So, what's the deal with Facebook and why so cozy with them,...

Rich Lepoutre

Admin

Joined: 2020-03-13 23:33:13

2020-12-11 07:58:01

This question came up the other day, and believe me, I get it, but to use an old expression, our position is that "you don't throw out the baby with the bathwater."

Some further explanation...

We first crossed swords with Facebook 8 years ago when we challenged them in a national campaign as a result of their failure to take down and control thousands of pedophiles who were actively using Facebook to trade in the criminal image and video content. That is still a problem today.

So, our experience with Facebook (and social media, at large) is a love/hate thing. We relish in the spirit of American ingenuity and free enterprise, but we came to understand a long time ago that from the time of Cain and Abel to Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, there is a dark side to human nature, especially when it involves fame and power.

Fast-forward to 2020, and most of us now clearly realize the very disturbing part they have played in this still very fouled 2020 Election. And we all know that Facebook is not alone in this regard.

But there is no escaping the fact that 95% of us have Facebook accounts, whether active or not. And nationally, a typical Facebook user has well over 220 Facebook "Friends." And even though most of us have some Facebook Friends who oppose our views and that we can barely tolerate, that nets out to a lot of other connections. And in the "one to many" world of social media, this matters for two big reasons -

First, because of CauseBOOK's official integration with Facebook, as a CauseBOOK user, you can instantly invite as few or as many of those Facebook Friends as you want into CauseBOOK. In a couple of clicks from within CauseBOOK, you are on Facebook's official and standard sharing tool, and you can send a CauseBOOK invitation to one of the dozens of those Friends in seconds. It's "one and done" simple. That's powerful, and it is unique to CauseBOOK.

Second, most of us are now aware of Facebook's throttling or outright censoring of Conservative Publishers... the very same Publishers whose content is baked-in and constantly updated on CauseBOOK. And once again, because of the CauseBOOK/Facebook integration, you can share that content any time you want. When you do that, you have selectively informed others about content they won't likely see on Facebook, and perhaps, more importantly, you have become a "force-multiplier" for Conservative Publishers who are being throttled and censored everywhere - on Facebook, Twitter, and in steered Google searches.

You see, in your hands, our integration with Facebook puts the "one to many" math and power of social media to work towards the goal of a fair and even-handed exchange of news and opinion.

So, the questions we pose to you in this thread are these -

Do you agree with the strategy, or is it just too cozy with Facebook for your taste?

If you do agree with the strategy, have you used our "Invite Facebook Friends to CauseBOOK" feature yet?

If not, can you tell me why not? Is it about time or your comfort level?

Do you plan to give it a go soon? Perhaps you have not used Facebook's "Sharer" tool much before, and a bit of coaching or a quick "how-to" video would help?

Chime in, please. There are no wrong answers, and we are counting on you to help guide us.

Rich Lepoutre

Admin

Joined: 2020-03-13 23:33:13

2020-12-14 17:23:51

This added Reply is the result of a direct email I received last night on this thread point. Because it was posed of me in a personal email, I am not reproducing it here. But I hope this Reply does add further clarity to the question. It is a valid one. It is a question we have carefully considered for several years and we are thankful, for the Gentlemen who asked this, in sum:

Doesn't the linkage between CauseBOOK and Facebook, who we know have banned and censored Conservative opinion and conversation and as has been recently been revealed funded anti-Trump Voter Organizations, perhaps even illegally, represent a compromise that some might find unacceptable?

Well, that's OK, if that's what you think, but I contend that it is missing a very important point, especially in the context of CauseBOOK's overall, long-view goals.

Let me explain further...

Earlier I referenced the expression of "not throwing out the baby with the bathwater". It's at a more personal level, but I believe it is illustrative of what I believe is a hard-learned, carefully-considered decision made with "clean hands".

And now a short (but Gospel-truth) story...

Some years ago, I had the opportunity to become an at-a-distance friend with one of my youth's Rock idols - Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad. Now, if you are old enough, you will remember that Grand Funk Railroad was the epitome of "sex, drugs and rock n' roll" of the 70's who filled Shea Stadium and 54,000 seats, faster than the Beatles did. If you are younger and don't recognize Grand Funk Railroad, then just fill in their name with one of the several "bad boy" rock bands you know of.

In the mid-80s, Mark Farner gave his life to Christ, and a new and Redeemed Mark Farner, Rock idol, considered how he would set about preaching the Gospel of Salvation, using his worldly fame as leverage to reach the unsaved.

What else could be more important, he asked. It was not the "Choir" who needed to hear the Salvation message, and he had a passport into places and venues that no Preacher or Witness could get into as easily as he could. He was a new man in Christ, but he was also Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad. In Grace, he would put that to work in building the Kingdom, a good steward of what had come before, now Redeemed for as many earthly days were left to him.

It was then that he used an expression I had also used for years - "you can be so Heavenly-bound, you are no Earthly good". Yup. I had seen it too many times, myself in my modest Faith walk.

And so, having rebuilt the band with fellow Brothers and Believers, adjusted the lyrics here and there, Mark would "preach" from then on, in strip clubs, outdoor biker Pig Roasts, and the closest he came to a traditional venue would be casinos spread throughout the country.

Now I am not making any Messianic claims here. I am merely pointing out that as digital warriors with some standing, having crossed paths with Facebook for years, and as daily observers of thousands in their use of Facebook, it is foolish and arguably naive to pretend that the fastest and still "clean-handed" path to growing CauseBOOK, is to acknowledge Facebook's status with Users and to honestly and legitimately build a bridge that serves the purposes of an effective new too... one that we believe will be useful to the preservation of our American ideals and Principles.

And so, that is it for now. Do jump in.

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So, what's the deal with Facebook and why so cozy with them, given their censoring and throttling of Conservative news, especially as it relates to the Election?