“I'm 10-15”: the secret CBP Facebook group(boingboing.net)
boingboing.net
“I'm 10-15”: the secret CBP Facebook group
https://boingboing.net/2019/07/01/im-10-15.html
25 comments
Given this has then sparked an internal investigation into the group, it seems very likely that it was.
The original investigation refers to more than 2 examples: https://www.propublica.org/article/secret-border-patrol-face...
Unfortunately a lot of LEO's are part of groups like this on social media. It functions as an echo chamber to reinforce the worst aspects of LEOs.
> A particular target for their hostility is Congresswoman Alexandia Ocasio-Cortez, who was the first Member of Congress to correctly identify the CBP border detention facilities as "concentration camps."
This is an opinion piece masked as a news piece. There are many holocaust survivors and decedents who take extreme offense to this characterization.
I am rightfully flagging this, because it's not at all about tech, but what aggravates me the most is that the people who post this type of left wing political propaganda here do so without penalty, while those on the other side get shadowbanned.
This is an opinion piece masked as a news piece. There are many holocaust survivors and decedents who take extreme offense to this characterization.
I am rightfully flagging this, because it's not at all about tech, but what aggravates me the most is that the people who post this type of left wing political propaganda here do so without penalty, while those on the other side get shadowbanned.
You cannot speak for everybody.
> When she saw the segregation of African-Americans, whether at a lunch counter or in the school system, that was, for her, like the prologue to the Nazi holocaust. Whereas many Jews now say, Never compare (Elie Wiesel’s refrain, ‘It’s bad, but it’s not The Holocaust’), my mother’s credo was, Always compare. She gladly and generously made the imaginative leap to those who were suffering, wrapping and shielding them in the embrace of her own suffering.
-- Norman Finkelstein
> When she saw the segregation of African-Americans, whether at a lunch counter or in the school system, that was, for her, like the prologue to the Nazi holocaust. Whereas many Jews now say, Never compare (Elie Wiesel’s refrain, ‘It’s bad, but it’s not The Holocaust’), my mother’s credo was, Always compare. She gladly and generously made the imaginative leap to those who were suffering, wrapping and shielding them in the embrace of her own suffering.
-- Norman Finkelstein
A story about a groups organizing on facebook isn't about tech?
Can you point me to the part of the story where it discusses any relevancy of the technology used? Tech is so ubiquitous that there is literally no story about people conglomerating that doesn't involve it in some way.
> There are many holocaust survivors and decedents who take extreme offense to this characterization.
I haven't personally come across this, only the opposite, but I suspect I'm in a bubble of sorts. Can you provide any verifiable sources for this?
I haven't personally come across this, only the opposite, but I suspect I'm in a bubble of sorts. Can you provide any verifiable sources for this?
"Concentration camp" is not limited to the death camps like Auschwitz, and it is a label used by the U.S. for its own camps in past times:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_concentration_and_inte...
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/cave-markings-tell-ch...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_concentration_and_inte...
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/cave-markings-tell-ch...
The difference is that people don't willingly go to concentration camps.
as atrocious as this is, it doesn't seem to be related to technical news of any kind...
From the guidelines:
On-Topic: Anything that good hackers would find interesting. That includes more than hacking and startups. If you had to reduce it to a sentence, the answer might be: anything that gratifies one's intellectual curiosity.
Off-Topic: Most stories about politics, or crime, or sports, unless they're evidence of some interesting new phenomenon. Videos of pratfalls or disasters, or cute animal pictures. If they'd cover it on TV news, it's probably off-topic.
I'd argue this qualifies for "evidence of some interesting new phenomenon". At least this is news to me.
On-Topic: Anything that good hackers would find interesting. That includes more than hacking and startups. If you had to reduce it to a sentence, the answer might be: anything that gratifies one's intellectual curiosity.
Off-Topic: Most stories about politics, or crime, or sports, unless they're evidence of some interesting new phenomenon. Videos of pratfalls or disasters, or cute animal pictures. If they'd cover it on TV news, it's probably off-topic.
I'd argue this qualifies for "evidence of some interesting new phenomenon". At least this is news to me.
too many of us work for companies willing to support this. We workers could put pressure on our employers not to. In fact, maybe we have to.
Just because there's a private Facebook group does not mean Facebook supports it.
I imagine there are hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of private groups. Should Facebook hire hundreds of thousands of employees to monitor every post and every comment posted in every single group? That simply isn't practical and the technology simply does not exist to do it via software.
A video appeared in my feed last week of a woman 'deep throating' a banana in an extremely sexual fashion, the video lasted more than a minute. I reported it and went to her page, there was also one of her doing the same with a cucumber. I reported it. The next day I got the notification that facebook had reviewed the posts, did not go against community standards, I could block her if I wanted blah blah.
I reported them again. Three days later, I got a notification that the cucumber post violated community standards and had been removed however the far more sexual cucumber video was yet again found to fall within community standards.. if they can't even reliably remove a video of a woman vigorously, intentionally sexually, fellating produce in her car with very sexual commentary in public posts with millions of views... how are they supposed to police every single post in every single private group?
