Business relations, Consumer reports, Consumer Reports, Free Article, Media, Opinions, Uncategorized

Starlink: Is it worth it?

Months ago, I had made the announcement that I would be partaking in the beta test for “Starlink.” Upon using the product, I am going to be giving my honest opinion of it. Before I do this, however, I want to make it known that “Starlink” has no association to this article, This means that, “War on Corruption” is not being paid to by their company to write this. This article is being written purely from my observations.

In the satellite internet industry, there really aren’t that many options, especially in the United States. The few companies who do strictly provide internet in this format, can be described as questionable, and that’s putting it kindly. So what of “Starlink?” Is it any better? Let’s break down the pros and the cons.

Pros

The internet speed is absolutely impressive, even for a beta test. For instance, I average around 97mbps download and 10mbps upload. I expect that this is going to be improved as the network becomes more advanced. Unlike other companies, as we recently discussed in a previous article, “Starlink” has done exactly what they said they would do. They have provided exactly what they claimed. This form of transparency is refreshing as most companies have hidden conditions, to which you only learn after signing up.

Unlike other companies that I have dealt with, there are currently no contracts, though it’s unknown if this will change in the future. If you want to cancel your service, you can without any risk to you, or your banking account.

One thing that other companies love to do is “throttle.” Throttling is when a company slows your internet down for other customers. For companies, such as ViaSat, this is a constant issue as they throttle their internet regardless. However, with the introduction of this new service, it’s fairly easy to presume that these other companies may have to step-up their games if they wish to remain in the competitive field.

Cons

As with any company, there are cons. To keep this review fair and transparent, I’m going to review these flaws. Some of these flaws are will be fixed before global release. But for now, we’re going to count them, but we will mention the ones, that we are aware of, that will be resolved.

For many users, especially those who are computer savvy, the inability to access the router is a bit of a problem. This means that you cannot go to the router’s settings as “Starlink” currently does not have that ability. However, if you are one of these tech savvy individuals, this is one of the cons that they state will be resolved.

Another potential con comes in the fact that all IP addresses are currently dynamic. Though this in itself isn’t the con, the con comes in that if you need to reboot your modem, you’re going to have to setup your entire network all over again. This is something that could be a bit annoying, but it’s not to complicated as you are walked through the process, which is essentially naming and setting a password. It is unknown if this will be changed.

Nobody likes downtime. But when you’re apart of a beta test, you’re going to get it. For me personally, it’s been minor little glitches: pages not loading, forcing me to refresh, the period disconnection from the router, that sort of thing. But, with that aside, it hasn’t really posed itself as a serious issue. This is, thankfully, one con that will be resolved prior to global release.

So this is what I think about the new “Starlink” system. Overall, it’s a wonderful system with a lot of potential. If the company’s mindset, and transparency, remains as it currently is, I can foresee it quickly stomping the competition.

Business relations, Consumer reports, Consumer Reports, Free Article, internet safety, Media, Opinions, predatory, scam

ISP, ViaSat, accused of shady business practices (PT:1)

Editorial Note: This article is not intended to act as legal advice. It is purely based on the research of “War on Corruption, LLC,” to bring awareness to a situation that seems to be rampant within the ViaSat corporation.

The internet age has allowed us to communicate on a global scale. Through the internet, we are able to call, video chat, and even conduct business that would otherwise be impossible. But, as with all things, it has a dark side to it. Just as honest people have found an avenue for discussion, socializing, and so fourth, this remains true for those who are not so honest. But what happens when the dishonesty comes from the very company who has provided you this global access? That’s the question that has lead to this article.

Viasat is a global internet company. Through the use of satellite technology, they provide the same service as any other ISP. However, unlike what you find with most ISP’s, the amount of complaints against this one is alarming. From misrepresentation, shady business tactics, and a lot of the in-between, Worst yet, every business review site, including the BBB, reflect this.

Though its rating varies from site to site, we’re going to look at the BBB. According to the site, Viasat has a rating 1.04 out of 5. For a company that prides itself on providing internet service, this score is extremely low. Upon looking into the reviews, however, it quickly become apparent as to why.

