'I think it’s outrageous'

'Where it went wrong is when the virologists got the idea to manipulate the viruses'

Somebody give this reporter an award, this is a gem

'We're not gonna have apartheid'

Books new releases All the New Science Fiction Books Arriving in February 2025 A pan-species confederation, a people-consuming orb, and a galaxy-reigning Mind all appear in February’s new SF releases! By Reactor | Published on February 5, 2025 Comment 0 Share New Share Here’s the full list of science fiction titles heading your way in February! Keep track of all the new SFF releases here. All title summaries are taken and/or summarized from copy provided by the publisher. Release dates are subject to change. February 4 Star Circle (Rowan #3) — Davis Bunn (Severn House)The CIA’s devastating attack on the rowan tree and its growing global community has left its members in survival mode. The loss of their unique abilities was a huge blow, and they have been in hiding for the past eleven months. Sensing another huge, transformational event involving the rowan’s supernatural forces is about to happen, journalist Valentina Garnier travels to England where a stunning event occurs at an ancient circle of stones close to Stonehenge—one which will finally reveal the truth behind the rowan tree’s mysterious power. Is it really an existential threat to humanity, or a cry for help from an alien life force? Galaxy Raiders: Abyss — Ian Douglas (Harper Voyager)Centuries in the future, the Galactic Authority reigns over millions of advanced civilizations throughout the cosmos. From deep within the Galactic Core, the Authority’s principal Mind has won the allegiance of myriad nations, offering security, connection, and access to a network of interstellar Gates in exchange for compliance. While technological advancement has brought interstellar travel and life-extending procedures to Earth, humans are struggling to maintain their sovereignty and cultural identity. The Galactic Authority’s presence and technological prowess looms large, eliciting both awe and apprehension from a human society that finds itself at a crossroads: yield to the allure of advanced alien technologies, or preserve their autonomy in an increasingly fractious cosmic landscape. Naval captain Alexandra Morrigan has little trust for the Authority, and by all accounts, war is brewing. When the extrasolar colony at Sirius goes silent, suspicions arise that Galactic forces or their proxies are pressuring humankind into submission. To preserve any hope of Earth’s future, Morrigan and the forces she commands will do the unthinkable: travel through the Abyss gate, and make one last stand against the Galactic forces, whose powers may defy comprehension. The Black Orb — Ewhan Kim (Mira Books)One evening in downtown Seoul, Jeong-su is smoking a cigarette outside when he sees something impossible: a huge black orb appears out of nowhere and sucks his neighbor inside. Jeong-su manages to get away, but the terrifying sphere can move through walls, so he’s sure he won’t be able to hide for long. The orb soon begins consuming every person caught in its path, and no one knows how to stop it. Impervious to bullets and tanks, the orb splits and multiplies, chasing the hapless residents of Seoul out into the country and sparking a global crisis with widespread violence and looting. Jeong-su must rely on his wits as he makes the arduous journey in search of his elderly parents. But the strangest phases of this ever-expanding disaster are yet to come and Jeong-su will be forced to question everything he has taken for granted. February 11 The Unkillable Princess (Kystrom #2) — Taran Hunt (Solaris)Having escaped the dangers of the Nameless with the Philosopher Stone data, Sean thought his troubles were over. Until he gets a call for help from his sister Brigid—his long-dead sister. Brigid is sparse on the details, but she needs Sean to go to the Republican city of Illin to retrieve something called a “Purifier” for her. Reeling from the desperate hope that his sister is alive, Sean aims for Illin, dragging his new companions, Tamara Gupta formerly a Republican soldier, and Indigo, the Minister responsible for the destruction of Sean’s home, into the fray. But as usual, Sean hasn’t quite thought this through. The three of them are all wanted by Republican authorities, and Illin happens to be on the same planet as Sean’s old friend Senator Ketel. Y’know, the one who blackmailed and nearly murdered Sean. With every move Sean makes he discovers more intrigue, more people on his tail, and more ways that his little adventure could be the spark for war between the Republic and the Ministers. And to what end? Is it really his sister, a chance for family, and safety, on the other side? Symbiote — Michael Nayak (Angry Robot)As World War III rages, the scientists in Antarctica are thankful for the isolation—until a group of Chinese scientists arrive at the American research base. In their truck is a dead body, the first murder in Antarctica. The potential for a geopolitical