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  Geebo 9:22 am on August 22, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Backpage ( 69 ), Human trafficking ( 100 ), Jim Larkin ( 11 ), Michael Lacey ( 10 ), Reason   

  Backpage founders still trying to defend their actions as free speech 

  

  Backpage founders Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey

  Indicted co-founders of Backpage, Jim Larkin, and Michael Lacey, recently broke their media silence since having Backpage seized by the Federal Government earlier this year. Being the media manipulators that they’ve been since the beginning, they didn’t pick just any media outlet to talk to. Instead, they picked one that would not only give them a soapbox but would also write about them in an almost heroic tone. Lacey and Larkin both spoke to Libertarian-leaning Reason Magazine about the charges against them.

  Now, if you’re unfamiliar with the Libertarian philosophy, Libertarians prescribe to ideas of personal freedom and minimal government involvement. They tend to prefer that the ‘free market’ determine most social policies. That is the bent Reason takes when discussing Lacey and Larkin actually hailing them as freedom fighters. However, what Reason seems to immediately gloss over is what happens when the free market ends up violating the freedoms of other people? While writing about Lacey and Larkin as if they’re political prisoners of overreaching tyranny, Reason seems to hand-wave away the fact that scores of women and children were sold against their will into sexual slavery through Backpage.

  As far as Lacey and Larkin go, in their interview, they keep beating the same dead horse they’ve been beating for years. As is can be expected from them, they continue to maintain that they’re right to free speech has been violated as if the Frist Amendment gives them some God-given right to peddle women and children as if they were so much chattel, completely oblivious to the Thirteenth Amendment which abolished slavery in this country. They even have the temerity to claim they feel violated by the Federal Government when their homes were raided during the seizure of Backpage. That statement alone is probably one of the greatest insults to the multitude of victims of Backpage trafficking.

  Let’s be absolutely clear here, Jim Larkin, and Michael Lacey are not victims nor are they defenders of free speech. The only thing that they’re truly concerned about is their wallets and it seems like they’ll go to any length of lies and propagandizing to protect their own interests while the lives of Backpage’s victims be damned.

   

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  Geebo 9:17 am on August 21, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Backpage ( 69 ), Delaware ( 5 ), Human trafficking ( 100 )   

  Delaware to act on Backpage’s ‘good standing’ 

  

  Last week, it was reported that Backpage had re-registered as a company in good standing in Delaware even though the company has been seized by the Federal Government. Delaware is known for encouraging corporations to register in their state by offering tax incentives that are both beneficial to the state and the businesses. However, it’s not unheard of for criminal enterprises to register as a Delaware corporation in order to try to hide their illegal activities.

  Since the last report came out, the Delaware Attorney General, Matt Denn, has said that his office will seek to have Backpage dissolved as a corporation in Delaware. According to news station WHYY in Wilmington, Denn can do this under a new state law that gives his office the authority to dissolve LLCs that are petitioned to be dissolved. The new law, while promising, reflects that the state isn’t really actively searching for companies abusing the state’s generous corporate tax status. If it wasn’t for WHYY’s reporting and the investigating by a human trafficking support group, the state may not have realized that Backpage was still registered in Delaware.

  WHYY also reports that the Attorney General’s office will not appoint an independent counsel to recommend corrections to Delaware law preventing criminal organizations from registering in the first place, or re-registering after they’ve broken the law. While Delaware’s corporate tax breaks may be lucrative for the small state, there definitely needs to be some kind of system in place for holding corporations accountable when they egregiously run afoul of the law like Backpage has.

   
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  Geebo 8:59 am on August 20, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Backpage ( 69 ), Dan Hyer ( 2 ), Human trafficking ( 100 )   

  Top Backpage exec pleads guilty 

  

  Backpage founders Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey

  This past Friday, the sales and marketing director of Backpage, 49-year-old Dan Hyer, pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiring to facilitate prostitution. Hyer entered into a plea deal with prosecutors that could see him sentenced to five years in prison with a $250,000 fine. Hyer’s testimony included the admission that Backpage allegedly knew that many of the ads they were allowing were illegal.

  In exchange for his guilty plea, fifty charges of facilitating prostitution and 17 money laundering charged will be dropped. Reports say that it’s unclear if Hyer will testify against other Backpage executives, but to have that many charges against him dropped it would seem highly unlikely if he didn’t. The sentencing date for Hyer is set for November 19th while the remaining Backpage executives, including founders Jim Larkin and Michael Lacey, are set to face trial in 2020.

  With Backpage CEO Carl Ferrer already pleading guilty and now Hyer, are we seeing the dominoes beginning to fall? Will more indicted Backpage executives enter into plea deals so the big fish can receive heavy sentences? I’m beginning to think that maybe Larkin and Lacey will not escape the prison time they rightfully deserve. It’s like watching the dissolution of a mob family while the underlings turn state’s evidence, which if you think about it Backpage was nothing more than an organized crime ring.

