Censorship Day

~ Old Lurker

Wow I’m upset. I can’t read Sixpence’s blog anymore. To see the blog you have always had to click through the “This is an adult blog” warning, but then those jerks at Google decided that you needed to sign in with a Google account to read Sixpence’s posts. There is no way in the world I am willing to log in so Google can know everything about my naughty blog habits, but fortunately I was able to use a non-Javascript browser to get past that. The jerks at Google are good engineers, though, and now that doesn’t work either.

That leaves RSS, but the RSS feed for Sixpence’s blog contains no text. So I guess I can’t read my favorite GenZ blogger anymore. How will I learn about gay artists on Instagram now? How will I see the interior design of famous people I have never heard of before? This is a disaster.

I understand why Google has done this (“who will think of the children?”) and I can’t say I disagree, but I am still upset. I have a strong policy of not logging into services when I am just browsing content and I am afraid I am not willing to cave into this. Sorry, Sixpence (and Upton).

(Yes, yes. Google is not a country and so this is not censorship, even though the oligopolist tech giants are more powerful than many countries. Spare me.)

Published by Old Lurker

I am old and I lurk.

38 thoughts on “Censorship Day”

  1. Wait what????
    Nooooooooooo *slowly slows down a wall*
    These fuckers! I cannot lose you, Lurkie! It’s because of all the dicks, right? Because it’s an ‘adult’ blog? Those prudes! I knew there was something behind all the fucking around with my posts from Blogger.
    They are also terrified of Bing. You see, Bing is bringing the AI to their browser and google is trying to capture as many people as they can. And this is one of their techniques: grab people by their porn.
    I would suggest creating a burner account: FuckYouGoogle666@gmail.com and use it only to peruse blogs with dicks on Blogger. I need you to keep lurking, Lurkie!
    Also, WordPress lets me post with google here but google will not let you post with WordPress?
    This requires action.
    You see? I have a backup blog on WordPress. I think I’m willing to make it go live so you can see my posts (It would be redundant with my Blogger) if you really want to read them. What says you?
    I like you watching me. What can I say? I’m a fucking perv. Also, now I want to see your browser history….

    XOXO

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    1. Nope. No burner account. Burner accounts have multiple problems. The first is that I forget to log out of those accounts, and then Google sees what else I am up to. The second is that you need a cellphone to get a Google account these days (unless you claim to be less than 13 years old)? I do not have a cellphone and would not trust Google with the number if I had one, so that is not an option. The third issue is consent. I do not consent to Google (or any other tech company) monitoring the blogs I read. My lack of consent does not stop the big tech companies from doing that monitoring, but there is a line in the sand here.

      I know you do not like WordPress and don’t want you to do more work for me. It is also very convenient that your blog is listed on John Gray’s blogroll, which is how I keep up with a plurality of the blogs I read these days. That would not be the case with your WordPress blog. But if you activated the WordPress blog then I would probably read it, and others who have been having trouble with Blogger (hi Jimmy!) might read it too.

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      1. Google is desperate, I tell you. And greedy. I usually go to all the porn blogs I know so it knows where the money is: DICK.
        And I’ll open that WordPress blog. I have no idea how it works yet, but I’ll hit the ‘live’ button and will go from there.

        *smooches*

        XOXO

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            1. Yay!
              I saw it. I’m apparently Tiffany, but I’ll figure it out how to change it. WordPress apparently has a domain and a blog??? Growing pains…

              XOXO

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    2. And yes, this is because your blog is marked as “adult”. Meanwhile, Maddie’s blog is fine, even though it also occasionally features anatomical studies.

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      1. Hahahaha
        Occasional anatomical studies?? I heart you.
        And I’m prepping my WordPress. Bear with me.

        XOXO

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        1. Ok, so I changed the theme and kicked Tiffany to the curb. I believe the blog may be working now ^_^. I did a basic thing. I’m going to watch some more tutorials to make it prettier, though. I like pretty.
          Don’t say I would not do things for you (and to piss off blogger…) LOL

          XOXO

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          1. I feel bad that you put in all this additional work for me, especially since the Blogger site is accessible today.

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  2. So how do you comment on my blog? Don’t you use a Google account to do that? Commenters who use a Yahoo or Hotmail account get sent to my blog itself for moderation but those who use a Google account get sent to my email account for moderation. You always show up in my email.