The main nature of my complaint is the willful misrepresentation on the part of their sales personnel at the time we were investigating switching to a satellite provider. As with so many, we live in a rural area and had endured unusable DSL for years from ******** **************. We needed something better. We knew that ViaSat was not going to be perfect, but we were discussing going from a monthly fee of $78/mo for intensely unreliable service to $179/mo for service described as ‘variable once our data cap had been reached’. We GRILLED the salesperson as to what that meant, because what we had been enduring were speeds between 0.1 and 1.0 mbps. Anything under 0.8 and our internet becomes unusable and believe me I have learned a lot of tricks; everything from extensions that play videos only once they are fully buffered to tab suspenders to features on my gaming computer that allow the entire resources of my computer to be used only for one browser tab. We were ASSURED up, down and sideways that it would never, ever be worse than 5mbps at the very, very worst. With this fear assuaged, we signed up. So once again last night our data cap ran out (we pay for the highest tier; we cannot purchase more data and we have tried) and at 7pm I was confronted with a Zoom meeting and a 0.2 mbps connection. When I contacted customer service the next day to tell them that this was unacceptable and that they needed to do something, she figuratively threw up her hands and could only say ‘this is how ViaSat works.’ I told her that this apparently translated to their sales personnel lying as much as necessary to sign people up and then abdicating all responsibility once their customers were stuck in contracts. I gained the sense this was hardly the first time she had heard this. I would not mind being slowed down. I mind having totally unusable Internet as I am sure almost everyone here does. I mind even more that I was bait and switched; I don’t like liars. What this company does would be illegal in Washington state. I wish I lived there and I hope the day comes when their ‘business plan’ dries up because **** **** and ******** put them out of business. When that service comes online, I will be out the door faster than you can say ‘speed test.’

The above comment is one of the most common ones that we’ve found, in regards to the shady business tactics. The fact that their sales representatives knowingly and willfully provide false information to potential customers, falls into the category of “misrepresentation.” Misrepresentation, in the legal sense, is defined as: Getting into a contract with a person or a company on false grounds by making statements that are not in accordance with the facts.

What this means is that if the company misrepresents itself, its provided services, or information pertaining to the contract, that contract can be classified as void. All the consumer would have to do is prove it. Sadly for Viasat, there are hundreds of reviews that establish the claim of deceit against potential customers. But Viasat is accused of doing more than misrepresenting their service and plans. In at least one instance, they tricked a potential customer into signing a contract. A contract that they were completely unaware of until they attempted to cancel the service.

In response to a callout that we did, via Twitter and Facebook, one of their current customers sent us the following statement:

I have been with Viasat for a little over a year. During this time, I have never once gotten decent service. In fact, even when my service renewed, it still registered that I had used more data than what I was allotted. After months of dealing with this, I decided today was enough; I attempted to terminate my service. Now, before I continue, I need to backtrack. When I first signed up, I paid, as shown in the image provided, the entire equipment lease charge. I did this under the impression that by doing so, I would not be under a contract and that I would own the equipment. So, back to my termination attempt.

They tell me that I am under contract and that I do not own the equipment. I explain what I was told on the phone, only to get into an escalated conversation with the representative. I end up putting my service on a hibernation, which means they’re still going to take money out of my account. The company lied to me about being in a contract, they lied to me about the service quality, and now they’re trying to dupe me out of more money. This can’t be legal, is it?

Well, let’s go ahead and answer this one. No, it is not legal. In fact, with a good attorney, you might be able to make a fraud claim. Fraud is defined as: wrongful or criminal deception intended to result in financial or personal gain. Clearly, by informing you that you were not in a contract, when you were, they defrauded you. They defrauded you because they knew that if you attempted to cancel the service, you would be liable to pay an ETF for the remaining contractual months; this is where the personal gain comes in.

We’re still deep diving into this company. Because of the large number of complaints, we simply cannot cover it all in one article, there will be a PT: 2 in the near future. This company demonstrates the “why” people need to conduct a through investigation into any company to which they intend to conduct business. It’s unfortunate that so many people have learned this, after the fact. However, we’re going to do our part in preventing this from happening to other consumers.

Basic Level, children, CPS, Gold Membership, Law Enforcement, Media, Opinions, Police, predatory, shooting

Inside CPS: A story of survival

We’ve all seen the claims on Facebook. The claims of wrongfully taken children who are placed into foster care, and how the system violated the rights of the parents. This isn’t one of those articles. This article is from the perspective of one of those children, now grown. In this article, we are giving the raw details, the only omission will be to their name, as per request. The reasons behind this will be clarified by the end. We also want to state, that the actual story being told is word-for-word what they sent us. Though we’ve separated the story into categories, this is 100% their experience within the system.

Pre-CPS

As a young child, I had a rather uneventful life. Back in those days, we went to school, we went home, we did normal kid stuff. I had no understanding of the legal system, I thought police were the good guys, and I had no idea what CPS was; that was about to change. I believe I was in fourth grade when they first showed up. To this day, I can recall the caseworker’s name. From what I have learned, over the years, my family was having problems with the principal at my school. As a result of this, he decided to file a false abuse claim against my parents. Keep in mind, I was only a child and yet this scumbag dragged my siblings and I into his problem.

The caseworker showed up, with the police. I may had been young but I wasn’t stupid, I knew something bad was going on. I don’t recall much of it, I guess I blanked most of it out, over the years. What I do recall is the police informing the caseworker that there was no grounds to take us; I had no idea what they were even talking about. It’s important to note that, at this time, my parents were in the process of remodeling the kitchen. Naturally, the kitchen was a bit chaotic, as a result of this. I mention this because it’s going to an important piece of information shortly.