  Sentencing date set for former Backpage exec | Greg's Corner is discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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  Geebo 8:59 am on August 17, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: ethnic cleansing ( 8 ), Facebook ( 182 ), Myanmar ( 11 ), Rohingya ( 9 )   

  Facebook failing in the fight to stop ethnic cleansing 

  

  I’ve been posting about Facebook’s role in the persecution of the Rohingya people in Myanmar for a little while now. If you’re unfamiliar with the situation, the Rohingya Muslim minority in the country formerly known as Burma has not only been run out of their homes by the Myanmar military, but they’ve also been the victims of hate crimes and ethnic cleansing that is fueled by the Buddhist majority. The Rohingya are considered to be the most persecuted people currently in the world today. Previously, Facebook has given non-committal answers about their efforts to help stop the human rights abuses in Myanmar, but a new report says Facebook is failing horribly to curb the tide of ethnic violence in the country.

  WARNING: The following video may contain images and language that some may find disturbing.

  A report from Reuters (via CNBC) says that since the problem of ethnic cleansing in Myanmar has been brought to Facebook’s attention, they’ve done little about it. In a country of 100 million people where roughly three-quarters of the population use Facebook as their only news source, Facebook has only employed a handful of people who speak and read Burmese. The Reuters report also found posts that incite violence against the Rohingya going back as far as six years that are still active on the platform. This further shows that Facebook’s global power has gotten way out of their own control to the detriment of humanity.

  Now some in the West may ignore this problem because it doesn’t concern us but think of this. What if this was happening in our country? What if 75% of the population was looking to drive certain ethnicities or religions from the U.S. because of what they read on Facebook. What if that turned into the mass killings of those oppressed people and the government was to look the other way? Then you look at things like the proliferation of hate groups on Facebook in the United States and you have to ask yourself how close are we to becoming like Myanmar?

   
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  Geebo 9:08 am on August 16, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Backpage ( 69 ), Delaware ( 5 )   

  Backpage still in ‘good standing’ as a Delaware corporation 

  

  Earlier this year, I published a blog post about how Backpage was a company in ‘good standing’ in the state of Delaware. Many companies incorporate in Delaware due to their lax tax laws regarding corporations and because Delaware courts have corporate proceedings ruled by a judge knowledgeable in corporate matters rather than a jury which may not be. However, this post was made months before the federal government seized control of Backpage for their alleged role in human trafficking. Now it turns out that Backpage is still a company in good standing in Delaware.

  Yesterday, news station WHYY out of Wilmington, published a report that showed Backpage is not only still in good standing in Delaware but also re-registered its status as an LLC. The state Attorney General’s office could potentially revoke Backpage’s but they are still reviewing the legislation that could allow them to do that. Even with a company like Backpage that doesn’t have the most stellar reputation I can imagine the state may drag its feet on any kind of ruling considering it may affect the number of businesses incorporating in Delaware and no one wants to see anything hurt their bottom line.

  Backpage isn’t the only shady company that’s been incorporated in Delaware. Again, according to WHYY, Delaware corporations were allegedly used by former Trump campaign chair Paul Manafort to launder money and commit tax fraud, infamous drug lord ‘El Chapo’ allegedly used Delaware to launder his drug money, and former Trump attorney Michael Cohen allegedly used a Delaware corporation to pay hush money to Stormy Daniels. Maybe it’s time for the First State to start paying closer attention to who their granting corporation status too before collecting their money.

  Delaware to act on Backpage's 'good standing' | Greg's Corner is discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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  Geebo 9:10 am on August 15, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Facebook ( 182 ), politics ( 16 ), social media ( 88 ), study ( 2 )   

  Study identifies who is really harming democracy on Facebook 

  

  By now, we should all be familiar with the stories about how Facebook was allegedly used by foreign influencers and bad actors to try to sway the 2016 Presidential Election. This has been an ongoing issue even up to the recent 2018 Primary Elections. Many in positions of power have called upon Facebook to try to clamp down on this problem, but what if I told you that it wasn’t Russia that was the biggest threat to democracy on Facebook, but rather it was us?

  According to a recent study by the University of Wisconsin–Madison, social media users are less informed about politics than those who refrain from social media. The study contributes this to most social users only skimming their social media feeds rather than taking the time to process or even further pursue the veracity of the information.

  It also doesn’t help that social media is where people go to feel safe in their bubbles of convenience where they would rather regurgitate whatever latest meme fits into their political party loyalty or narrow worldview. If you think I’m singling out one side of the political spectrum over the other, I’m not as both sides of the aisle are guilty of this behavior. So while the typical Facebook user may think he or she is the political scholar in their circle of friends, the odds are they really aren’t and as long as people keep acting and thinking like this democracy will remain threatened from within.

   
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  Geebo 9:20 am on August 14, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: broadband internet ( 3 ), FCC ( 30 ), Lifeline ( 2 ), tribal lands   

  FCC stopped from cutting internet subsidies in tribal lands 

  

  Back in November of last year, I wrote a blog post about the number of then-recent FCC rulings that I alleged was done to possibly silence poorer voices in this country. One of those rulings was to roll back Lifeline subsidies that helped provide low-cost internet and phone to low-income families. That same ruling also put a cap on the number of service providers that could offer Lifeline services. One of the areas that could have been hit hardest by the FCC’s ruling would have been the tribal lands of Native-Americans.