firestorm is great, and, with no clear jurisdiction, the Americans don’t know what to do. But they soon realize the Chinese scientists have brought far more with them than the body… Within seventy-two hours, thirteen others lie dead in the snow, murdered in acts of madness and superhuman strength.An extremophile parasite from the truck, triggered by severe cold, is spreading by touch. It is learning from them. Evolving. It triggers violent tendencies in the winter crew, and, more insidiously, the beginnings of a strange symbiotic telepathy. Exhausted by suspicion and fear, with rescue impossible for months, the desperate crew members turn on each other. A small group of survivors try to resist the siren call of the growing hive mind and stay alive long enough to solve the mystery of the symbiotic microbe’s origins. But the symbiote is more than a disease—it is a biological weapon that can change the balance of power in a time of war. The survivors cannot let anyone infected make it to the summer season, when planes will arrive to take them—and potentially the symbiote—back to civilization. The Perfect Stranger — Brian Pinkerton (Flame Tree Press)Everyone loves Alison, the new remote employee at a major energy company. She’s a rising star in the virtual workspace, displaying incredible intelligence and efficiency with digital technology. But Linda, her manager, has growing suspicions that Alison is not the person she claims to be. As Linda probes Alison’s background, Alison fights back through cyber-attacks, ravaging Linda’s work, her family and her safety. Linda must uncover the truth to save herself and discovers Alison’s past history is a lie—in fact, she has none. Is it possible Alison isn’t human at all? The Rising (Branded Season #2) — Jo Riccioni (Angry Robot)Nara and her twin sister, Osha, have escaped the brutal clutches of the Citadel and the Hrossi Wastelanders and have arrived in the Shadow City of Reis. In the Shadow City, power plays are rife and rumours abound of a Pure healer with the ability to cure the Branded. New allies emerge alongside familiar faces as the city churns with this long-awaited prophecy that many would kill to see come true—and all eyes are on Osha. Nara must protect her sister; their powers are growing stronger, and it’s vital they learn to wield them. Before long Nara is caught between her first love and the one who’s stolen her heart but betrayed her trust. Surrounded by lies and deception she is left uncertain who she truly is and what she can believe. Dark forces are taking control across the Continent, and the Branded must rise to survive. February 18 Picks and Shovels (Martin Hench #3) — Cory Doctorow (Tor Books)The year is 1986. The city is San Francisco. Here, Martin Hench will invent the forensic accountant—what a bounty hunter is to people, he is to money—but for now he’s an MIT dropout odd-jobbing his way around a city still reeling from the invention of a revolutionary new technology that will change everything about crime forever, one we now take completely for granted. When Marty finds himself hired by Silicon Valley PC startup Fidelity Computing to investigate a group of disgruntled ex-employees who’ve founded a competitor startup, he quickly realizes he’s on the wrong side. Marty ditches the greasy old guys running Fidelity Computing without a second thought, utterly infatuated with the electric atmosphere of Computing Freedom. Located in the heart of the Mission, this group of brilliant young women found themselves exhausted by the predatory business practices of Fidelity Computing and set out to beat them at their own game, making better computers and driving Fidelity Computing out of business. But this optimistic startup, fueled by young love and California-style burritos, has no idea the depth of the evil they’re seeking to unroot or the risks they run. In this company-eat-company city, Martin and his friends will be lucky to escape with their lives. February 25 The Fourth Consort — Edward Ashton (St. Martin’s)Dalton Greaves is a hero. He’s one of humankind’s first representatives to Unity, a pan-species confederation working to bring all sentient life into a single benevolent brotherhood. That’s what they told him, anyway. The only actual members of Unity that he’s ever met are Boreau, a giant snail who seems more interested in plunder than spreading love and harmony, and Boreau’s human sidekick, Neera, who Dalton strongly suspects roped him into this gig so that she wouldn’t become the next one of Boreau’s crew to get eaten by locals while prospecting. Funny thing, though—turns out there actually is a benevolent confederation out there, working for the good of all life. They call themselves the Assembly, and they really don’t like Unity. More to the point, they really, really don’t like Unity’s new human minions. When an encounter between Boreau’s scout ship and an Assembly cruiser over a newly discovered world ends badly for both parties, Dalton finds himself marooned, caught between a stickman, one of the Assembly’s nightmarish