I heard that if a subscriber uses blockers, filters and only trusted friends let in,

[Alexander Of Assyria]

and trusted news sources, then all is well. The evil twin half can be ignored.

Heard that on Facebook, I think.

But then again I think FB is pure evil wrapped in a sugar coating of Friends and Family groups to keep it all hidden and blocked from view, masterfully propagandizing subscribers into thinking overly well of the good parts, indifferent to the evil…so I am kind of biased full disclosure.

Or maybe not biased so much as utterly convinced by the mountains of Zuckerberg evil coming to light that was so purposefully and insidiously kept hidden from the very same subscribers. Yet the subscribers remain resolute in the defence of these evil and targeted algorithms?

Puzzling to me, but that’s my natural state.

Edited @909pm CST to add this analysis by Anderson Cooper, on the depth of the evil that pervades all Zuckerberg controls:

https://www.democraticunderground.com/1017685492

[Sherman A1]

1. Don't like it

Don’t use the, nothing puzzling about it at all.

[KT2000]

2. Thanks!

I have blockers and receive only posts from groups I am in and no ads. Related sites will show up but that is OK because it appears there are tons of cats sites I didn't know about I never understood why I wasn't getting what others seem to be getting on Facebook.

[brooklynite]

3. Why do you need blockers?

Nobody forces you to read content you're not interested in or don't like.

Personally, I also find it risky to protect yourself in a bubble of opinions you agree with and news only from sources you like.

[KT2000]

6. I have ad blockers

because I don't want to have ads. That apparently blocks some of the Facebook algorithms from putting extra political sites on my facebook page. Sometimes I get a post from a trumper relative and lots of international cat sites and a few health sites but that is about it. I have even subscribed to a Steve Schmidt site and have not gotten peripheral political sites.

I am confident my decision making abilities are intact without facebook alarms. As a wise person once said - the internet is an outrage machine - facebook fits that model.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

7. Ad blockers are for people who don't want ads, yes. And good for you for not even wanting

to see a glimpse of the dark side, even a glimpse generates revenue for the evil.

[lagomorph777]

10. Even if you don't see a single ad, you are generating revenue for the force of evil.

And you are doing so by handing over your data for sale. Everything you ever say, ever click on, is logged and sold.

[csziggy]

18. I use Facebook sometimes and have given them no data

My account has a false birth date and only my state as a location.

I also do not read news on Facebook. I do, however post news from trusted sources, most of which I have found here, but since I only have four friends (my husband, my niece and nephew, and my sister) on Facebook, I doubt anyone ever sees what I post.

The only reason I am on Facebook is that some of the groups I am a member of no longer put out newsletters. All their updates are posted only on Facebook. It sucks but if I want to keep up with what they are doing, I have to do Facebook.

[lagomorph777]

20. So you have given them data.

They know who your husband, your niece and nephew, and your sister are. They know a huge amount about your interests, from the groups you are in. Also, every word you post is data.

All of this has been sold, aggregated with other data to find your real identity, and exploited.

[csziggy]

21. That happens nearly anywhere you go on the internet

So the only way to avoid it is to stop using the internet altogether.

I've been online since 1982 in various levels. As early as The Source (later acquired by CompuServe) there were warnings about information garnered online. Just logging into a site allows them to see your IP address which leads to your location.

Privacy is pretty much over. If you think Facebook is the only entity which has eroded privacy, you are very ignorant.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

26. Sir, the aggregation of meta data for ads for pets, etc., and the sale of personal private

information, political leanings, personal Preferences, like news sources etc. anything you trust…is duly noted by the FB algorithm and packed for sale like rum on a rack.

Cambridge Analytica, now defunct criminal entreprise, brainchild of Bannon. Knowing this company’s history is highly informing of FB’s evil depths.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

9. Of what value is the propaganda of the right wing information bubble to inform anyone?

I know already know as a provable fact there is a mountain of garbage on the other side of a hill. I personally prefer not to ever see or smell that mountain.