The caseworker was obvious pissed off by what the officer had stated. I recall her telling my parents that, “this wasn’t over. She would be back,” and she was. The following day, the same caseworker arrived with two different officers. These weren’t the same officers she had brought the previous day. Once again, they intruded into my family’s house. They saw the kitchen and the repairs that were being made. More importantly, they saw my father’s 100 year old shotgun. The rifle didn’t work and it was pretty obvious that it didn’t. It hung above the door, which lead into the hallway. It was a bit of a piece of family history, nothing more. That rifle and the kitchen would be the reasons we were removed.

The officers began forcing my siblings and I out the door. I resisted, I began to run up the street only to be caught. The caseworker had informed my parents that the court hearing would be the following day. However, a nosy neighbor of ours overheard her tell an officer to get us to the courthouse because the hearing was actually that day. Thank God for nosy neighbors. My parents barely made it in time, explained to the judge why they were late, and had a seat. For the next several years, this would be our lives. CPS, Court, abuse, Court…you get the idea.

Post CPS

After the circus, or hearing, we were sent to some sort of “halfway” house. I forget exactly what it was. During this time, my parents had limited visitation. They were instructed to not tell us anything about the case. They weren’t even allowed to mention it so we still had no idea why we were taken. I remember it being a Thursday evening. A couple had walked into the facility, they were foster parents. Unfortunately for my siblings and I, they were there to pick us up. Though I tried to fight, I was simply to small to do so. By the end of it, we were in their car, going to some strangers house, in some town I had never heard of. I wish I had been strong enough to fight back, perhaps I wouldn’t have the issues that I now have.

Upon arriving, they introduced us to their family, showed us our rooms, and gave us some food to eat. At first, they seemed like decent people; that wouldn’t last long though. By the end of the first week, the abuse toward me had begun. At first it wasn’t severe, but it quickly became so. I’ll try to detail what I can, just please keep in mind that I have severe PTSD from what I endured.

The abuse and results

One of my siblings was an infant. It first started with me asking a question to the foster father. At the time he had been changing her diaper. Though I forgotten what I had asked, I never forgot his response. At first, he simply said nothing and continued doing what he was doing. He placed the dirty diaper next to him, didn’t even bother folding it, the reason will be obvious shortly. After wiping her, he got up, put the wipes into the diaper, and jerked me by the arm to the garage. He had yanked my arm so hard that I recall hearing it pop.

The garage wasn’t connected to the house, it was a separate building. Once inside, he pushed me down onto a metal chair. I recall him saying something like, “You think you’re going to fucking interrupt me? Now you sit out here until I decide you’re good enough to come back inside.” He then proceeded to place the diaper on my head before warning me of what would happen if I removed it. I don’t recall how long I was out there, but I recall it being very cold outside. I was out there for what seemed like hours, with a shit filled diaper sitting on my head. This would become the “norm” for me. The abuse only got worst.

To short-hand a lot of it, I’ll just say that I was beaten on a near daily basis. If anybody in the family was upset, even if I wasn’t involved, I got beaten. I was bullied by their kids, who did no wrong, but that wasn’t even the worst of it. About three weeks into nightmare, the sexual abuse began.

It was always done in the bathroom. He would force me to lean over the bathtub, the toilet, whatever he could get my small body over, and he would do things. At first, he used his fingers to “pleasure” me, as he would say. But it only got worst. Fingers turned into instruments, and instruments turned into penetration using his genitals. I still have nightmares over this, it’s something that has never left my memories. When I didn’t comply, he would fill the bathtub with scolding hot water. One of two things would happen: He would either force my head under the water, until things began to fade, or, he would simply pour the burning water down my back.

The breaking point

After so many weeks of being beaten, raped, tortured, you name it, I had finally snapped. I found a pistol in his bedroom. I casually picked it up. I don’t know if it was loaded, I didn’t care, I was going to shoot this man. I walked into the living room, aimed this pistol at him, and I fired and missed, blowing out their television instead. I won’t lie and say I regret it, I only regret missing him. Within twenty-four hours, I was being placed into a psychiatric ward at a local Children’s hospital.

While my biological family knew what was going on, they were powerless to stop it. Even with multiple reports to CPS, the agency who protects children, stated that I was lying. They claimed that I was simply trying to get revenge on the foster parents for taking us away from our biological parents. The agency, in the meantime, was working on sealing the files, which they did after the case was finally dismissed.

The conclusion

It’s to late to save me, I’m already a lost cause with my PTSD, clinical depression, suicidal thoughts, and what-not. So, I have nothing to gain from sharing this story. So why bother? I’m sure you’re wondering that. I’m not sharing it because I want to. I’m sharing it because somewhere in the world is another child who is going through what I went through. They need to understand that they’re not alone. They don’t have to be alone. They need to know that they can fight back, they may have to dig far into themselves to find that strength, but they can fight back. CPS has never acknowledged what was done to me. To this day, the files remain sealed and they deny anything ever happened. Yet here I am, with my mental and emotional scars, telling you the story that apparently never happened.

