This forum is a prime example of how modern government censorship works.

[BearWithMe]

Many people said this forum is "not what it used to be" and "it died down". It is true but not for the reasons you think.

It is quite obvious why some government agencies might not like this forum. But straight out banning / blocking access to the website doesn't work. It only makes people more interested. And they will always find ways to access it.

So they make a bunch of fake accounts, and then they post tons of dumb and nonsensical posts to dilute the quality content. They provoke fights, they subtly insult other members to make this place as unpleasant as possible and to prevent any meaningful discussion.

The quality posters will slowly leave, because there is no point in talking to AI that was trained to be as stupid, provocative and nagging as possible. And only the bots remain, talking nonsense to each other.

The war is won without firing a single shot.

Reddit - Dive into anything

www.reddit.com

charlie please never let the old discussions disappear, they are the most valuable content ever posted anywhere. They are beautiful reminder of how internet looked before the advent of advanced discussion bots.

 

[InChristAlone]

Yeah I have a bunch of them on ignore, makes the forum seem more the way it used to be.

 

[aniciete]

Yeah I have a bunch of them on ignore, makes the forum seem more the way it used to be.

Who?

 

[Inaut]

Many people said this forum is "not what it used to be" and "it died down". It is true but not for the reasons you think.

It is quite obvious why some government agencies might not like this forum. But straight out banning / blocking access to the website doesn't work. It only makes people more interested. And they will always find ways to access it.

So they make a bunch of fake accounts, and then they post tons of dumb and nonsensical posts to dilute the quality content. They provoke fights, they subtly insult other members to make this place as unpleasant as possible and to prevent any meaningful discussion.

The quality posters will slowly leave, because there is no point in talking to AI that was trained to be as stupid, provocative and nagging as possible. And only the bots remain, talking nonsense to each other.

The war is won without firing a single shot.

Reddit - Dive into anything

www.reddit.com

charlie please never let the old discussions disappear, they are the most valuable content ever posted anywhere. They are beautiful reminder of how internet looked before the advent of advanced discussion bots.

??

 

[BearWithMe]

Yeah I have a bunch of them on ignore, makes the forum seem more the way it used to be.

Oh boy! I have a laundry list of bots in my ignore list, and also a laundry list of people who like to get into arguments with the bots

 

[PhilParma]

I think it would be good for the community if you told us who the bots are.

 

[ThinPicking]

I'd have said the compute required to do this at scale was prohibitive before the "chip shortage".

Luckily all humans possess the greatest bull**** detector ever designed. It just needs to be enabled.

 

[JamesGatz]

*Beep* *Boop* *Initiate act human sequence*

I agree! Something ought to be done about all these robots but it's just so hard to find them *laughs nervously* *sweats profusely in robot*

 

[Homo Consumericus]

There must be more than just the argumentative nature of posts that identifies accounts as belonging to bots. What might these characteristics be? The OP mentions "dumb and nonsensical posts"; however, if the OP had met as many humans as I have, the OP might agree that most of them are, well, potentially not as bright as their mothers may have hoped.

Could any one of the experts above help us compile a bullet point list for bot identification? Or perhaps one of the lurkers perusing this thread knows of a website that deals with this issue and is willing to paste the link here?

 

[Peater]

If I am on anyone's ignore list hopefully it is for something more interesting than seeming like a trollbot. Maybe new members could have to submit a short description of why they want to join or what aspects of Peats work interests them. Email validation won't cut it.

 

[Regina]

*Beep* *Boop* *Initiate act human sequence*

I agree! Something ought to be done about all these robots but it's just so hard to find them *laughs nervously* *sweats profusely in robot*

Nice documentary on blue light!

 

[Kayaker]

What proof do you have?

 

[YourUniverse]

The best posts were about health, but somehow that seems secondary now...

 

[Peater]

Exhibit A

 

[Homo Consumericus]

The best posts were about health, but somehow that seems secondary now...

Because what's happening to the [Western] world for the last 2 years has, in origin, almost nothing to do with health.

Listen to the Generative Energy podcast hosted by Danny Roddy and monitor how much time they spend on global developments/devolution lately.

 

[catharsis]

I agree with @BearWithMe. This forum has been an absolute garden and safe haven for me and I hope I have only contributed to that feeling in others. Many posts have been diluting the quality of this gathering and I am so saddened by it. I am not sure what is the best way to combat this other than maybe an interview process (how to make it not McCarthy-like though....)

 

[JamesGatz]

Nice documentary on blue light!

Thanks!

 

[Nfinkelstein]

As true as this is, bots are controlled by people, and the people who are disrupting this forum are... who? Government agencies are the first most-likely culprits, the second (akin to the first) are Israeli hasbara units, mostly populated by students who are paid to A) disseminate a pro-Israeli agenda, and (more importantly) B) disrupt competing voices. It happens every. single. time. It will get worse as the ideas presented on this forum become more popular.

 

[opethfeldt]

I'm glad I'm not the only one who noticed the forum hasn't been what it used to be. In 2016-2017, I loved it here. Since then, it seems to be a much less positive place. I'm not sure this entirely attributable to new troll accounts poisoning the well, though. At least not entirely. I think the world has just changed and it's reflected in this "vibe" here because most of the members here are very globally minded and well informed and thus, more affected by current events.

 

[mangoes]

Yeah way too much politics and crazy conspiracy theories these days