John,

It sounds like the Voice all over. Social media platforms will be targeted. Think about that. What it means is that we will all be entitled to our crazy opinions, but we won't be able to share them on social media due to the site owners fearing legal repercussions for letting people express an opinion.

You relate a nebulous view of harms that the legislation will curtail, nebulous because you cannot clearly define the origin of those harms. Like ttbn, I suspect that the legislation is just more common man bashing, the activity which has been an ongoing theme of cult leader Albo's term as PM.

Fester,

I understand the fear that platforms like Facebook might over-block content out of fear of legal consequences, especially in light of controversial debates like the Voice referendum. The legislation, however, would be specifically designed to tackle organised, harmful disinformation campaigns, not to censor everyday opinions or controversial debates.

During the Voice campaign, for example, we saw plenty of misinformation about apartheid claims or distorted financial figures. In this case Facebook would simply need to show that they had mechanisms in place to limit this spread of such misinformation. The focus would be on factually wrong campaigns that have the potential to harm public trust or safety. Simply altering their algorithms so that they didn’t favour sensationalism (as opposed to what they're currently doing) would possibly be enough.

There will always be contentious debates, like the one around the Voice, but this legislation is focused on accountability for deliberate harm, not limiting speech that contributes to the democratic process. But it’s still in its drafting stages. So, even as it stands, it’ll probably be watered down.

Personally, I like what Facebook was doing for a while there: everytime someone in my friends list shared an anti-vax post, or a post on climate change denial, or rubbish about how the Muslims will take over if we don’t all say we’re Christians in a census, a little warning appeared linking to fact-checking sites debunking the claims. This should be plenty to cover their arses.

Dear John,

«“Protecting our safety” (that's a strange way to word it) is half a government’s job.»

Government has no real job, it is a predator... unless you consider oppression, making us suffer and live in fear, to be a proper job.

«But this bill is more about holding large organisations to account»

I was not looking at this particular bill in separation, but as an addition to thousands of other laws and regulations that make our lives miserable.

I was shopping for clothing today and they asked me whether I want a bag, I said 'yes please' but the store could only offer me different bags that are useless for me, not the usual thick and strong big plastic bags that I need for holding my music. They said that government no longer allows them to provide my bags. That is bad, I still have a little stock, but I will now have to ask my family in Israel to send me more of these extremely useful bags, or go to the black-market/dark-web to obtain them.

Just a tiny example how they disrupt my life while I don't want anything from them, certainly not protection.

«I hear Somalia is currently a libertarian’s dream.»

You better check your ears - Somalia enforces Sharia law.

«but the real world really isn’t as exciting as you think it is.»

It seems that besides your ears, your 6th sense is also wanting, attempting unsuccessfully to read my thoughts.

«You and ttbn remind me of myself as a teenager»

Each person to their own free associations. I don't know Ttbn.

«idealistic and always looking for an evil to oppose.»

Far from "always", only when I am called to it.
And one instance when I am called to oppose evil, is when evil is pretending to operate in my name, as if they do their thing "on my behalf", then it becomes my DUTY to say it loud and clear: "Do what you want, I cannot stop you, but NOT IN MY NAME - I have not asked or authorised you to do that".

[continued...]

[...continued]

«But then I got out into the real world and realised that it was far more chaotic than I had ever imagined»

This is where you miss it all - we live in a cosmos, not in chaos.

Everything is already taken care of, perfectly without fail.
Everything that happens to us is for a purpose and it is only because you cannot see the divine logic and the "wheels" turning behind the scene that you might mistakenly believe the world to be chaotic.

It is when people leave and fail to trust in God, that they instead attempt to "improve" their lot wilfully, but no matter how hard they try, nobody can ever protect themselves from receiving the just results of their former actions. Attempting to create mechanisms to duplicate the perfect infallible justice that is already there, is sheer lunacy.

Yuyutsu,

It appears my information on Somalia was out of date. I see that it now has a hybrid legal system with customary law, civil law, and Sharia - depending on the region and local governance - but still no centralised government.

I was thinking of around the early 2000s after its central government collapsed and it was seen as a real-world example of what a stateless society might look like. You would have liked it.

//Each person to their own free associations. I don't know Ttbn.//

You don’t need to know him for the both of you to remind me of an aspect of my teenage self.

//It seems that besides your ears, your 6th sense is also wanting, attempting unsuccessfully to read my thoughts.//

Sorry, I’ll re-word it: …but the real world really isn’t as exciting as you might think.

Thanks for the bag story. I got a lump in my throat reading it. However it seems you may not be familiar with the concept of the social contract - the implied agreement we all enter into when we benefit from the systems and structures put in place by society.

//"Do what you want, I cannot stop you, but NOT IN MY NAME - I have not asked or authorised you to do that".//

Dramatic.

However, it’s not being done “in your name,” so your authorisation is not required.

As for your cosmos vs chao and god talk, you’ll need to provide evidence of that. Hitchen's razor.

John,

When cult leader Albo pushed the Voice, a referendum that would see Australians treated differently on the basis of their ancestry, it showed me that he did not care for the principle of equality, by which all citizens are treated equally. His response to the 60/40 defeat showed me that he had little regard for democracy either. Albo's latest effort shows that he also has no regard for free speech.

I will savour the opportunity to exercise my democratic right in the coming year. Australia has never had such an abomination of a government. Not even Whitlam came close.