Thank you for taking the time to listen.

~John Doe~

Basic Level, Gold Membership, Law Enforcement, Media, Opinions, Police, police relations, shooting, Uncategorized

Daunte Wright: What went wrong?

The shooting of Daunte Wright can only be described as a sad tragedy. What should had been a simple traffic stop quickly escalated into a situation that would leave one man dead and an officer facing charges. What happened on the day Daunte was shot? Here’s what we currently know.

On 04/11/2021, Wright was pulled over for having an expired tag. During this time, officers had discovered an active warrant for Wright. For this reason, they proceeded to make an arrest. However, the situation was about to take a turn for the worst.

As officers attempted to cuff Wright, he began to resist, pulling himself out of the arms of officer Potter. She proceeded to reach for a taser, only to accidently retrieve her service weapon. With Wright in his vehicle, attempting to flee, Potter yells, “taser, taser.” This was to notify other officers, as well as Wright, that the use of a less than lethal weapon was about to commence.

Upon yelling this, Potter fires one round, fatally shooting Wright in the chest. At this point, we can hear Potter say, “Oh my God, I just shot him.” Wright’s vehicle drives for several blocks before crashing into the back of another vehicle. What went wrong? Let’s review that aspect.

What went wrong?

Things initially started out as a very standard traffic stop. However, things begin to quickly go wrong once officers begin to make an arrest. So how could things go so seriously wrong in such a short time? For this, we have to look at the actions of officer Potter.

Most departments have a standard policy regarding their tasers and service weapons. In general, the two are to be kept separated. This is to prevent exactly what happened in the Wright situation. Potter’s department’s policy was: Service weapons were to be placed on the “dominant” side of the officer. The taser was to be placed on the officer’s “weak” side. However, from the context of the video, we know that officer Potter may had been in violation of this policy.

If she had placed her taser in the location, as described by her department’s policy, Duane may had very well survived this encounter. Evidence of the potential violation comes in the fact that she had intended to reach for the taser, only to grab her pistol instead.

The other aspect of where “things went wrong,” actually began with Duane Wright. If he had not resisted, over a gross misdemeanor warrant, just as stated above, he very well could had survived this encounter. Although this is true, this does not excuse the fact that officer Potter used lethal force in a situation that did not require it.

Every department has as “use of force” policy. This policy outlines what type of force can be used as well as when it can be used. A man trying to escape is a justified reason for pulling a taser. It is not a justified reason for pulling a service weapon, even if that was done by mistake. Furthermore, officer Potter, a veteran of 20+ years, should had known better than to allow such a mistake to occur. Furthermore, she should had immediately realized that the weapon she pulled was not a taser.

There are fundamental differences between a taser and a service pistol. The weight of each weapon is different. To expand beyond that, the visual difference should had been an indicator. Tasers, as used by law enforcement, are yellow and black. The weapon Potter was holding clearly did not have this color scheme. So, what happens now?

As we all know, officer potter, and the police chief, have resigned. For Potter, the situation has taken more of a legal turn. The day after her resignation, she was arrested. Potter currently sits in the county jail, where she faces charges of negligent manslaughter. I have no doubt that she will be convicted. In this situation, the bodycam photage, speaks for itself.

Potter was careless, and had accidently discharged a weapon that she had not intended. Because of this careless act, a young man is now dead. This situation should serve as a warning, not only to the public, but to other law enforcement officers: If you’re careless, you may create a situation to which there is no return.

Free Article, Law Enforcement, Media, Opinions, Police, predatory, Uncategorized

American trucking company forces woman to suffer?

We all know the importance of the commercial drivers who traverse our highways. These men and women sacrifice weeks of their lives, living on the road, to deliver the products that we all use on a daily basis, without these brave individuals, our country would simply come to an abrupt halt. However, as we have reported before, the industry is riddled with flaws, corruption, and complete disregard for these individuals. If you are curious as to the source of all of this, you only need to look as far as the companies themselves. With that in mind, this brings us to a disturbing story that we have been made aware of. This story derives the transportation carrier, ‘Hirschbach Motor lines.’

Events unfolding

Recently, a serious winter storm struck most of the Midwest. Parts of the country, such as Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana to name a few, were at a complete disadvantage as they desperately attempted to ward off the ice and snow, which had accumulated on the roads. Meanwhile, in Denton TX., a driver and his fiancé were walking into a truck stop for food. This mere decision would become the start of a dispute that would last hours.

They returned to the semi with little issue. However, as the young woman began to climb up its steps, she suddenly slipped, falling to the ground, and ultimately breaking her arm. Multiple drivers attempted to assist the young woman, including her soon-to-be husband, eventually getting her safely into the vehicle. As per the company’s policy, the driver called to report the incident, citing that she was in immediate need of emergency assistance. The company disregarded this. As he continued to fight with company, the driver began utilizing what medical training he had in hopes of easing her pain.

