Yes, excellent post, Broth.'. Cameron! Whenever I interview candidates to our Lodge, I tell them that Freemasonry has stood the test of time not by taking on propaganda or shouting on the rooftops, but by quietly and resolutely standing for what we now understand as democracy - free thinking, civil discussion of ideas, tolerance of different points of view, learning from one another!
Those are very difficult lessions to learn; I hold the view that social media in our modern times actively destroys our ability to dispassionately give our ideas for discussion, accepting that we are not one with our thoughts - that is, we do not need to defend our opinions with teeth and claws, but listen to arguments and seek Truth.
Our work on the "rough stone" [in Brazil, we ended up calling it a stone rather than an ashlar, for reasons both simple and interesting... might get on that someday] is done patiently, one day after the other; steadily we advance towards the Light.
Thank you for your wisdom, Broth.'. Cameron! I have "received my dues [or salary] and am content and satisfied".
From Rio, in Brazil,
Broth.'. Hugo Ramirez
Loj.'. Grande Mestre Alberto Mansur, 3196
Grand.'. Or.'. do Rio de Jan.'. - Grand.'. Or.'. do Bras.'.
Regrettably I'm afraid that I must share your opinion about the impact Social Media has had on our society. The platforms make money by provoking emotional response, so feed users those things that will provoke such a response, namely anger or fear.
Modern media does the same in many cases, looking to create 'clickbait' articles to serve advertisements instead of explaining what has happened or is happening dispassionately.
I think that in order to counteract those forces, for how could it be otherwise in an industry driven by exposure to advertisements, we need to move towards platforms in which users support, and control the content they create and consume. That changes the system from one of emotion and clickbait to one of trust.
Fifty years ago if I read an editorial in the newspaper and felt inclined to respond, I would have had to search out a piece of paper, find a pen, and craft my response, all the time knowing that whatever I wrote was going to be seen and evaluated by many of my neighbors and friends. I would spend the best part of the day crafting my response to ensure I had my fact right and that my intended message was not misunderstood, knowing that my reputation in the community depended on my “well thought out” response.
Today I can be a total moron, hiding in near anonymity, dashing off a knee jerk response in mere moments without the slightest bit of personal reflection or consideration for how my response might be received.
If you disagree with me, it’s no big deal, as it only took a few minutes to write this, and I didn’t even have to engage my brain before I hit the Post button!
You make very good points, thank you VW. Indeed you are correct, the speed of response works against reasoned response, and it is only made worse by anonymity.
Love this article and absolutely Freemasonry paved the path to a republic under a constitution in North America, going back to Francis Bacon and Benjamin Franklin. The last letter Benjamin wrote was a warning on "Rules for ruining a Republic." If you were to read it without knowledge of who wrote it, you might think that it was written based off of current affairs or as a part of this article.
Franklin's letter includes: "If a dispute is salubrious, there are ways to make it poisonous, namely by employing dispute as a form of obstruction, rather than a means of betterment." and "Words are to democracy as beams are to a house. Our Constitution, our laws, hold up the edifice of the Republic. Whilst the democrat must have reverence for words, the foes of democracy must eat away at them like so many termites. Truth and falsehood must be meaningless. Impression is all that counts. Inconvenient facts must be called lies, not met with evidence. Disagreeable opinions must be called conspiracies, not judged by reason. In this way the beams weakened and the house easier to bring down."
Thank you for your very kind compliment Brother, and thank you for letting me know about Franklin's letter. I truly appreciate you letting me know about it!
Yes, excellent post, Broth.'. Cameron! Whenever I interview candidates to our Lodge, I tell them that Freemasonry has stood the test of time not by taking on propaganda or shouting on the rooftops, but by quietly and resolutely standing for what we now understand as democracy - free thinking, civil discussion of ideas, tolerance of different points of view, learning from one another!
Those are very difficult lessions to learn; I hold the view that social media in our modern times actively destroys our ability to dispassionately give our ideas for discussion, accepting that we are not one with our thoughts - that is, we do not need to defend our opinions with teeth and claws, but listen to arguments and seek Truth.
Our work on the "rough stone" [in Brazil, we ended up calling it a stone rather than an ashlar, for reasons both simple and interesting... might get on that someday] is done patiently, one day after the other; steadily we advance towards the Light.
Thank you for your wisdom, Broth.'. Cameron! I have "received my dues [or salary] and am content and satisfied".
From Rio, in Brazil,
Broth.'. Hugo Ramirez
Loj.'. Grande Mestre Alberto Mansur, 3196
Grand.'. Or.'. do Rio de Jan.'. - Grand.'. Or.'. do Bras.'.
Regrettably I'm afraid that I must share your opinion about the impact Social Media has had on our society. The platforms make money by provoking emotional response, so feed users those things that will provoke such a response, namely anger or fear.
Modern media does the same in many cases, looking to create 'clickbait' articles to serve advertisements instead of explaining what has happened or is happening dispassionately.
I think that in order to counteract those forces, for how could it be otherwise in an industry driven by exposure to advertisements, we need to move towards platforms in which users support, and control the content they create and consume. That changes the system from one of emotion and clickbait to one of trust.
Fifty years ago if I read an editorial in the newspaper and felt inclined to respond, I would have had to search out a piece of paper, find a pen, and craft my response, all the time knowing that whatever I wrote was going to be seen and evaluated by many of my neighbors and friends. I would spend the best part of the day crafting my response to ensure I had my fact right and that my intended message was not misunderstood, knowing that my reputation in the community depended on my “well thought out” response.
Today I can be a total moron, hiding in near anonymity, dashing off a knee jerk response in mere moments without the slightest bit of personal reflection or consideration for how my response might be received.
If you disagree with me, it’s no big deal, as it only took a few minutes to write this, and I didn’t even have to engage my brain before I hit the Post button!
You make very good points, thank you VW. Indeed you are correct, the speed of response works against reasoned response, and it is only made worse by anonymity.
Love this article and absolutely Freemasonry paved the path to a republic under a constitution in North America, going back to Francis Bacon and Benjamin Franklin. The last letter Benjamin wrote was a warning on "Rules for ruining a Republic." If you were to read it without knowledge of who wrote it, you might think that it was written based off of current affairs or as a part of this article.
Franklin's letter includes: "If a dispute is salubrious, there are ways to make it poisonous, namely by employing dispute as a form of obstruction, rather than a means of betterment." and "Words are to democracy as beams are to a house. Our Constitution, our laws, hold up the edifice of the Republic. Whilst the democrat must have reverence for words, the foes of democracy must eat away at them like so many termites. Truth and falsehood must be meaningless. Impression is all that counts. Inconvenient facts must be called lies, not met with evidence. Disagreeable opinions must be called conspiracies, not judged by reason. In this way the beams weakened and the house easier to bring down."
Thank you for your very kind compliment Brother, and thank you for letting me know about Franklin's letter. I truly appreciate you letting me know about it!
https://thefulcrum.us/congress/how-to-ruin-a-republic