To the editor: Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter as soon as once more places the wealth of 1 particular person on show. The quantity of wealth concentrated in so few arms leaves the world in peril.
On-line boards have modified from pleasant discussions to outright assaults on those that have completely different views. These boards have made mendacity straightforward and extra pernicious.
Fb, Twitter and Instagram have given a discussion board to hate. All of them say the identical factor about not having the ability to management all their content material. What’s Musk going to do to cease hate that’s unfold on Twitter?
I consider the saying, “With nice energy comes nice duty.” I don’t know what he’ll do, however I hope Musk considers any adjustments with care.
Linda Shabsin, Diamond Bar
..
To the editor: Consideration of the consequence of Musk’s Twitter buy ought to begin with recognizing what Twitter is. Musk’s characterization of Twitter as “the digital city sq. the place issues very important to the way forward for humanity are debated” is flawed.
My Twitter surroundings is totally outlined by my decisions of who to “observe.” Subsequently, Twitter is just a automobile for me to construct my very own echo chamber, tailor-made to my biases. Twitter itself intentionally exacerbates this function by presenting me with unsolicited posts “primarily based on my likes,” including gasoline to the fireplace.
My Twitter feed exhibits me a degenerate type of “debate” the place views opposing mine are normally introduced as objects of ridicule. At greatest, Twitter is a mechanism to gather and kind info and opinions that help my standpoint.
Brian Masson, Harbor Metropolis
..
To the editor: The nation, maybe the world, realized the exhausting means what can occur when a rich, impolite, not significantly brilliant, narcissistic, egotistical particular person good points monumental energy.
One can solely speculate on the potential penalties when a good wealthier, extremely educated, charming, narcissistic, egotistical genius obtains the means to grow to be much more highly effective.
Might God assist us all.
Marshall Barth, Encino
..
To the editor: I get aggravated when individuals who have their social media accounts shut down declare that their 1st Modification rights and their free speech are being violated.
In reality, the first Modification is a prohibition on the federal government, which can not implement any regulation or regulation that may limit our speech. It doesn’t apply to a non-public firm or publicly traded company in even the slightest means.
When a social media firm shuts down a consumer’s account for violating firm coverage, it’s no completely different than my neighborhood restaurant posting an indication on the door that claims, “We reserve the precise to refuse service to anybody.”
What’s actually occurring to right-wingers is that they’re being confronted with the implications of remarks that a lot of the general public finds objectionable. Sadly for them, there has by no means been, and by no means will probably be, freedom from penalties for the terrible issues we are saying.
Cheryl Holt, Burbank