The feud

The driver continued his contact with the dispatch department, only to be given answers that, according to the young woman, were impossible. He was given suggestions such as:

Taking the entire truck and trailer to the hospital. We are told this was impossible simply because both vehicle and trailer could not fit into the parking lot.
Call Uber or a taxi. This was impossible due to the winter storm, they simply weren’t operating their cabs or Ubers.
Drop the trailer. While this was a feasible solution, the company refused to give the driver a drop location. Dropping the trailer without their consent could had potentially cost him a job or been deemed as an abandonment by the company, which we are told is a career ending accusation.

In the end, it would be more than twenty-four hours before the young woman would get to a medical professional. Not only is this a complete disregard for human life, which is apparently a common theme within companies, it’s illegal.

Synopsis

The facts here should be rather apparent. The situation involves a young woman, riding a commercial vehicle that is owned by the company. She has a misfortunate event that leads to a broken arm. The company, at this point, has a legal responsibility: they must get her medical treatment within a timely fashion. In not doing so, the company put her at risk of contracting an infection known as ‘osteomyelitis.’ This is an infection of the bone. Though uncommon, it can become a life-threatening situation.

Furthermore, the carrier allowed her to be on the semi, documents submitted to us further confirm that the company was fully aware of the fact that she was authorized to be present, this only furthers the company’s liability in this situation. By doing nothing, providing the driver with no plausible solution for getting her medical treatment, the company has only successfully created a potential act of litigation, one to which they could not possibly win.

From the editor

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Business relations, Free Article, internet safety, Law Enforcement, Media, Opinions, Police, police relations, predatory, shooting, terrorism, Uncategorized

America’s war on itself

Recent events have done nothing more than demonstrate the problem that has been ignored for many years. While many of us have known that this day would arrive, the vast majority sat in the comfort of their own homes, completely ignorant of what was about to come. Today, we’re going to review the rapid progression on the “war” against the American people. This is a war brought fourth by corporations and our very own government.

Election fiasco

It should be obvious that the vast majority believe the election was rigged. While our platform has always been critical of Trump, we were even more critical of the idea of having “mail-in” votes. The concept of mailing in your vote simply left to many variables for things to go wrong. While I’m not willing to blatantly state that the election was rigged, I am willing to entertain the idea that it is very likely. Even with that aside, even with my criticism of Donald Trump, I believe, without doubt, that he is being completely railroaded by Nancy Pelosi and her “goons.”

In recent months, we saw the first impeachment process against Trump. Let’s face the reality about that process, it was a bogus situation with nothing less than ill intent. Of course, this wasn’t the last attempt to destroy the now former president. In recent weeks, in a highly controversial and potentially illegal move, we witnessed a second impeachment. This process was based on the grounds that Trump incited a riot at the capital. But did he? Well, the tweets that they are using say nothing about condoning a riot. In fact, the term didn’t even appear in the tweets; the fact is, we simply could not find any tweet to which President Trump encouraged a riot. But what about the riot itself?

Mainstream media has really bitten into this one. We know things were stolen from the capital. We know that people were killed during this riot. But what many people don’t know is how this group successfully bypassed heavily armed Security, law enforcement, and even Secret Service agents to get into this building. For that, you only have to search for videos, which are being spread all over the internet. What we see in these videos are the police opening barricades to allow the protestors in. Police are seen talking with the protestors, interacting with these “dangerous” thugs. What I’m saying here should be clear: they got in because the police literally opened the doors for them. Because of these videos, some people are lead to believe that this was actually a bait to justify impeachment.

The second impeachment is highly questionable, at best. While it would still have to go court, even with the votes already being cast, Trump will no longer be in office when this happens. This would make him the first President to ever be impeached after already being removed from his position. Of course, the second impeachment is also a first. Meanwhile, as a result of this, tensions are quickly reaching a boiling point. I no longer believe that the possibility of civil war, I now wonder when it will happen.

Further tension arose with the questionable removal of Trump from social media. While many people are surprised and shocked by this, they really shouldn’t be. For years, Facebook has taken a stance to shutdown independent media platforms, or anybody who spoke against their supported political figure; Twitter is known to do the same, though not as extreme as Facebook. The basic point is: they’ve been censoring people for years now, with no accountability, and it’s not going to stop just because of who the person is. For those who are absolutely outraged by this, questions regarding our constitutional rights arise. Can a company do this? Well, that’s tricky. Technically, they are private companies. However, as I’ve said many times before, a company who is on the stock market falls into the category of being “public domain.”

Rather or not they can do this doesn’t mean they won’t. As our own government continues to put the nails into the coffin of our democracy, at the expense of the American people, we can expect to see many more reactions. The capital riot is just the start of what could very well become an outright war. While the government has the ability to prevent this, I don’t believe they will. If anything, I believe this is exactly what they’ve been wanting to happen. After all, anybody who’s observant can see that this tension has been slowly boiling for many years now.

Uncategorized

What comes next?

