In April 2012, I signed up for an account on Twitter. It was four years into my time as a U.S. Attorney in the Obama administration, and I was a voracious consumer of news. We were still paying for delivery of the New York Times at that point, a real luxury for two public servants with four kids, but as Birmingham’s last daily newspaper slid into demise, it was essential. And I liked the feel of paper in my hands.
Thanks for this classy piece, Joyce. I love the way you weave a narrative, teach lay people about the law and always circle back to encompass others with a call to action. I had already subscribed to Aaron's substack as soon as I heard he was banned. I love that we can literally have the backs of people we've not met but who are doing important, excellent work in a harsh world. Much gratitude to you and the Sisters in Law.
Guessing I am the only one still up & was surprised you were, too. Nice piece. I had just found Donie from CNN on Mastodon moments before stumbling across your piece as I was heading off to bed. Well, reading anyway. Keep the faith, Joyce. As you ofter remind us, we're all in this together, except obviously for trump & Musk. Peace. Carry on.
"I suspect the moment is not too far off when Musk’s behavior is called into question in court, whether it’s regulatory issues or something as basic as contract violations or tort claims." I have always loved to hear you speak on MSNBC. Legal terminology about which I have no clue roll off your tongue effortlessly. I have always felt safe when I hear you speak on MSNBC, because I know that there's someone out there who truly gets what's going on and will do her darndest to protect the Constitution. It's been a real pleasure to discover "Civil Discourse". (Oh, and BTW, I LOVE your sense of humor! It doesn't show when you're on MSNBC -- probably appropriately so.)
I remember clearly a lesson we had in my sixth grade class. The teacher put it very simply. “The first thing done in a government takeover is to control the press.” I never forgot that. That is what is happening now.
PLEASE join us actively over on POST.news. In less than a month since POST started, we’re building a lovely, and calm community over there. Many journalists are already there. It took YEARS for people to grow on Twitter, and for Twitter itself to grow. Even if you do nothing more for now than repost your Substack (as I do--already got a new subscriber in the week I’ve been there and I’m nowhere near a “big name”), I’m sure you’ll like it there. Already last Saturday the community flagged an antisemitic post that was immediately taken down. Although there is still a huge waiting list, the community has also asked that”Big Names” and journalists be immediately let in (after proper vetting, of course). I got in after only a week, and I am not famous. I think it is because they reviewed where I show up elsewhere. PLEASE---come on in, the POST water’s fine!
Hi Joyce: Journalists are sacred supporting America’s right to know how our laws are working. Your news of Musk’s actions are of grave concern. It seems like there are more madmen in the mainstream than ever before. But I find some comfort in realizing how very many people all over this country are paying attention in view of 2024. My modest prediction is that neither 45 nor DeSantis will run. We’re in for some surprises. No one wants another looney tune in the White House anyway. We’re all exhausted dragging our feet for all the drama we’ve been dealt in the last six years. Say hello to Cleo for me. I do hope your chick has recovered. Alas, enjoy your Friday and a celebratory weekend I imagine. Thanks again.
When it comes to Unreconstructed Afrikaner Elon Muck, "if my thought dreams could be seen, they'd probably put my head in a guillotine." Him and the rest of the billionaire enemies of humanity.
I am not so sure. By that logic, we should all open Truth Social accounts.
I am remaining on Twitter to talk to people about alternatives and discuss what comes next, but I am not putting my content (which I consider to have of value) on Twitter. If I really want my Twitter followers to know, I can put it on another site and put a link on Twitter.
Twitter is not a public square. It is akin to being on someone' public property.
I am pretty sure I went through stages of grief over this. First I was in denial, etc. I got much from Twitter. Probably what was most valuable was immediate feedback for my writing. I made lasting friendships and valuable connections.
But it is being run by an autocrat who will use the platform to enable fascism.
The people hurt the most are the journalists who have been able to reach larger audiences. Social media platforms have their moment and then fade away. I am putting my effort toward thinking about how to create a better democracy-enhancing model. There was much wrong with Twitter to begin with.