I imagine there are hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of private groups. Should Facebook hire hundreds of thousands of employees to monitor every post and every comment posted in every single group? That simply isn't practical and the technology simply does not exist to do it via software.
A video appeared in my feed last week of a woman 'deep throating' a banana in an extremely sexual fashion, the video lasted more than a minute. I reported it and went to her page, there was also one of her doing the same with a cucumber. I reported it. The next day I got the notification that facebook had reviewed the posts, did not go against community standards, I could block her if I wanted blah blah.
I reported them again. Three days later, I got a notification that the cucumber post violated community standards and had been removed however the far more sexual cucumber video was yet again found to fall within community standards.. if they can't even reliably remove a video of a woman vigorously, intentionally sexually, fellating produce in her car with very sexual commentary in public posts with millions of views... how are they supposed to police every single post in every single private group?
There was an article posted on HN recently (no time to track it down) but the thing that struck me about it was; the content moderators they do have are powerless.
One moderator spoke of watching animal cruelty to a lizard, deciding it went against community standards, but being over-ruled by superiors who thought "leaving the video up would lead to crimial punishment." As days went on, more people shared the same video and more people kept reporting it. This one moderator wound up seeing the same video come across his screen many multiple times. It happened for days until enough people reported it and the post was removed.
The people currently doing this work aren't really valued. That's why they're contractors. They are simply fodder teaching a machine how to do this insanely damaging job for the future. That's why Facebook doesn't employ them. They're going to be damaged and replaced by technology soon. That's the roadmap. Nobody wants to pay for their rehab, or their counseling, or even their wages.
In 10 years it might be more reliable, but then we'll be complaining that the human element has been completely removed.
One moderator spoke of watching animal cruelty to a lizard, deciding it went against community standards, but being over-ruled by superiors who thought "leaving the video up would lead to crimial punishment." As days went on, more people shared the same video and more people kept reporting it. This one moderator wound up seeing the same video come across his screen many multiple times. It happened for days until enough people reported it and the post was removed.
The people currently doing this work aren't really valued. That's why they're contractors. They are simply fodder teaching a machine how to do this insanely damaging job for the future. That's why Facebook doesn't employ them. They're going to be damaged and replaced by technology soon. That's the roadmap. Nobody wants to pay for their rehab, or their counseling, or even their wages.
In 10 years it might be more reliable, but then we'll be complaining that the human element has been completely removed.
FWIW, the investigation that sparked this BoingBoing post comes via ProPublica, though submission of that link was apparently previously flagged [0]. That said, I like the BB post for including Reveal's investigation 2 weeks ago into Facebook groups for police officer. It's also worth noting the PP investigation has already spurred an internal CBP investigation:
https://www.propublica.org/article/investigation-of-secret-b...
> The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency has opened an investigation into vulgar and misogynistic social media posts made by members of a secret Facebook group for current and former Border Patrol agents.
[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20327391
https://www.propublica.org/article/investigation-of-secret-b...
> The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency has opened an investigation into vulgar and misogynistic social media posts made by members of a secret Facebook group for current and former Border Patrol agents.
[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20327391
This looks like Thought Policing, are people not allowed to express their views on private FB groups ?
What exactly is the crime here except may be Thought Crime.
What exactly is the crime here except may be Thought Crime.
When we're talking about a law enforcement group that has near complete power in the 100 mile border zone?
These are people who aren't restricted by the constitution in their exercise of authority. They don't have to have probably cause to detain, don't have to get warrants to search, can pretty much do whatever they want to you.
So when they turn out to be deeply biased, yea, that's news and it's scary.
These are people who aren't restricted by the constitution in their exercise of authority. They don't have to have probably cause to detain, don't have to get warrants to search, can pretty much do whatever they want to you.
So when they turn out to be deeply biased, yea, that's news and it's scary.
It's the same problem as previous exposure of other Facebook groups. We need government agencies with police powers to treat people with some neutrality and respect. If they groups are commonly making racist sexist comments about politicians and those they have power over, they are at the very least suspect. It's not a normal workplace thing to have fake oral sex pics of politicians.
For the average citizen, sure, it could be considered thought policing. But when we're talking about citizens that have been granted additional privileges in order to fulfill certain duties, we need to hold them to a higher standard for as long as they hold those additional privileges.
Well you could argue then, that Peter Strzok was just sending private texts to his lover.
The FB group members aren't just random people -- they're composed of CBP employees who are talking about their employment-related matters in a disgusting manner.
There may not be a crime here but it's directly relevant to the work they do as government employees and deserves attention.
There may not be a crime here but it's directly relevant to the work they do as government employees and deserves attention.
Don't forget that Customs started asking about account names for social media. Trying to police a private group goes even further than that.
But at least it lends validity to the social media account request. ;)
But at least it lends validity to the social media account request. ;)
I would like to wait a few more days before I see more from this group. I have doubts that it was that bad.