shock troops, the planet’s natives, who aren’t winning any congeniality prizes themselves, and Neera, who might actually be the most dangerous of the three. To survive, he’ll need to navigate palace intrigue, alien morality, and a proposal that he literally cannot refuse, all while making sure Neera doesn’t come to the conclusion that he’s worth more to her dead than alive. Fortress Sol — Stephen Baxter (Gollancz)When Rab was a baby, his mother made a decision which would change his life. She feared he would be sent to work in the hellish mines of Mercury, to eke out his life until he was worn out, all in the name of maintaning the defense of the Solar Sytem. But when her desperate attempt to flee with her 2 year old failed, she took a desperate step to save him. She cut off his hand. Decades later, Rab has been spared the physical hardships he can no longer endure, and is now based on the Mask, the all-encompassing structure which hides the Solar Sytem from alien eyes. And it is during his watch that a spaceship arrives, one which has travelled for a hundred years from a long-forgotten colony planet. If they pierce the Mask, everything humanity has created will be left open to the alien threat. But this strange ship, bearing an offshoot of the species, may bring something else with them. Hope. Destiny’s Way (Doomed Earth #2) — Jack Campbell (Ace)Earth was destroyed on June 12, 2180. Lieutenant Selene Genji watched it happen. And only she can prevent it. Thrown forty years into the past, into a time before the Universal War began, Genji can only guess what to do to change the events that led to the death of all humanity. She has no way of knowing the long-term impacts of her actions and can only depend on her instincts. But many of the people Genji’s trying to save want her dead. Her creation was an experiment: a fusing of human and alien DNA. To them, she’s a monster who can’t be trusted, a tool of the aliens who have just made first contact. Fortunately, she has an unshakable ally in Lieutenant Kayl Owen, who has risked everything to help her mission. Declared a traitor to humanity by Earth Guard, Owen is determined to help Genji save the Earth. Even if he dies trying. Star Wars: The Mask of Fear (Reign of the Empire #1) — Alexander Freed (Random House Worlds)With one speech and thunderous applause, Chancellor Palpatine brought the era of the Republic crashing down. In its place rose the Galactic Empire. Across the galaxy, people rejoiced and celebrated the end of war—and the promises of tomorrow. But that tomorrow was a lie. Instead, the galaxy became twisted by the cruelty and fear of the Emperor’s rule. During that terrifying first year of tyranny, Mon Mothma, Saw Gerrera, and Bail Organa face the encroaching darkness. One day, they will be three architects of the Rebel Alliance. But first, each must find purpose and direction in a changing galaxy, while harboring their own secrets, fears, and hopes for a future that may never come unless they act. George R. R. Martin Presents Wild Cards: House Rules — ed. George R. R. Martin (Random House Worlds)An alien virus ravages the world, with effects as random as a hand of cards. Those infected either draw the black queen and die, draw an ace and receive superpowers, or draw the joker and become bizarrely mutated. But whether joker or ace or a bit of both, few turn down an invite to Keun. The island of Keun lies off the coast of Cornwall, connected to the mainland only by an ancient, tidal causeway. It is a magical place, where anything can happen. The mansion crowning the island is owned by Lord Branok, a mysterious billionaire who is also a wild card of some sort—but whether he is an ace, a joker or a knave, no one is quite sure. Parties at Loveday House are legendary—for adventure, for intrigue, for love, for danger—and guests may take on whatever personae and masks they choose when they attend. Parts of the house seem to exist out of time, and the Wild Hunt is reputed to ride the island. And haunting the house is its original owner: a woman determined to regain control over her domain—by any means necessary. With stories by: Stephen Leigh, Mary Anne Mohanraj, Caroline Spector, Kevin Andrew Murphy, Peter Newman, and Peadar Ó Guilín. Future’s Edge — Gareth L. Powell (Titan)When archaeologist Ursula Morrow accidentally infects herself with an alien parasite, she fears she may have jeopardised her career. However, her concerns become irrelevant when Earth is destroyed, billions die, and suddenly no one needs archaeologists anymore… Two years later, she’s plucked from a refugee camp on a backwater world and tasked with retrieving the artefact that infected her, as it just might hold the key to humanity’s survival. With time running short, and the planet housing the weapon now situated in hostile territory, she realises she’s going to have to commit an act of desperate piracy if she’s going to achieve her objective before the enemy’s final onslaught. The post All the New Science Fiction Books Arriving in February 2025 appeared first on Reactor.

