This is an opportunity for any users, server admins, or interested third parties to ask anything they’d like to @nutomic@lemmy.ml and I about Lemmy. This includes its development and future, as well as wider issues relevant to the social media landscape today.
Note: This will be the thread tmrw, so you can use this thread to ask and vote on questions beforehand.
I want a statement on the apparent lemmygrad connections and supporting human rights violations. The recent blog post was a PR non-answer, free speech is important, but human rights violations are just not acceptable.
Edit: it’s obvious at this point there will never be a proper statement. I just want to say that regardless of the country of origin, US, China, EU, South Africa, India, it doesn’t matter to me, all human rights violations are violations and unacceptable. This isn’t a communism vs capitalism debate, this is a situation of whether to support the guy creating this software if that individual supports genocidal tendencies.
Please add a statement on the apparent connection between lemmy.world and their support to the US led NATO: The United States is the worst human rights violator in post-war history. The United States is responsible for over 300 million deaths directly and as the sole world superpower that has imposed its economic system on nearly the entire world, its system based upon deprivation for many (in exchange for luxury for a few) has led to the intentional starvation of 9 million people annually and imposition of poverty that has led to 5 million deaths annually from lack of medical care. On top of the 300 million the United States has killed directly, the 14 million lives taken annually by its world-wide imposed economic system has killed 448 million people through social murder since 1991 when its economic system was finally imposed nearly worldwide.
The United States, through its international secret police organization (CIA), also runs secret black sites throughout much of the world where people are detained without charge or trial and often tortured. The United States has openly admitted to running a torture program in breach of international conventions it has signed.
The United States also illegally invaded, and currently occupies 30% of Syria, controlling 90% of its petroleum. This illegal occupation violates Syrian sovereignty and occurred long before the conflict in Ukraine.
As the user wrote above, free speech is important, but human rights violations are just not acceptable.
Edit: I forgot to add, the United States has a system of racial apartheid and mass incarceration targeting ethnic minorities within its own borders. As a country representing about 4% of the worlds population, it contains more the 20% of the worlds prisoners. These prisoners are forced into labor for private corporations and often subject to solitary confinement (which the UN has called a method of torture) This system of mass incarceration and forced labor is unlike any other in the world, and is largely a holdover of the United States system of race-based chattel slavery, that was subsequently replaced by a codified racial caste system that denied Black Americans all human rights until a few decades ago.
All of those situations are unacceptable, but come on, none of the articles you posted other than the CIA Wikipedia page and the Syria article (to which I absolutely don’t condone) lists the US as the sole country responsible for those statistics. Regardless of those sources, it’s important to call these things out, which I commend you for trying. Which is why I want a proper statement, not some PR nonsense answer that avoids the subject.
I don’t understand. Do you have some sort of analysis that says that the United States does not impose its economic system on the world? I think the people of Vietnam, Korea, Russia, Iraq, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, Brazil, Bolivia, Mexico, Haiti, Afghanistan, Laos, Grenada (to name only a few) would disagree. The system of capitalism is one in which the economic system revolves around profit. This system of profitability robs people of the value of their labor and imposes inequality through rent-seeking behavior in housing and food markets. lemmy.world identified their support for the US-led IMF and World Bank which impose political reform to their liking on overexploited nations in exchange for much-needed liquidity. (That is when the US does not install puppet governments that take out huge loans immediately, like Bolivia in 2019) The need for cash infusions is a direct result of the US world economic policy and its imposition, but then these loans cause a tremendous debt-burden and the cost of debt-service often outpaces any social programs in the affected countries. … Is there some other global super-power imposing this on the world? The UN has said that the cost of ending world hunger is merely $40 billion dollars annually. Yet the United States spends nearly $1 trillion on military spending annually. So they United States imposes its system on other countries, causing deprivation and social murder, yet the capacity to resolve the problem is entirely within their ability to do so? That sounds like it is intentional and something they are responsible for. Even if you claim that this is not “intentional” because you blame these systemic problems on individual choice or a lack of responsibility on the part of the wealthy, that doesn’t make it any less true. Capitalism was imposed on the world by the US and the result is social murder on a mass scale. The isn’t even considering the other human rights violations by the US, which I didn’t even bother citing them all.
Also, the US’s treatment of Black Americans, including extrajudicial killings by the state and torture, is most definitely the responsibility of the United States. I would like a real statement on the relationship to lemmy.world and abusers of human rights, not some PR nonsense that avoids the subject.
I’m not trying to start a communism vs capitalism debate here, capitalism has its benefits, but that doesn’t mean I support every sick and twisted thing the US does.
This is simply a request for a statement on alleged ties the developer has to human rights violations. I don’t support the incarceration of African Americans one bit and think it’s absolutely disgusting what we’ve done. I don’t support those systems at all. I’m not sure what point you’re trying to prove here. I honestly commend your efforts. You’re clearly passionate about your united states hate boner, there’s nothing wrong with that and that’s the beauty of free speech. However, when you say things like “capitalism bad communism good!” but then turn around and support things like uyhger genocide and slave labor of North Koreans for lumber camps in syberia we have a problem. All of those situations, even the situations that the US has participated in is bad, that doesn’t mean I support them, that’s what I want to hear, do the devs support those human rights violations that they specifically have been tied too.
Wow, I mean, capitalism is bad and communism will be good. It isn’t a “hate boner” It is called having principles. If you think that the United States government, and the people who run it (the capitalist class) are committing serious crimes against humanity… why would you say “we” when you said “it’s absolutely disgusting what we’ve done.” You already identify with the crimes of your ruling class.
Those “examples” you gave of other human rights violations are spurious at best, US-ruling-class propaganda at worst. And you make several leaps in assuming that people are supportive of socialist states, or their struggle for self-determination against US empire, and support for specific instances of historic wrongs or mistakes. You clearly give “your own side” the benefit of the doubt or ignore it for the sake of attacking the US ruling-classes enemies. They aren’t your enemies, reallly. You assume that all labor in the DPRK is slave labor? That is laughable, and outright propaganda. All of the things you listed are nothing compared to what the US is doing right now, and what it has done in recent memory. It is August 7th, can you think of anything historically important that occurred the day before and the day after this date? You have a chance to admit you aren’t informed or passionate on the subject, and that you aren’t an expert. You can decide to change you mind and stop identifying so strongly with the worlds greatest oppressors. Please. Take this chance to come outside of your bubble and relearn.
The point is that your insistence that you are owed some sort of “real statement” on the lemmygrad community and dev’s support for “human rights violators” is farcical and partisan. It is a debate on communism vs capitalism because you are implying it by making a series of assumptions predicated on capitalists’ arguments. If you can’t see it, then you should spend some time reflecting on why you can’t see it. You also shouldn’t think that you are owed some sort of “real statement” if you can’t bother to investigate the question on your own.
Well then, hexbear troll account, makes complete sense now. I hope you have a good day.
How is it a troll? This is my account. I didn’t hide I was from hexbear. If you can’t argue your point, it only underlines that you aren’t standing on principle. I hope you reflect more on your own understanding of politics today, and that it brings disquiet and growth. But unfortunately, you might just continue to coddle yourself with the belief that you are right and good, and the heckin’ marvel good guy’s United States are only looking out for the human rights of Muslims and the global south, gee whiz.
We’re just asking for a statement about lemmy.world’s support for NATO’s human rights violations. Same deal.
Perfectly understandable, I honestly would love to hear their statement. Especially if it’s something specific they’ve been supporting.