And I Hope Neil Young will remember....

I joined Spotify today for the express purpose of recognizing they did the right thing.

In my mind Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, and the rest hoping to shutdown Joe Rogan, are just Digital Age Book Burners.

 

In an interview with David Crosby, he indicated that they are most emphatically NOT the least bit interested in shutting down Joe Rogan. He said that the issue from his perspective is two-fold. First, they have every right to say that they don't want their music associated with the COVID19 misinformation being propagated on Joe Rogan's podcast. Second, Spotify makes billions of dollars per year but pays almost nothing to the musical artists that create most of their content.

 

In your mind - maybe. In the real world -- not at all. It was my privilege to meet Joni Mitchell several times, back in the first half of the 60s. She's a creator of books - not a burner. Have you read any of them?

Joni (Anderson, in those days) played often in a coffee-house I practically lived in, back then. Always nice conversations - and a warm, engaging performer, musically. And concerned with social good, as many singers were. I'll always remember her singing "The Crow on The Cradle." To describe her as a "Digital Age Bookburner" - is not only wrong - it's malevolent. Same for Neil Young - I know his music but have never had what I'm sure would be the pleasure - of meeting him.

And, as one cancer survivor to another - shame on you for espousing this misinformation. Have you any idea of how COVID has disrupted needed surgeries, here in Canada? There are people who simply can't get needed cancer operations because of COVID shutdowns. I read an account yesterday, of a local woman - age 35, who has several uterine tumours and is in considerable pain. Her operation has been cancelled - COVID shutdown - and there is no other treatment planned for her.

This is a long-term situation. It can only be made worse if people believe the kind of misinformation you adhere to. Mask Up!

 

I love all of you, as our Lord commands. That said, even the most brilliant and the most holy will disagree. Does being an old hippie or having performed at Woodstock give you a monopoly on the truth? I think not. Fact is these artists are well past being has-beens. They are free to resign from any platform but, to issue ultimatums insisting on cancelling others is laughable. I wil certainly exercise my birthright freedoms without an iota of shame. When I witness the mob attempt to shutdown a dissenter, I pray I will always have the courage to loudly say- let the person speak.

 

This is life-sucking. Its effect is to deprive people of all hope. There is no rational choice for me except to ignore it. So I shall.

 

I've never seen Joe Rogan's show nor do I plan to. It has nothing to do with any of this, I just have no interest in the format and have never viewed him as an interesting character. However, I got a chance to see a response of his about all of this here:



Not having seen his shows (the same as many who are against him if we're going to be totally honest), I can't speak on the specifics of what he said or didn't say that got things to this juncture and I have no interest at all in listening to the corporate media's take on it either. But he did make one very important point in the above video, and that is about how information believed as fact or fiction at one time has often swapped places. At some point, we all have to deal with that no matter how right we think we are/were.

 

I've also yet to tune into tJoe Rogan show. I know him as a Mixed Martial Arts commentator, and a proponent of Tenth Planet Jiujitsu. Eddie Bravo - Eddie Bravo! All that is neither here nor there; no one has the right to silence another's argument.

 

Mitchell, Young, et al are not book burners. They, like Spotify (and Rogan) are commercial enterprises making decisions regarding with whom they will and will not do business. All of them.

No one is silencing anyone.

 

Ultimatums we're made:
"He goes or we go."
The powers that be at Spotify made a decision.
I agree with Spotify's decision.
I rewarded them by joining.
Now, if Rogan had said - "These maggot infested has been old hippies go or I go," I pray Spotify would have said - "See ya." to him too.
BLUF: See ya -Maggot infested has been Old hippies.

 

Long before any of this stuff unfolded, I watched a Netflix Joe Rogan stand up comedy special. I enjoyed it so much I searched Netflix for any other Joe Rogan specials. I have seen some of his show. He is obviously an extremely articulate and intelligent fellow. I like him as a comedian and as a talk show host and as the host of Fear Factor.

However, it is completely irresponsible to push Ivermectin as a treatment for Covid 19. It has been scientifically proven to be a bunk and stupid thing to take Ivermectin for covid19. It fights PARASITEs, nothing to do with viruses. Joe Rogan has pushed Ivermectin and pushed other completely irresponsible nonsense regarding covid19.

Joe Rogan is getting many millions of dollars for his Spotify podcast compared to pocket change earned by musical artists that make up most of the Spotify content. Which makes such a comparison meaningless.

 

Business choices. The objectors have no actual authority; they can only influence. As we've seen, unsuccessfully.

There are many voices who object to what Rogan is doing. They have an unfettered right to express it, just as Spotify has a right to host Rogan's podcast.

 

I LOVE Rogan's stand up. I also cherished him in the TV series "NewsRadio."

It is. And Spotify cannot disclaim it. They host it. They paid more than $100 million for it. But the reaction to that is best handled by subscribers (like me). I subscribe to Spotify, but I do not listen to Rogan's podcast. The market will determine Rogan's future.

 

Really? What are your qualifications to call anyone completely irresponsible. Again, the bottom line here is: OldOld Maggot Infested Has Been Hippies issued Ultimatums 'Joe Rogan goes or we go.' Spotify answered 'See ya.'

I question, what qualifications do you have to call "Dr. Rogan" irresponsible? I'm out with this post. So I invite you to see Dana White's views regarding "Dr. Rogan." Available on YouTube

 

Why do you persist in attacking posters instead of discussing what they posted? It's rude.

That's nice.

And yes, anyone using such a platform to promote quackery is irresponsible. I also think he should be culpable.

 

Interesting issue in current law. I was talking with my lawyer daughter (how could I POSSIBLY have a middle aged daughter? I'm still so young!) about whether there are any First Amendment implications in social media use. I don't know the answers yet. From a policy standpoint, U.S. law looks with deep suspicion on any censorship of political speech even where, especially where, that political speech is unpopular. It is true that outright lies are actionable if damages can be shown and if those lies are not matters of opinion. What is more, government officials have even less protection than private citizens (with the exception of speech intended to provoke violence against those officials). Social media fora are usually privately owned but if access is offered to the public at large, does there develop an enforceable public interest in free speech? I don't know. Be a good JSD thesis though.

 

So it has come to this. Again, as Out Lord commands me, I love you. However, knowing you have two nontraditional doctorates. Neither is in the healing arts, please correct me if need be, Dr. Dr. F

 

I was just attempting to draft just one more last post to my Neil Young thread. Seems to have been lost in the ether all together. Perhaps that's best. I'll just say this: It's great to be back on this board. It's great to be back in the conversation I'm not here to win arguments but I do love the discussion. We will continue to disagree when one group shouts - That's rude! That's irresponsible! and refuses to allow an individual to express a thought it is a disgrace. I am truly astonished at how quickly a few of my beloved Degreeinfo colleagues formed a mini cyber mob. Mobs big or small, physical or virtual are not a good thing. Please reflect.