A decade ago, charter schools were heralded as the crowning achievement of bipartisan education reform efforts. But during last week’s National School Choice Week observations, charters were barely an afterthought, their political energy having been largely reappropriated to newer, more robust systems of school choice. The future of the charter school movement is likely to be determined by how they adapt to this new reality. If early returns are any indication, education journalists can start penning advance obituaries. Charter schools—publicly funded, but independently operated schools that are supposed to have autonomy to innovate—were first introduced in Minnesota in 1992 and rapidly expanded to now serve 45 states and more than 7% of school-age children in the United States. Charter sector growth was fueled by bipartisan support, which held steady for nearly 30 years but has recently shown serious signs of strain. President Joe Biden, unlike former Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, cozied up to teachers unions and professed to “not being a fan” of charter schools, threatening to cut $40 million from federal startup grants to charter schools. For her part, failed Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris was characteristically opaque about her plan for charter schools, but her unbridled support for teachers unions and antagonism toward charters when she was California’s attorney general offer good clues about the direction a Harris administration would have taken on the issue. With the benefit of hindsight, the Democratic retreat on charters looks unsurprising and perhaps even inevitable. As political scientist Terry Moe detailed in his 2011 book “Special Interest: Teachers Unions and America’s Public Schools,” teachers unions are one of the most influential interest groups in American political life, and perhaps the most powerful within the Democratic Party. It’s not especially shocking that an interest group that makes it impossible to fire bad teachers or succeeded in extorting taxpayers for hundreds of billions of dollars to reopen schools after COVID-19 shutdowns would eventually succeed in bringing Democrats to heel on their plans to snuff out threats to their monopoly power.   In anticipation of these threats, the charter movement (i.e., the network of philanthropists who donate to charters, authorizers who regulate them, and school leaders who run them) would have done well to protect its right flank (i.e., Republicans). After all, the teachers unions themselves can attest to the fact that polarized political support can sustain policy agendas. Instead of even engaging in half-baked efforts to curry favor with conservatives, the charter movement “tried to play up to the party that structurally really can’t embrace them, while antagonizing—or on a good day, giving the cold shoulder—to the one that could,” as education analyst Andrew Rotherham rightly observed. That approach—and the political vulnerabilities associated with it—were apparent as early as 2020. That year, KIPP schools, once the poster child for “no-excuse” charter schools, abandoned their “work hard, be nice” motto during the peak of the Great Awokening, denouncing the motto as a vestige of white supremacy. Similar changes occurred throughout the charter sector, where young educators once passionate about student learning started channeling their energy toward larger ideas about societal change, often to the dismay of parents at the school. Shortly after KIPP changed its motto, conservative activist Max Eden of the American Enterprise Institute called the story “a wake-up call” about ideological capture of charters. “Conservatives should pressure their state legislatures to reform charter school laws to stop favoring incumbents like KIPP,” he recommended. Charter school offerings need to include the full spectrum of political and social values and not just the left-wing types of schools preferred by the charter school movement. Eden’s recommendations should have been heeded as a “wake-up call” within the charter world itself that future conservative support was not guaranteed. Instead, the hyperpartisan tactic accelerated. The National Association of Charter School Authorizers—an organization that philanthropies generously furnish to set the standards for how charter schools are authorized (i.e., when schools should be approved or shuttered)—began insisting that DEI is an integral component of the authorizing process. That decision (and other similarly leftist coded political posturing) plays out in predictably disastrous ways, including school operators bowing to authorizers’ demands for an “equity” focus and most charter schools taking on a pedagogical and cultural milieu that skews left of neighboring district schools. In the past, conservatives might have tolerated this ideological