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    1. I comment using the “Name/URL” option on your blog. I dread the day that will stop working.

      Different Blogger blogs behave differently for me. Sixpence has always been challenging, but others (you, Blobby, Jon at Moran-Newman Farms) have been okay.

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      1. Okay, well, good thing I have that option on my blog then! And I don’t have a “warning” label on my blog to click, so no issue there. You can get to my posts and comment box.

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      2. Don’t know about anyone else but years ago when I abandoned Windows/Microsoft and transitions to Google I logged in and have been logged in ever since. I have no problem with their tracking (I do have a delete function afterall) or knowing where and what I do online. Hell, half of what I do I do online in the Google Cloud Drive anyway. It does not cost me anything (yet) and I know that all my stuff is stored someplace where I can get it when the brain in a box crashes and destroys everything. The result is that I am able to get to any blog that does not require a membership with no problem. I through out any belief in a right to privacy long ago when I was the CISO in Texas and it was very clear that there way, in fact, no privacy even when we convince ourselves there is. And, constitutionally, there is no right to privacy. That concept is totally made up in so called laws. Even all the paperwork around HIPPA is a joke. “Private” health information is shared right and left all the time and all within the word of the law. Don’t loose any sleep over this. It is what is and there is absolutely nothing I can do to change it. And, if you dig deep enough you may find so called work arounds that get you where you want to go.

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        1. I agree that there is effectively no privacy, and making a conscious decision to allow Google to track you is fine, but I wish to signal to Google that any tracking they do is done without my consent.

          As somebody who has been on the other side of this issue (desperately wanting to monitor others so I could accomplish some task) I am aware that other people’s data can be used for their benefit or used for my benefit, and that the line distinguishing the two is fuzzy at best. Google has a history of making bad judgments in this area. I do not have specific articles to link to, but I would not be surprised if people were tortured and killed as a result.

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    2. I think it has to do with the orange parental advisor they have on ‘adult’ blogs. Mine is restricted, well, you know why. So those blogs now require somebody to give them a google email address (that requires a phone number!!). It’s the ‘think of the children’ with a dollar sign attached to it.

      But Blogger does not know ME.

      XOXO

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  3. Oh, and another thing. This all seems to have blown up after Louisana passed their silly registration law and with all the moves in congress to strip online sites of their protections opening them up to all sorts of law suits and prosecutions.

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    1. It is interesting to think that this could be because of Louisiana. That makes a lot of sense, but I did not make the connection. That means WordPress’s days are numbered, too.

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      1. Oh fuck.
        They are gonna make me put a warning in the WordPress too? And of course it had to be one of those backward states.

        XOXO

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        1. For your readers in Louisiana? Certainly.

          For others? It is not 100% sure. When Ron DeSantis wins the presidency then I could see a similar law for any LGBTQ+ content across America. But for now I think Google may be rolling changes out nationwide when it only applies to a few states.

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  4. Don’t know if you have ever heard it but there used to be a saying “As Goes California, So Goes The World”. Well it seems that DeSanctimonius wants that changes to “As Goes Florida, So Goes The Universe”. All the more reason that I support Climate Change if it will really cover the entire State of Florida.

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    2. Are you ready to take advanced orders? Can I get some that also have sparkly stuff on them?

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  6. I am thankful that what I used to do to my husband with mayonnaise on my old blog remained uncensored. Happy Days!
    JP

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    1. We are all grateful for this. We are also grateful that your new blog is uncensored as well. (Let us hope the UK-equivalent of Ron DeSantis never finds out.)

      Hope you are well. I adore hearing from you.

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    1. Oh dear. Let us hope that day never comes, lest you end up with unsolicited comic books and giraffes in your mailbox.

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    1. I know, right? I spend hours doing research and crafting some mini-essay for five comments, and pound out a frustrated 15 minute complaint for 35 comments. I don’t get it.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. In the imortal words of Fran Lebowitz…”The proper value of any object is measured by is it attractive, is it appealing and does it know it’s place. Children fail in all three units of measurement.” So, the children be damned. I know that is not a popular point of view but I doubt any child reads my blog or any of the other I read.

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        1. To the contrary: it works very well for riling up the base, so we keep electing Republicans.

          I mean, thank goodness Lauren Boebert’s son was protected from seeing smut and/or drag queens. Otherwise she might not be a grandma at age 36.

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