I recommend creating a burner account at Twitter such as Slates' Henry Grabar & 'follow' the exact same 131 sources as Elon. I think you will see quickly that Musk self identifies," I [Elon] am a vice signaler" who is bankrupting the company. No worries, the Federal bankruptcy court in SF has capable judges that can handle commercial self sabotage. Nasty creditor Counsel have been known to file personal actions in the Northern District against the alter ego as well.
Glad you’re hanging onto Twitter for the time being. I saw your +1 to Preet Bharara’s post, and it did my heart good. A side note is that today I blocked almost 30 new “followers” (some were bots) and all of the accounts had recently been opened. I switched my account to private. But weirdly I have an extremely low profile account with about a hundred followers. Why my account would suddenly attract so many fake followers is a mystery.
One of your best columns! I am staying too, although I have repeatedly asked him to tone it down, to step back and reconsider his words and his position. Sometimes I celebrate his responses and others (his remark about Dr, Fauci) I believe completely irresponsible, even hateful. So I tell him as civilly as I can muster to knock it off.
This morning on Politico Berlin I was reading that a German court has made some legislation around Twitter, but I don't know whether it applies in the USA, which says that if someone wants a comment about themselves to be removed it has to be removed. I don't use Twitter and I despise Elon Musk enough that I would never drive a Tesla. I would rather bike in frigid snow if that were the last choice, or of course take street cars. I also read in the same issue of Politico Berlin that some journalist is offering Mastodon workshops to people so that they can switch. It looks like many Germans are planning on abandoning Twitter. The Dutch and British transplants to South Africa creating a White Supremacist minority rule, were very brutal people. This is the inheritance of Musk in his formative years. I admire your fortitude Professor Vance. I wonder whether the forum will not turn into a forum like Parler or Truth Social. Perhaps, as Musk is messing around with Kiev's ability to use Starlink, they may have to find other more helpful people, and abandon Musk. He is clearly losing a lot of money right now which has changed his behavior. No generosity there. His exploitative, miserly ways are like something out of a Dickens novel. I will start calling Twitter "Bleak House."
Thanks for this classy piece, Joyce. I love the way you weave a narrative, teach lay people about the law and always circle back to encompass others with a call to action. I had already subscribed to Aaron's substack as soon as I heard he was banned. I love that we can literally have the backs of people we've not met but who are doing important, excellent work in a harsh world. Much gratitude to you and the Sisters in Law.
Guessing I am the only one still up & was surprised you were, too. Nice piece. I had just found Donie from CNN on Mastodon moments before stumbling across your piece as I was heading off to bed. Well, reading anyway. Keep the faith, Joyce. As you ofter remind us, we're all in this together, except obviously for trump & Musk. Peace. Carry on.
"I suspect the moment is not too far off when Musk’s behavior is called into question in court, whether it’s regulatory issues or something as basic as contract violations or tort claims." I have always loved to hear you speak on MSNBC. Legal terminology about which I have no clue roll off your tongue effortlessly. I have always felt safe when I hear you speak on MSNBC, because I know that there's someone out there who truly gets what's going on and will do her darndest to protect the Constitution. It's been a real pleasure to discover "Civil Discourse". (Oh, and BTW, I LOVE your sense of humor! It doesn't show when you're on MSNBC -- probably appropriately so.)
Joyce, I enjoy your work on MSNBC. I am elderly, grew up in N. Cal, where I seldom had to worry
about my own free speech. (BA, Berkeley '64.) I spent a lifetime one year in beautiful Alabama,
where I learned to think before speaking. I find myself valuing that experience these days,
when some loonies publicly ask, "When can we start shooting Democrats?"
So yes, I admire your work, your courage, and your stubborn ways.
I was sticking around, but what happened tonight was the final straw for me and I finally deactivated my account.
I remember clearly a lesson we had in my sixth grade class. The teacher put it very simply. “The first thing done in a government takeover is to control the press.” I never forgot that. That is what is happening now.
Why isn’t Musk’s ownership of the public square some violation of our Antitrust Laws?
It’s fair to mourn the Twitter you lost. Yet one can’t live in the past. We won’t stand for oligarchs deciding what speech is allowed. #DeleteTwitter.