  Recently, the US Court of Appeals has blocked the FCC from taking away Lifeline services in these areas. The court ruled that taking away these services and limiting the number of providers would cause the tribal populations to lose vital services due to a lack of communication options. The court also noted that the tribal lands have a lack of choice when it comes to internet and phone providers.

  As he is wont to do, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai has said in the past that rollbacks like this would create competition and lower prices for broadband internet. However, the court added that the FCC failed to provide any evidence that supported any of those claims. Ever since Pai started talking about rolling back net neutrality protections it seems that the FCC has tried to create a digital divide between the haves and have-nots, almost like the FCC and the current administration doesn’t want lower-income families, minorities, and migrants to be able to have access to news and other services on matters that personally affect them. Ignorance is strength indeed.

  House Dems put the FCC on notice | Greg's Corner is discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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  Geebo 9:11 am on August 13, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: job search ( 9 ), jobs ( 9 ), social media ( 88 )   

  Your social media could hurt your job search 

  

  I’m pretty sure we all have that friend who is totally unfiltered on social media. They act like social media is some kind of virtual bubble where their posts are self-contained inside of the platform not realizing that their posts could be viewed by almost anyone. Part of that anyone could be a prospective employer and those posts could potentially hurt your chances of finding a new job.

  According to a recent survey conducted by a job listing service, more than 70% of employers will check the social media profiles of potential applicants. So, if you’re posting pictures of drugs and alcohol, committing crimes, or anything that could be deemed offensive, you may not want to start dreaming of that corner office. Conversely, you might think that erasing all of your social media might be the way to go, but according to the survey that may as equally as harmful. A total lack of social presence may appear as if you have something to hide.

  While it may seem like common sense, it’s advised to carefully cultivate your social media presence. Highlight positive activities and don’t complain about your current position. If you succeed in getting your dream job that doesn’t mean you can start posting pictures of your weekend escapades as many employers continue to keep tabs on your social media. The basic philosophy should be that if you can’t say it at work, then you shouldn’t be posting it on Facebook.

   
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  Geebo 9:28 am on August 10, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Europe, Facebook ( 182 ), migrant crisis ( 3 )   

  Facebook accused of not doing enough to stop the deaths of migrants 

  

  In the recent past, Facebook has been criticized for allowing human rights abuses to have taken place in countries like Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and The Philippines. In many of these cases, human rights organizations have criticized Facebook for not doing enough to stop abuses from happening but Facebook tends to give the rationalizations of the inflammatory content either doesn’t violate their community guidelines or claiming they’re doing all they can. Now, Facebook is being accused of not helping to stop the deaths of migrants trying to escape to Europe.

  Since 2015, refugees from countries in the Middle East and Africa have been fleeing their countries either due to internal violence or human rights abuses. While the number of migrants has decreased since then, 700 refugees have died trying to cross the Mediterranean in dangerously overcrowded vessels. The UK’s National Crime Agency claims that a large part of the problem is illegal smugglers advertising their services on Facebook. Tom Dowdall, deputy director of the NCA says Facebook has the technology to stop these smugglers from posting but doesn’t do enough to prevent them from posting.

  Facebook have developed a fantastic ability to be able to identify patterns and how everybody operates on a day to day basis.

  “This is no different: there will be patterns that are developed here which we know that Facebook and others can be onto really quickly. We need their cooperation to be able to identify and to either close down these sites or be able to further investigate them.”

  Once again, this another example of Facebook’s power and reach getting out of their own control. Since Facebook wants to be all things to all people they can’t seem to grasp that a lot of those people use their platform to do horrible things. It isn’t enough anymore for Facebook to just throw up their hands and say “they’re trying”. They need to start policing themselves before the governments of the world start doing it for them.

   
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  Geebo 10:21 am on August 9, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: craig newmark ( 7 ), craigslist ( 129 ), real estate ( 139 ), San Francisco ( 9 )   

  The house where craigslist was born is up for sale 

  

  The San Francisco condo where Craig Newmark founded his eponymous list has gone up for sale. For a cool $1.4 million you could own the three-bed, one-bath, 1,250 square-foot, condo with a backyard. It sounds like the perfect place for some up and coming startup CEO who just got their first round of funding. I mean it’s not like an actual working family could afford it or anything.

  Mr. Newmark himself hasn’t lived in the condo since 2005. Since then he’s bought a $6 million home in New York City that takes up two floors of a four-story building in addition to his primary residence in the San Francisco Bay Area that I’m sure must have cost him a pretty penny. Yet over the years, Craig Newmark has said that craigslist’s profits are so small that the company can’t hire additional employees such as moderators or customer service agents. The profits must at least be enough that he can afford multi-million dollar homes in the most expensive real estate markets on both coasts.

  Not surprisingly, the realtor who is handling the condo’s sale has not listed the property on craigslist. How ironic would it be if someone posted a phony ad on craigslist purporting to rent the condo out below market value? You know, like all the homes that claim to be up for rent on craigslist where scammers steal money from people looking for homes. The same phony real estate ads that craigslist does nothing to prevent from being posted in the first place.