Since last October, our team has had many discussions about this very article. We all knew that it would happen, it was simply unavoidable. This article is not only exposing the legal violations, policy violations, and abuse from Facebook, this article is serving as a testament of the results from these abuses. While we have written articles previously discussing what was being done to our team, it was agreed that we needed to write the conclusion to those articles.

If you followed us on Facebook, you already know what the results were. If you’ve been following, in general, you already know what has been occurring. However, if you aren’t aware, let’s start by giving you a quick rundown to get you up to speed on things.

In September, Facebook had done an unknown action that prevented our bot from automatically posting our articles to our Facebook page, this began shortly before the other events, which will be discussed shortly, began. It took us a few weeks to even notice that this had happened. While our website showed that Facebook was connected, Twitter was connected, and so fourth, the posts simply were not going up on Facebook. After attempting to resolve this issue, with no success, we began manually posting the articles.

Though this was rather annoying, we did what had to be done. For a few weeks things were fine; this changed around October 20th. One by one, admins of the WoC page were being completely blocked out of their profiles. They were unable to comment, like, post, share, etc. However, they were able to send instant messages. In total, five of the seven admins were completely blocked from doing anything on their accounts. Facebook offered no explanation, no resolution, not even a policy that was violated. We began sending daily disputes, though Facebook blocked us from doing this as well. Finally, out of desperation, I personally began sending messages to them via the “feedback” feature. After doing this for about a week, that too was blocked.

These blocks lasted until December 19th. The entire time, we could do nothing aside watch as the platform suffered from our lack of activity. During this time, the admin who had not been affected, took control of the platform. Finally, when we were unblocked, it was decided that we would tread cautiously; this did not work.

On December 25th, I got online to four messages. Once again, the admin were blocked on Facebook. I immediately checked my profile to find that, like last time, it was also blocked. This block lasts for thirty days. As with the previous block, we have no ability to contest it. In fact, looking into the “violations” section, shows nothing. Essentially, as far as Facebook is concerned, we aren’t blocked. Though I have, once again, begun sending feedback to the site, that has now also been blocked. With this, our team had a difficult choice to make. Do we continue operating on what is clearly a site that willfully violates constitutional rights, or do we shutdown?

With much discussion, we removed the platform from the public eye, we unpublished the page. While this was a move that none of us had wanted, there simply was no alternative action. Facebook has made it abundantly clear that we are being targeted, a violation of their harassment policy, in fact. Extending beyond that, it contradicts the very words of Mark Zuckerberg, who had stated that Facebook would not censor free speech. With the removal of our Facebook page, we effectively lost more than 97% of our followers. If you aren’t aware of what this means, it means War on Corruption is on a path toward shutting its doors, or the difficult path of having to rebuild the entire platform; at this time, we are still discussing our future.

Meanwhile, Facebook is not held accountable. We aren’t the first platform to be censored out in this way. CopBlock, Freedom Thought Project, and many others have been targeted by the social media giant. Around 2018, we witnessed what many called the “Facebook purge.” During this time dozens of independent media platforms were simply shutdown by Facebook. No explanation, no reason, not even an email explaining why. Thankfully, many of these platforms recovered. Hopefully, with time, we shall too.

Cyber, Free Article, internet safety, Law Enforcement, Media, Opinions, predatory, terrorism

Targeted

December 19th, marks the day that five of the seven members of the “War on Corruption” team got unbanned. For two months, we had fought a losing battle just to obtain information as to why we had gotten banned in the first place. While, to this day, nobody associated with the platform knows why we had gotten banned, it does seem that this is a calculated and deliberate attack against the platform.

Yesterday, December 25th, like so many around the world, I had a day that was filled to the brim in events. Between exchanging gifts, family time, etc. Facebook wasn’t even on the forefront of my mind. Later in the evening, when I had finally gotten some time, I check my messages. As it would turn out, I had four new messages from the same individuals who had recently gotten unblocked from Facebook. Every one of these messages were informing me that their accounts, once again, had been blocked. You can imagine my dismay to this.

At this point, I decide to take a quick glance at my profile. Although I had not been online for the entire day, it too was blocked. The vague reason being that I had violated their community standards. However, it didn’t inform me as to how I violated these vague standards nor did it show me anything that I had posted that could had been a violation. At this point, I had my confirmation: Facebook is maliciously, willfully, and with full intent, targeting my platform and harassing those associated with it. Now this is something important and I am about to explain why.

You may, or may not, be aware of this: In 2012 Facebook placed itself into the stock market. This was good financially, but very bad for how Facebook is currently operating. Because they are in the stock market, they are no longer a private company. That’s also important to note. Being that they are no longer a private company, it is no longer a question as to rather or not they can simply run the show however they see fit. For example, in a private setting, your constitutional rights don’t mean a thing. For Facebook, who is now in the public setting, the coin flips. They can’t simply censor out your rights.