PLEASE join us actively over on POST.news. In less than a month since POST started, we’re building a lovely, and calm community over there. Many journalists are already there. It took YEARS for people to grow on Twitter, and for Twitter itself to grow. Even if you do nothing more for now than repost your Substack (as I do--already got a new subscriber in the week I’ve been there and I’m nowhere near a “big name”), I’m sure you’ll like it there. Already last Saturday the community flagged an antisemitic post that was immediately taken down. Although there is still a huge waiting list, the community has also asked that”Big Names” and journalists be immediately let in (after proper vetting, of course). I got in after only a week, and I am not famous. I think it is because they reviewed where I show up elsewhere. PLEASE---come on in, the POST water’s fine!
Hi Joyce: Journalists are sacred supporting America’s right to know how our laws are working. Your news of Musk’s actions are of grave concern. It seems like there are more madmen in the mainstream than ever before. But I find some comfort in realizing how very many people all over this country are paying attention in view of 2024. My modest prediction is that neither 45 nor DeSantis will run. We’re in for some surprises. No one wants another looney tune in the White House anyway. We’re all exhausted dragging our feet for all the drama we’ve been dealt in the last six years. Say hello to Cleo for me. I do hope your chick has recovered. Alas, enjoy your Friday and a celebratory weekend I imagine. Thanks again.
When it comes to Unreconstructed Afrikaner Elon Muck, "if my thought dreams could be seen, they'd probably put my head in a guillotine." Him and the rest of the billionaire enemies of humanity.
I am not so sure. By that logic, we should all open Truth Social accounts.
I am remaining on Twitter to talk to people about alternatives and discuss what comes next, but I am not putting my content (which I consider to have of value) on Twitter. If I really want my Twitter followers to know, I can put it on another site and put a link on Twitter.
Twitter is not a public square. It is akin to being on someone' public property.
I am pretty sure I went through stages of grief over this. First I was in denial, etc. I got much from Twitter. Probably what was most valuable was immediate feedback for my writing. I made lasting friendships and valuable connections.
But it is being run by an autocrat who will use the platform to enable fascism.
The people hurt the most are the journalists who have been able to reach larger audiences. Social media platforms have their moment and then fade away. I am putting my effort toward thinking about how to create a better democracy-enhancing model. There was much wrong with Twitter to begin with.
I recommend creating a burner account at Twitter such as Slates' Henry Grabar & 'follow' the exact same 131 sources as Elon. I think you will see quickly that Musk self identifies," I [Elon] am a vice signaler" who is bankrupting the company. No worries, the Federal bankruptcy court in SF has capable judges that can handle commercial self sabotage. Nasty creditor Counsel have been known to file personal actions in the Northern District against the alter ego as well.
Glad you’re hanging onto Twitter for the time being. I saw your +1 to Preet Bharara’s post, and it did my heart good. A side note is that today I blocked almost 30 new “followers” (some were bots) and all of the accounts had recently been opened. I switched my account to private. But weirdly I have an extremely low profile account with about a hundred followers. Why my account would suddenly attract so many fake followers is a mystery.
One of your best columns! I am staying too, although I have repeatedly asked him to tone it down, to step back and reconsider his words and his position. Sometimes I celebrate his responses and others (his remark about Dr, Fauci) I believe completely irresponsible, even hateful. So I tell him as civilly as I can muster to knock it off.
This morning on Politico Berlin I was reading that a German court has made some legislation around Twitter, but I don't know whether it applies in the USA, which says that if someone wants a comment about themselves to be removed it has to be removed. I don't use Twitter and I despise Elon Musk enough that I would never drive a Tesla. I would rather bike in frigid snow if that were the last choice, or of course take street cars. I also read in the same issue of Politico Berlin that some journalist is offering Mastodon workshops to people so that they can switch. It looks like many Germans are planning on abandoning Twitter. The Dutch and British transplants to South Africa creating a White Supremacist minority rule, were very brutal people. This is the inheritance of Musk in his formative years. I admire your fortitude Professor Vance. I wonder whether the forum will not turn into a forum like Parler or Truth Social. Perhaps, as Musk is messing around with Kiev's ability to use Starlink, they may have to find other more helpful people, and abandon Musk. He is clearly losing a lot of money right now which has changed his behavior. No generosity there. His exploitative, miserly ways are like something out of a Dickens novel. I will start calling Twitter "Bleak House."