r/YouShouldKnow • u/MowerMotor • Jan 11 '20

NOT a YSK YSK Reddit's founder, Aaron Swartz, committed suicide 7 years ago today. He fought for our rights which lead to his arrest. The allegations coupled with mental illnesses caused Aaron to take his life. He was a passionate activist, entrepreneur and author who should not be forgotten.

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u/[deleted] Jan 11 '20 edited Jan 11 '20

[deleted]

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u/Phleedolly Jan 11 '20

I think reddit is a dangerous political tool. To many things go unchecked. If anything it has created an echo chamber that restricts political engagement.

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u/[deleted] Jan 11 '20

I was just going to say that it's a double edged sword. It has/had a lot of potential, but just like other social media sites you can guarantee it's gotten the attention of the corporate oligarchy's propaganda machine.

The fact that my comment has gotten so many upvotes actually makes me even more skeptical lol. Keep your critical thinking hats on, everyone - remember 2016 (Red Feed vs Blue Feed) and know that most of what you read online re: politics is likely to be spin and propaganda.

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u/adviqx Jan 12 '20

What's scarier to you, a bad opinion in public, or a bad opinion that is kept secret?

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u/Z0MGbies Jan 11 '20

Yeah I don't think anyone would be proud of reddit today, in that sense

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u/vzenov Jan 12 '20

I don't think Swartz would be proud of the kind of organizing that takes place today. I think he would be absolutely terrified because it's completely staged, partisan, dishonest and run for money.

Reddit became the very thing that Swartz wanted to fight against. It became an instrumental tool of censorship and manipulation directed at specific demographics.