Unlike the first go around, those of us who have been shadow banned from the site, have opted to simply delete our profiles. In doing so, we have effectively destroyed our own platform, by force courtesy of Facebook and it’s tyrannical approach to freelance journalism. In the meantime, we continue to seek out others who have been targeted in this way, we continue our search for a civil rights attorney, with the hope of putting an end to the illegal activities being conducted by Facebook. Until that time, we still debate the final fate for the platform on Facebook. However, one thing is cemented: It will be removed at some point.

Business relations, Free Article, Law Enforcement, Media, Opinions, Police, police relations

Are retailers violating the HIPAA ACT?

With the COVID situation running rampant, it shouldn’t be a surprise that your medical information is now being forced to be presented to employers. Failing to do so is met with consequences, loss of employment, or even suspension without pay. However, some employers, such as Dollar Tree, have taken this a step further. They not only ask for your medical information, they are accused of asking for information pertaining to related to the employee. With this accusation, a member of our team applied, got the job, and tested this theory out. This article is going to present information provided to us by a former employee and the results of what we learned first hand.

HIPAA

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) Act was designed in 1996 with the purpose of protecting sensitive medical information. With this act, doctors are forbidden from divulging information of any patient without having prior written consent. However, the act expands beyond that aspect. With the HIPAA Act, patients have control of their medical information, they can choose who to provide this information to, and it limits what medical information an employer can obtain; this last portion is where our article is primarily focused.

While this act doesn’t necessarily pertain to employers, there are aspects of it that do. For instance, under the HIPPA Act, an employee is not required to divulge their medical files, or even diagnosis and treatment. While we are currently in a pandemic, this changes nothing as the HIPPA Act simply does not address situations such as this. An employer asking an employee the results of a Covid test could be taken as a violation as, once again, a patient is not required to give the employee their diagnosis or treatment information. This brings us to the retail industry, who seem to ask their employees for this very piece of vital information.

Retails intrusive questions

With the information we had obtained from a source, our platform decided to go “inside” and find out for ourselves. For this, a member of our team applied at a local “Dollar Tree.” This location was selected because it was the company that we had gotten the complaint about. Like magic, the application was approved and we had our feet in the door. At this point, the investigation commenced.

The first night was uneventful. No questions were asked, just the typical “pre-opening” work. Shelves were stocked, boxes were stored, that sort of thing. Our new insider had begun to question rather or not the accusations were, in fact, even true. After working for hours, we had initially thought the investigation was a fluke. This conclusion didn’t last long, however. Prior to the insider’s employment, we had already established that if they did ask any of the questions, they were to answer at least one of them with “yes.”

The reason behind this was simply to see what the store would do in this situation. We already had established that answering “no” gave you the “right” to work, we wanted the other end of the spectrum. On night two, our insider reports that they arrived at the store. Upon entering, they were immediately stopped and asked some questions. Because this was being recorded, we are providing the very questions that were asked. We are also providing the response given by our insider.

The questions

Q: Have you been around anybody who has tested positive for Covid?

A: If I had been, there is no way that I could possibly know, so I’m going to say no. It is important to note that the employer is marked with (Q) while our insider is marked with (A.)

Q: In the past 24 hours, have you been around anybody who has been tested for Covid?

A: Yes.

Q: Wait, you’ve been around somebody who got tested for Covid?

A: Yeah.

Q: Do you know the results of their tests? (Highlighted as this question potentially violates HIPPA.)

A: No, I don’t know their tests results. Why?

Q: Because that means you can’t come into work.

A: What do you mean I can’t come to work, why not?

Q: Because you’re putting the entire store at risk.

A: Uh, okay, that makes no sense but whatever.

It’s important to note a few things within these questions. The first is the redundancy of the first question. If this had not been our insider, but another employee, they would already be at a high risk of exposure, they’re working retail. The second thing to note is what HIPAA says about asking for test results: they aren’t permitted to know what a diagnosis or treatment is. If the test were to be a positive, the employer is not permitted to know this as the patient would be diagnosed with Covid. Branching beyond that, the employer is also not permitted to know what the treatment plan for the said diagnosis is. Essentially, asking this question is a legal situation in the making. With a good attorney, this company could face a rather hefty penalty.

While all of the questions are intrusive, the specific question asking for test results, especially regarding those not employed with the company, is the smoking gun for any “litigation-happy” disgruntled employee. Expanding beyond the questions, we are left with one unanswered question: why the inconsistency? On the first night of employment, our insider received no questions prior to their shift. However, on the second night, they were questioned. If the employers policy regarding “safety” was so serious, wouldn’t they be asking these intrusive questions prior to every shift?

While this subject, especially now, remains highly controversial, it is one that should be discussed. The question asking, “how far is to far?” is simply not asked enough. In this year alone, we have seen some of the worst violations to our rights than at any point in America’s history. Our right to religious freedom being a primary example. During this time, we saw ministers being arrested simply for refusing to cease with the practice of their religious freedoms, in the way that their religions required. But the violations didn’t start, nor did they end, there. For now, we will simply ask this one question: Will Americans ever say “enough is enough?”

