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This post introduces the three boards together in order to make their distinction more clear. They are all available by clicking "All Boards" above:
1. Atheist Shrewds - https://www.shrewdm.com/MB?bid=117
2. US Policy - https://www.shrewdm.com/MB?bid=17
3. Political Asylum (this board)

I have moved all posts on the Atheist Shrewds board to US Policy, as at least 95% of the posts there were actually of that subject - US politics.

Likewise, when placing posts on this board (Political Asylum) consider if your post relates to US politics and if so then please strictly post only at the US Policy board. ( You can then optionally place a reference your US Policy board post here on the Political Asylum board, by copy-pasting a url reference to the US Policy post, adding a brief summary, and “OT:” at the start of the subject). Posts relating to US politics placed on this Political Asylum board will be moved to the US Policy board if they are not labelled OT, so better to just post on the board that actually best matches the topic of your post. )

I have created this Political Asylum board to discuss politics where there would ordinarily be fear of censorship elsewhere, but protection from that here. Let's try to warrant the word 'asylum' is in the board's name.

Political Asylum board guidelines:

1. Asylum character: This board should try to stay true to the 'asylum' character. The character of board may be completely different character to the US Policy board. If anyone wants to post something political, first decide if it relates to US politics consistent with what could conceivably be covered in the popular press, and if so then the post should be on the US Policy board - https://www.shrewdm.com/MB?bid=17 - and not the Political Asylum board.

2. Respecting national sovereignty:
(Example: Emphasize criticism of your own country, given that you are represented, with far greater emphasis than criticising of other counties for the straight forward logical that you have a legitimate right to change your country, but absolutely no right to impose change elsewhere, or even be represented by the government elsewhere.

3. Moral symmetry: Act towards others what you wish acted towards yourself.
(Example 1: If you advocate sending loads of weapons near the border of another country, you must necessarily also advocate other countries sending loads of weapons to your own border).
(Example 2: If you want to have freedom to express a view that others may detest, you must necessary also want others to have freedom to express a view that you detest. )

4. Non-circular referencing: We are surrounded by information (and just the direction of attention itself) repeated through most of our local news sources. To partly mitigate this brainwashing, place extra effort to reference information sources outside the conveniently available media.
(Example 1: Read the news from Iran, Russia, Cuba and North Korea (this is more difficult than it sounds as much of it really is censored by our own institutions, or at least inconvenience to access), not exclusively but with at least 15% of the reading-time placed towards local media).
(Example 2: Try to observe primary sources, rather than secondary sources – if the local media takes a quote from a speech, read the speech itself rather than the quote).

- Manlobbi

Rules? Moral symmetry? Non-circular referencing? What kind of Asylum is this?

Rules? Moral symmetry? Non-circular referencing? What kind of Asylum is this?

It is a political asylum, which means you can publish political material that ordinarily woupd *not be able* to be published.

The guidelines - which are far from being rules - are ideas to encourage researching and presenting political insights that are generally out of bounds. Far more is out of bounds that we are generally even conscious, and so the guidelines assist this with some broad brush strokes.

In the introductory chapter to Animal Farm, George Orwell wrote about the censorship culture in Britain which is still alive and well:

“Any fair‐minded person with journalistic experience will admit that during this war official censorship has not been particularly irksome … The sinister fact about literary censorship in England is that it is largely voluntary. Unpopular ideas can be silenced, and inconvenient facts kept dark, without the need for any official ban. Anyone who has lived long in a foreign country will know of instances of sensational items of news—things which on their own merits would get the big headlines—being kept right out of the British press, not because the Government intervened but because of a general tacit agreement that “it wouldn't do” to mention that particular fact. So far as the daily newspapers go, this is easy to understand. The British press is extremely centralized, and most of it is owned by wealthy men who have every motive to be dishonest on certain important topics. But the same kind of veiled censorship also operates in books and periodicals, as well as in plays, films and radio. At any given moment there is an orthodoxy, a body of ideas which it is assumed that all right thinking people will accept without question. It not exactly forbidden to say this, that or the other but it is “not done” to say it, just as in mid‐Victorian times it was “not done” to mention trousers in the presence of a lady. Anyone who challenges the prevailing orthodoxy finds himself silenced with surprising effectiveness”

I cannot imagine a better example of irony in that this very introduction was censored by the British publisher, so no-one reads it when purchasing Animal Farm, the introduction simply out of sight, out of mind.

- Manlobbi

I cannot imagine a better example of irony in that this very introduction was censored by the British publisher, so no-one reads it when purchasing Animal Farm, the introduction simply out of sight, out of mind.

And Orwell would be in a position to know. Reminds me of the codes instilled in Hollywood after a brief period of freedom.

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Berkshire Hathaway FAQ

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