thought emanating from the millions of small to mid-sized websites where people (such as you) enjoy a cost-free way to publish their thoughts.

(4) The government seeks to impose these laws that will silence the independent web, EVEN AFTER the online advertising industry imposed strict self-regulation that went above and beyond that which was asked for by the Federal Trade Commission.



You seem to be confusing the concept of advertising with disdain for specific ad campaigns... of which there are many, but which are not the fault of publishers.

Originally posted by antar

I truly thank you for stepping into this role. It is so much bigger than anything you could have imagined walking in all those years ago.

We are powerful, you are powerful.

It is an honor to know you as my friend.

What more can I say other than that I am proud.

Your damn right, the collective thoughts of each member own this site.

PS.
Still working on that mod status huh?

Congradulations on your efforts in D.C.
Only an ATS member since Jan. 2011 and enjoy
every thread and post. Dont want to get into a long
diatribe with anyone about the reasons why the
Mods took it upon themself's to stand firm on there convictions
especially since Overlord expertly defended the position of ATS
and staved off any mundane arguements. This is a community
of a cross section of humanity and a myriad of opinion that we
all benefit from.I would like to remind anyone that has forgotten
that this is still America and it is called free enterprise.We all
have the oppurtunity to succeed or fail. I would strongly
suggest that if anyone is uncomfortable with the rules and
regulations of ATS you are free to ask for a refund of your
membership fee.Come to think of it, i dont remember any fee!:

reply to post by hillynilly


I am one of the members who spoke up, applied and was accepted as a independent reporter long ago from this site. That was honor enough for me. As far as becoming a MOD, what a thrill I would have with that however am not a good choice as I allow my emotions to override my actions and have garnered many warnings over the years when engauged in verbal disputes...

As for the rest of your response to me, thankyou.

As far as the ads go, I just dont get what the deal is here? They are not a problem to me at all and in fact have even linked from time to time with great zeal and been able to find things I would have never known to look for...

I love the movie and TV series ads I catch from time time as well.

Let me say this, not sure what you guys are seeing in the way of ads but from where I sit they are like a background noise when I come on, I dont even notice them if I am coming here with little time and just need to jump in real quick to see whats going on...

Am I missing something?

Originally posted by headhunta
I need 20 post to start a thread.

there gonna ban you for doing that