Editorial Statement

Due to the backlash on Twitter, we are clarifying that this article is purely opinion. We are asking a question, noted by the title, and are simply responding with our thoughts. While the companies may not be violating HIPAA, by requesting information of people, who are not employed with them, we can at least establish that the privacy of those individuals have been violated.

Cyber, Free Article, internet safety, Law Enforcement, Media, Opinions, police relations, predatory, terrorism, Uncategorized

Another Facebook purge?

This article is very different from anything we’ve written in the past. While our normal policy is to not write anything to which we are directly related, we have been forced to make an exception. Over the past month, I have uploaded three YouTube videos. The videos not only explain the apparent attack on the “War on Corruption” platform, it goes to detail the progressive censorship of my own account. Though I had hoped for a resolution, Facebook has adamantly refused to address any message I’ve sent to them. In fact, they’ve only increased the various forms of censorship to my account and my platform.

Censorship: Phase I

In the beginning, what Facebook had done was nothing more than a slight annoyance. With no explanation, not even a noted policy violation, I had found that my account had been blocked from commenting or replying to political pages. This means that I could not interact with any political figure, this immediately caught my attention. At this point and time, I was still able to comment, reply, and even post to other pages, groups, etc. At this time, I was oblivious to just how far Facebook would take this censorship.

Censorship: Phase II

After about a week of dealing with the original block, Facebook apparently decided that it was time to do additional blocks. Upon trying to post a comment to a group, which I had been able to do the previous day, I found that I had been restricted from doing so. As with the original block, no reason was given explaining why my account had been restricted. The censorship wouldn’t end here. If it did, this article wouldn’t exist. Within twenty-four hours of this new restriction, I was restricted from commenting and replying to all pages and groups. However, at this point and time, I was still able to post on the “WoC” page, though commenting and replying had now been restricted.

Censorship: Phase III

For the next few weeks, I progressively became agitated over the restriction. On top of running this media platform, I compose and sell music online. At this point and time, this had remained untouched by the nefarious goons of Facebook. However, War on Corruption had now been completely restricted from me. I could no longer post, comment, reply, or even send private messages from the platform’s page. It was, at this point that we decided to begin the process of removing WoC from Facebook completely. During this period, Facebook added yet another new restriction. Not only was I unable to post, comment, reply, or send PM’s, I now could no longer join or leave groups. Worst yet, Facebook wasn’t even finished playing this illegal form of censorship.

Censorship: Phase IV

With this, we are now up to date with the current situation. At this point, Facebook has removed my ability to post, comment, and reply from my personal profile. Furthermore, the page I have, to which I promote my side gig of music, has also been slammed by the social media giant. This means that, on two different platforms, Facebook has not only censored me, but they’ve even cut a form of my income: music. But it doesn’t end there. Out of our team of seven, five of us have been targeted in this exact same manner, all without reason or explanation. Though all of us have tried to appeal it, the results are the same. The appeal process itself has been restricted from all of us.

This means that while we have the option to appeal, should we attempt to do so it will fail to go through; Facebook will never even know that we’ve tried to fight it. As of now, our platform is being operated by two individuals of our team, the only two who have not been targeted with this illegal act. Meanwhile, I continue my search for a civil rights attorney. Not only for our team, but for the various other platforms, and individuals, targeted by Facebook.

Conclusion

With much discussion, we do have a lead into what instigated the censorship: I was critical of a specific political figure, one that Facebook supports. With their censorship, they’ve not only shown how far they will go to stop anybody who opposes their political views, they have demonstrated how far they will go to silence any journalist who speaks against those to which they support.

We aren’t writing this article to bring awareness to what is happening to our platform, we are writing this to warn other journalists, and truth seekers, of what Facebook is willing to do to silence them. We have full expectation that Facebook will shut us down. Since the time of the initial restriction, we have watched as our platform stats spiraled into oblivion. With this, we have absolutely no doubt that, much like our team, our platform is being shadow banned by the site.

During what many call the “purge,” Facebook wiped out over a dozen media platforms from their site. Among them: “Freedom Though Project,” who had well over a million followers. The habitual pattern of Facebook is to target independent media, why not? They can’t buy us off unlike the corporate giants of the media world. While Facebook continues to hold its position of being a “private” company, this is factually untrue. Facebook had ceased being a private company when they entered the public domain, the Stock Market. While this has many financial benefits for the site, it has a lot of legal disadvantages. Among them, violating constitutional rights.

Though we have no expectation of the platform surviving this, on Facebook at least, we have begun moving to other sites. Below, are links to our new locations. We hope to see you there just as we hope that Facebook will cease this unjust activity.

	FOTOROTO on Journalism vs. Facebook
	P4P: Final Review \|… on Secret “Congressional…
	banagainstcorruption on Official WoC statement regardi…
	banagainstcorruption on A hen in the foxhole.
	Blackhorn33 on In the shadows: child predator…