Not question of like or don’t like, already know I am anti-garbage.

[GoodRaisin]

13. Ad blockers are a functional tool. Ads slow down your devices.

I use an ad blocker on my iPad which makes it run much faster.

[Act_of_Reparation]

16. Pop quiz

1. Consuming media without ads is a more enjoyable experience than consuming media with ads all over the place. True or false?

A. True
B. I work in advertising.

[lagomorph777]

8. You're missing the point. Blockers don't stop your data from being sold or stolen.

Fuckerberg doesn't give a crap whether you see the ads. He is selling you to criminals and foreign governments.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

11. Yes, sir.

[KT2000]

15. That I did not know

thanks.

[brooklynite]

4. What's currently in my Facebook feed...

Updates from friends (and I don't define "friends" the way some people seem to; all are people I have long links to, rather than marginal connections from High School or College)

Historic photos from NYC

Posts in a non-political debate forum I read

An ad from Doctors without Borders

An ad for a clinical trial of the new COVID treatment medication

An ad for Indian food made locally

An ad for reusable, compostable coffee pods

A cat photo

Nothing to be afraid of.

[Progressive Jones]

24. I use FB to promote local music, and to stay in touch with real life friends.

My only FB "friends" are people I actually do business with, and people from various music circles I mingle with.
I don't even do politics there.

They are selling no more data on me than any bank I deal with.

My "ad experiences" are music equipment retailers and wholesalers, and Viagra ads (because I'm old, and I'm a dude.)

There are addicts to these social media sites, and those sites are profiting bigly off of that.
There is a young teen in my family. Said teen gets their internet use regulated in a very tyrannical fashion, or so I'm told...

[MineralMan]

5. Hmm...I suggest you stay off Facebook, then.

That's easy enough.

In fact, you might consider abandoning the entire Internet, because there's a lot of bad out there.

Or, maybe you're OK, but you want everyone else to stay away from bad influences? It's hard to tell. Maybe after we see some more posts from you, we'll have a better idea of what you're trying to tell us.

[Peacetrain]

12. Well I am of the block those I want to block "group"

The only reason I am on FB is to keep up with my very very large extended family.. and friends who are as close as family.. Everyone else gets blocked.. and if my Friends or Family start putting up crazy posts.. I hide that post.. the reason I am on FB is just to communicate daily life.. not to discuss politics religion etc..

[Alexander Of Assyria]

14. Disagree with her or not, Unfriending Facebook is next best thing to voting them out....

“Haugen, the previously anonymous former Facebook employee who filed complaints against the company last month, makes a good a case as any that now is the time to hold social media accountable. “When we live in an information environment that is full of angry, hateful, polarizing content it erodes our civic trust, it erodes our faith in each other,” she said in the interview. “It erodes our ability to want to care for each other. The version of Facebook that exists today is tearing our societies apart and causing ethnic violence around the world.”

Jennifer Rubin article

No paywall

[Captain Stern]

17. I have no idea what you're trying to say here.

You heard some folks that are on facebook , say stuff about facebook.....and you heard that on facebook?

You think facebook is terrible, yet you're right there...on facebook.

If you're trying to be serious, my opinion is that isn't a good way to go

[lagomorph777]

19. The point: Blockers don't stop your data from being sold or stolen

OP wrapped it up in so much snark that it's hard to follow though.

[Captain Stern]

22. Better way to keep our data from being sold or stolen...

..Don't put it someplace where It can be sold or stolen.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

23. Sir, am not on FB...on for 2 months 10 years ago...I fled in horror even then.

[Skittles]

25. OMG people are so freaking naive

actually, I think they do know and just do not fucking care

I think they would sell their soul to the devil if it decreased the amount of effort needed to "keep up with family and friends"

[Alexander Of Assyria]

27. Truly. Although I beg to differ in that the devil already has a firm grip on some souls, most do

not know it. Devils are devilishly clever that way, so it’s said.