FaceBook, otherwise known as FaecesBook, is like the Titanic about half an hour after hitting the iceberg. They are no longer gaining new users, and many of their current users are discovering other social media networks, such as Minds. This article shows why Minds is a vastly superior social media network, for decent people, than FaceBook is.
The reason why FaceBook used to be fun is because it used to offer an escape from all the shit in the world. It was a space where people could speak freely and avoid censure for off-colour jokes and pisstakes. This was the reason for its initial uptake – it provided a release from the stuffy, formal nature of schooling and employment, like a virtual clubhouse.
This was, of course, some years ago now, and FaceBook has since deteriorated into a Big Brother-style cyberdystopia. From being a bastion of free speech and free interaction, it’s now a place where you can’t even say ‘faggot’ without getting banned – not even if you are using the term ironically in defence of homosexuals. The demands of advertisers have induced Mark Zuckerberg into making FaceBook like television. Hitler jokes, race jokes, nation jokes, religion jokes, sexual orientation jokes: all banned.
Minds is different, and appears to intend to stay that way. Free speech is the reason for many people joining the network: you can say what you like, without fear of getting banned. The easy-going, fun and joking culture that FaceBook once had still exists there. There is no feeling that the Thought Police are monitoring and censoring your speech to ensure compliance with a corporatist globalist agenda.
Another reason why Minds is a superior social network is the relative absence of the human lowest common denominator. FaceBook is the McDonald’s of social media. This means that, much like television, the information on FaceBook is aimed at people with IQs of about 90-100. This maximises the possible audience.
One drawback with this is that content tailored for people at such a level of intelligence tends to be simplistic. People with IQs of 90 cannot understand complex sentences, so the material shared is often little more than a list of bullet points, with no deeper analysis possible. This means that a truly comprehensive and accurate understanding cannot be gained.
The major drawback, though, is that this content also tends to be outright false. Advertisers know that people with IQs of less than 100 are not educated and therefore are not very good at distinguishing truth from falsehood. Therefore, it’s possible to target them with sensationalised false news and to thereby sway their beliefs to whatever the advertiser wishes. If not enough people believe the fake news, it’s a simple matter of buying more advertising.
The major and most distinctive factor, however, is that Minds is prepared to reward its users for posting quality content.
Like any broadcaster, FaceBook sells advertising. As a consequence, like any broadcaster, they need engaging content that they can broadcast between the ads. On FaceBook, this content is mostly provided by the users themselves in the form of posts and status updates. FaceBook therefore makes a product out of its users – and this is before they start selling your personal data to advertisers.
Minds works on a different principle. There, posts that get likes, comments and shares are rewarded with a share of the daily advertising proceeds. In other words, Minds shares with its users some of the value of their content, unlike FaceBook, which keeps it all for itself.
Ultimately it has to be conceded that Minds is a vastly superior social network from a user perspective (unless said user is a pleb). FaceBook might have its advantages for corporate advertisers or political entities looking to influence a large group of people, but Minds is a better choice for intelligent people looking to broaden their horizons.
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