Control the medium / control the message.

[Gob]

A conservative Texas-based phone company is planning a takeover of political offices in the US state, starting with public schools.

Patriot Mobile, which calls itself “America’s only Christian conservative wireless provider”, has been fueling an extremist conservative movement taking over curriculum in public schools across Texas.


Leigh Wambsganss, the executive director of the company and its political arm, proudly declared victory in 11 out of 11 school board seats in the last election cycle in school districts around the Dallas-Fort Worth area on behalf of the company and conservative American Christians.

She said: “What this means is that now in north Texas, over 100,000 students who, before May, had leftist leadership now have conservative leadership!”

Earlier this year, the company established a political action committee, Patriot Mobile Action, which allows them to legally fundraise and finance political campaigns.

By acting as the financial backbone for the campaigns of far-right candidates for school boards, the phone company is seeking to promote its conservative agenda on issues like abortion, books and gender identity. It happens as across the US, school boards and local elections have witnessed intense fights as far-right candidates and groups have sought to win positions.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... dApp_Other

[MajGenl.Meade]

So what?

[Gob]

Well surely it is for boards of education and national governments to set education policy, not crypto-facist loopy religious firms?

[MajGenl.Meade]

Well surely it is for boards of education and national governments to set education policy, not crypto-facist loopy religious firms?

That's why the company backed the campaigns of people running for school boards. They supported their favored candidates. And those candidates won. Something you don't like about voting and all that democracy stuff?

[Bicycle Bill]

Most of these second or third-tier cellular companies operate on networks owned and operated by the Big Three cell companies — AT&T, T-Mobile, or Verizon.  That's how they can offer such lower rates when compared to the majors ... they don't have to put up and maintain their own towers all across the USA; just negotiate and pay a fee to these other companies to 'piggy-back' on theirs.  So just wait until whoever it is that Patriot Mobile is sharing cell towers with start refusing to permit them to do so – or if they can't do that, put calls pinging from Patriot phones so far down the priority list when it comes to how the calls are handled that Patriot customers might as well go back to tin cans on a string or CB radios.

And I'm noticing more and more that the word 'patriot' is moving further and further away from its original meaning to the point that it's now a 'code word' for people who support far-right-wing, ultra conservative, inflexible ideology and a de facto religious dictatorship – so long as people who are of the 'correct' color, religion, and ethnicity are in the seat(s) of power.

-"BB"-

[MajGenl.Meade]

Noticing more and more that the word 'patriot' is moving further and further away from its original meaning and is now a 'code word' for people who support far-right-wing, ultra conservative, inflexible ideology and a de facto religious dictatorship – so long as the 'correct' people are in the seat(s) of power.

Quite right about the misappropriation of "patriot". But of course everyone wants the 'correct' people in the seats of power, regardless of labels, left or right or centre.

There's no moral high ground to be gained by pretending only one group wants to elect its favored candidates while "my kind of voters" are picking representatives by some form of altruistic osmosis.

[BoSoxGal]

Posted about this days ago in the Christian Nationalism thread.

viewtopic.php?p=321764#p321764

[Big RR]

Well surely it is for boards of education and national governments to set education policy, not crypto-facist loopy religious firms?

That's why the company backed the campaigns of people running for school boards. They supported their favored candidates. And those candidates won. Something you don't like about voting and all that democracy stuff?

Sure Meade; but it's one reason why campaigns should be funded by people and not corporate PACs. If people choose to donate, fine, committing corporate funds debase the idea of democracy. There are a lot of better ways to fund campaigns.

[MajGenl.Meade]

Sure Meade; but it's one reason why campaigns should be funded by people and not corporate PACs. If people choose to donate, fine, committing corporate funds debase the idea of democracy. There are a lot of better ways to fund campaigns.

Agree 100% I'd like to ban TV and radio commercials for political purposes too. All PACs. And all contributions by MAGAts. And the use of any electronic device. And only allow stump speeches at stumps. And maybe from the back of a railroad car.

The chance of any of those things happening are approximately . . . what?

[BoSoxGal]

The chance of changing corporate influence in American politics can be big if we build grassroots enthusiasm for the cause. This issue is less controversial among the masses than ERA was - it can be done if we commit ourselves to it.

https://www.citizen.org/article/by-the-numbers/

[ex-khobar Andy]

Problem is that only about 10% of the electorate bother with school board elections which is fine when we can assume that the people who vote for these positions of expertise are themselves experts. Some places vote for the sheriff when you'd like to think that politicians = of whatever stripe - would just install the person who is the best cop around. But no, like school boards, it becomes political and when only very few vote, it can be swung by an organized campaign.