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posted by takyon on Tuesday April 26 2016, @01:11AM   Printer-friendly
from the just-my-hundred-million-cents dept.

Current Affairs published an in-depth editorial on recent revelations about a $1 million astroturfng campaign by Correct the Record:

Astroturfing makes me angry. It should make you angry. It should make you fucking well see red. It's marketing evolved into something incredibly scary, sophisticated, and evil. It's essentially thought warfare, or psychological warfare, which takes away much of what was supposed to make the internet a new and beautiful frontier of communication. Worse yet, if you actually identify and approach these operatives, they'll gaslight you and deny that they are such an operative. These are people who are paid to psychologically abuse you. Do you get this? It's an ugly and evil thing, and not only does it take away our ability to take information and fact at face value, but it takes away our ability to take opinions, feelings, and personal stances at face value as sincere and legitimate.

takyon: For some additional context, "Hillary-supporting super PAC invests $1 million to hit back at online Clinton critics":

Correct the Record, a super PAC supporting Hillary Clinton's bid to become US president, has promised to invest more than $1 million to respond to users criticizing its candidate on Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, Instagram, and other social media services. The super PAC says its new "Barrier Breakers digital task force" will to respond "quickly and forcefully to negative attacks and false narratives found online," in addition to thanking major supporters and "committed superdelegates" directly.


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  • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday April 26 2016, @02:21AM

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday April 26 2016, @02:21AM (#337249) Journal

    Perhaps you're not aware of it, but that is how things are done in today's world. Those jokes about a woman driving into a mechanic's garage? They are jokes because people think it's FUNNY. Yeah, I've been ripped of by a lawyer. Doctors? Well, I've got a pretty good one, whose rates are lower than the insurance companies pay. You don't find many of those - they're all out to get that last nickle, whether it be out of your pocket, or the insurance company's pocket.

    And, for the most part, all the sheep ever do is bleat about it.

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  • (Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 26 2016, @02:43AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 26 2016, @02:43AM (#337265)

    You just told us how you've been fleeced.
    And yet you think you are better than the sheep.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 26 2016, @03:55AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 26 2016, @03:55AM (#337291)

      You just told us how you've been fleeced.
      And yet you think you are better than the sheep.

      Yes, because you see... his position is that the only purpose in life is to be fleeced.
      That doesn't exclude entities that can be fleeced but also have other purposes in life; e.g. to be milked; or... I don't know... egged?

      • (Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 26 2016, @05:42AM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 26 2016, @05:42AM (#337326)

        You just told us how you've been fleeced.
                And yet you think you are better than the sheep.

        Yes, because you see... his position is that the only purpose in life is to be fleeced.
        That doesn't exclude entities that can be fleeced but also have other purposes in life; e.g. to be milked; or... I don't know... egged?

        I personally gyped Runaway out of fifty bucks. Obviously, I cannot reveal my name or the incident, which would amount to the same thing. But just let me say, the man is a mark, a sucker, a con man's dream! When I offered him twice his investment in return, he did not even pause to think I might be lying. Easy money! Yes, I am the man that sold a Chelsea Manning suit to Runaway1956. May he wear it with pride.

  • (Score: 2) by mcgrew on Tuesday April 26 2016, @02:34PM

    by mcgrew (701) <publish@mcgrewbooks.com> on Tuesday April 26 2016, @02:34PM (#337511) Homepage Journal
    --
    mcgrewbooks.com mcgrew.info nooze.org
    • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday April 27 2016, @02:51AM

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Wednesday April 27 2016, @02:51AM (#337726) Journal

      Ohhhh, I don't know. Odd thing about psychology and related "sciences". The shrinks claim that 20, 25, maybe even 30% of people have issues. But, what is "normal", anyway?

      I posit that the shrinks and the researchers are less normal than all the people who are diagnosed with this or that, or some other imaginary affliction. Don't have time to read the PDF now, but it will be here when I get home in the morning. Consider thought, that sociopathy may actually BE "normal".