3 ms·

> I find it interesting how the winds have changed on this topic. My very very strong gut feeling is that this is an influx of bots muddying the waters of disc

by jMyles 1y ago

> I find it interesting how the winds have changed on this topic. My very very strong gut feeling is that this is an influx of bots muddying the waters of discussion in concert with the unleashing of the secret police force that is ICE. It seems to me that every real person sees the crucial importance of public photography in peacefully maintaining accountability.

Ekaros 1y ago
Maybe our society has failed if publishing such photos is needed to maintain accountability... I really do not see that step for actually functioning society.
- jMyles 1y ago
  ...we have evolved eyes, brains capable of retaining visual memory of what they capture, and communications media capable of describing and depicting those captured photons. If you believe in the basic right of general purpose computing - not just a political right, but the idea that general purpose computing is the lifeblood of the internet age - then it seems to follow logically that the capture of photons and depiction thereof are part of the functioning the commons.
detaro 1y ago
And of course nobody in this discussion has said anything against photographing officials and news-worthy events. "You should not publish photos/videos of private individuals without consent or a very good reason" and "you should be able to freely document police activity" do not contradict each other.
- jMyles 1y ago
  ...and how does that work when we complete the abolitionist struggle and no longer have a separate segment of society assigned to "police activity"?
  - detaro 1y ago
    Then we don't need to worry about documenting ICE activities anymore and still don't need to publish photos of random people without a good reason.
    - jMyles 1y ago
      Is that true? There are many level of exercise of political, social, and economic power that happen in the commons. The camera is a primary tool of defense against injustice in this area. Restrictions (especially with the force of law, but also social pressures) of the basic and deeply human capacity to capture photons and vibrations, and to make depictions of the results of that capture, are invariably used by the more powerful against the less powerful. eg: cops playing "copyrighted" material to prevent posting to youtube. Much safer and fairer is to just give ourselves the same rights we might imagine are afforded to an alien, 4 light years away, looking through an extremely powerful telescope. Do you suggest that earth laws extend to this alien? Is she prohibited from posting the activities she can see of ours through her telescope?

by jMyles 1y ago

Ekaros 1y ago

Maybe our society has failed if publishing such photos is needed to maintain accountability... I really do not see that step for actually functioning society.

jMyles 1y ago
...we have evolved eyes, brains capable of retaining visual memory of what they capture, and communications media capable of describing and depicting those captured photons. If you believe in the basic right of general purpose computing - not just a political right, but the idea that general purpose computing is the lifeblood of the internet age - then it seems to follow logically that the capture of photons and depiction thereof are part of the functioning the commons.

detaro 1y ago

And of course nobody in this discussion has said anything against photographing officials and news-worthy events. "You should not publish photos/videos of private individuals without consent or a very good reason" and "you should be able to freely document police activity" do not contradict each other.

jMyles 1y ago
...and how does that work when we complete the abolitionist struggle and no longer have a separate segment of society assigned to "police activity"?
- detaro 1y ago
  Then we don't need to worry about documenting ICE activities anymore and still don't need to publish photos of random people without a good reason.
  - jMyles 1y ago
    Is that true? There are many level of exercise of political, social, and economic power that happen in the commons. The camera is a primary tool of defense against injustice in this area. Restrictions (especially with the force of law, but also social pressures) of the basic and deeply human capacity to capture photons and vibrations, and to make depictions of the results of that capture, are invariably used by the more powerful against the less powerful. eg: cops playing "copyrighted" material to prevent posting to youtube. Much safer and fairer is to just give ourselves the same rights we might imagine are afforded to an alien, 4 light years away, looking through an extremely powerful telescope. Do you suggest that earth laws extend to this alien? Is she prohibited from posting the activities she can see of ours through her telescope?