TWITTER, A CASUALTY OF MUSK

Up till now ThinkTech has been on Twitter .  It was pretty much going in the right direction particularly when it barred Donald Trump.  But Elon Musk's frenetic purchase of Twitter and what he has done since then has changed all that.


What Musk has done even in the past few days give us great concern.  He’s permitted outrageous lies and conspiracy theories on Twitter, pulled moderation systems, and has himself tweeted hateful lies, appalling conspiracy theories and calls for violence, motivated by a bizarre schadenfreude against Paul Pelosi, misinforming and spreading hate among millions of Americans, and encouraging others to do the same.


On a number of occasions, Musk has said he will permit Trump back on Twitter, which will undoubtedly enhance these lies and hate and dog whistles for violence, just as in the past, or worse.  This is all too much.  Only days after Musk closed, and only days before the 2022 midterm elections,Twitter has become an appalling and destructive force in social media and the public conversation, even more than before, dangerous to them, to us and the country.


If this is the way Twitter is going, we can’t be part of it.  So we are quitting Twitter in protest.


We hope it fails, and we hope that that failure will show other social media platforms that they should not follow Musk’s irresponsible example.  We hope other social media will learn from what Musk is doing, that they will respect the trust reposed in them by the public and that they will better moderate their content, even if the government cannot.  We cannot succeed in anything as a nation of fools.


Seeing this, we hope others will also leave Twitter in protest.  Our democracy depends on demanding truth and rejecting lies from all media, and to act constructively and with purpose to achieve truth and reliable information about our community, our country and the world around us.  Lies and hate destroy democracy, and that should be clear from any version of history.

We can only hope there will be another more rational change in ownership and a sweeping and profound change in policy at Twitter, since we are not likely to come back until there is. 

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