capture, calculating that some choice is better than no choice. But that’s unlikely to hold true now. Since 2022, 13 states have adopted universal school choice programs that allow public funds to be spent on private school tuition (among other expenses), and further expansion is anticipated. Lawmakers likely will follow the cues of their constituents that this model is the future of choice. In two states that have robust charter presence and rapidly growing populations, kindergarten charter enrollment has declined after the passage of education savings accounts following years of steady growth. In Arizona, enrollment fell 8% in the two years following ESA adoption in 2022, and in Florida, kindergarten charter enrollment fell 3% in the year following ESA adoption in 2023. The first 30 years of charter schools is a story about their ascent. If the movement continues down the path of ideological, technocratic control that privileges partisan regulators over parents, the next 30 years will be the story of their demise. The post Charter Schools Have Neglected Their Political Support to Their Own Detriment appeared first on The Daily Signal.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. With the launch of its 2025 Creator Program, Rumble is doubling down on its commitment to independent content — offering streamers new ways to get paid, and further challenging the dominance of YouTube. At a time where Big Tech platforms shift policies as quickly as trending topics, Rumble has staked its claim as the alternative to the mainstream. Founded in 2013, the platform has grown into a formidable player by positioning itself as a free-speech haven, drawing creators frustrated with demonetization, content moderation crackdowns, and shifting algorithms elsewhere. This latest initiative marks a significant shift in how creators can monetize their work, prioritizing audience engagement over traditional advertising revenue. Unlike YouTube, which often changes its policies in response to advertisers and regulatory pressure, Rumble is carving out a different path — one where creators are rewarded directly for their influence and reach. Monetization on Rumble: A New Approach Starting March 1, 2025, creators enrolled in Rumble’s latest program will earn money through a model that prioritizes engagement over ad revenue. The payout structure is based on three key metrics: Minutes Watched – The more time users spend consuming a creator’s content, the greater their earnings. Rumble has allocated a pool of funds specifically for this, rewarding creators proportionally. New Rumble Signups – If a new user joins the platform and selects a creator as the first channel they follow, that creator gets compensated. New Premium Subscribers – When a viewer upgrades to a paid Rumble Premium membership through a creator’s content, the creator benefits, even if the subscription is gifted. Unlike traditional ad-driven models that make revenue contingent on brand partnerships or algorithmic favors, Rumble’s system ties compensation directly to user engagement. Complementing its ad model, the creator model is designed to incentivize creators not just to bring in views, but to cultivate loyal audiences. To qualify, participants must stream at least 30 hours within 30 days, with five of those hours being exclusive to Rumble Premium subscribers. Monetization opportunities will begin to get tracked for compensation starting on March 1, 2025. Enrollment has already begun and is open to creators with at least 100 followers. They must also maintain an active Rumble Premium subscription throughout the program. Payouts and Global Reach Rumble will calculate earnings by April 30, 2025, with payments scheduled for May 31, 2025. As for international accessibility, the program is launching in a limited selection of countries: United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, South Korea, El Salvador, and Macedonia. While Rumble’s international reach remains relatively small compared to YouTube’s global dominance, the platform’s steady expansion into new markets signals a growing appetite for alternatives to Big Tech’s content policies. The Bigger Picture: Rumble vs. Big Tech Rumble has long positioned itself as a champion of creator independence. Unlike YouTube, which frequently revises its monetization policies and enforces stricter content moderation rules — often to appease advertisers — Rumble takes a hands-off approach, allowing content to flourish with minimal intervention. This has made it a magnet for independent journalists, political commentators, and creators who feel sidelined by Silicon Valley’s shifting standards. If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post Rumble Unveils 2025 Creator Program appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. Judging by the most recent statements made by UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, the government feels it will have to implement even more stringent speech-restrictive measures than those contained in the sweeping and controversial censorship law, the Online Safety Act. Appearing on a BBC political talk show, Cooper kept beating the now well-established drum the ruling Labour has gone for in the wake of last year’s Southport killings, and subsequent mass protests – namely, to try to portray social media companies as somehow “a part of the crime,” which is verbatim how the cabinet minister put it. One of the recurring themes these last weeks, since the Southport trial saw its conclusion, has been that tech companies are “morally responsible” for not deleting (that request came only last week) one of the violent videos viewed by the killer, Axel Rudakubana. This request was made even though said companies are under no legal obligation to do that, until the spring of this year and the start of the enforcement of some parts of the Online Safety Act. The stage set that way, Cooper’s logic – or lack thereof – goes like this: “We are being clear that we are prepared to go further if the Online Safety Act measures are not working as effectively as we need them to do,” she told the host, Laura Kuenssberg. There is no way to predict how social media firms will act once they are under obligation to remove certain types of content – and yet Cooper is already threatening to make the Online Safety Act even worse. After the case played out in court, the authorities are now going to organize an inquiry that will broaden the narrative and examine how social media, i.e., the content that third parties can publish there, is influencing “online radicalization” (Cooper mentions Islamist and far-right extremism in the same breath) and “obsession with violence” among young people. At one point – but well into this attempt to implicate the availability of both illegal and legal content related to violence as an important factor behind the Southport tragedy – the interviewer mentions that Rudakubana was “on the radar of the social services, he was on the radar of Prevent, a Home Office program, and yet no one stopped him.” When asked whose responsibility it was to stop him before the crime, Cooper danced around the topic (but surprisingly, didn’t name social networks.) If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post UK Home Secretary Signals Tougher Online Censorship Beyond Current Censorship Laws appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. UK’s government is accused of attempting to rush a controversial bill – the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error & Recovery) Bill – through parliament. Critics say the draft legislation contains some dystopian social credit-style surveillance provisions. The 116-page bill was only introduced a week ago, prompting rights campaigner Big Brother Watch to conclude that MPs may not even have enough time to read the text before they are supposed to start debating it. Despite its very public-spirited title – the bill’s opponents are warning that under the guise of preventing mass waste of taxpayer money through benefit fraud, it would also serve to set up a system of “mass spying” of bank accounts, carried out by the government (the Department for Work and Pensions, DWP). That includes constant monitoring of people’s bank statements, the ability to revoke driving licenses, and search premises, computers, and other devices. The UK’s welfare system would in this way be turned into “a digital surveillance system (…) with unprecedented privacy intrusions,” said Big Brother Watch Director Silkie Carlo. On the other hand, the DWP claims that while they will have access to bank statements belonging to accounts targeted as defrauding the benefits system, and be able to cause money to be taken from those accounts – they won’t have “direct access to actual accounts.” That’s cold comfort, privacy groups are suggesting, since the law then expands into requiring that banks and building societies submit reports about suspected fraud, which will allow DWP investigators to exercise their new ability to ask for search warrants, and then together with the police carry out searches, including of houses and devices. It appears to be yet another example of a “two-tier” system in the UK, this time tied to the justice system – at least judging by Carlo’s interpretation. She is concerned that, on the one hand, the most at-risk part of society – the elderly, the poor, and the disabled, will be deprived of the right to be heard in court and become more vulnerable to, catastrophic to their financial situation, “mistaken punishments.” On the other, Carlo said the provisions represent “totally unprecedented privacy intrusions and punishments that will do more damage to fundamental British values of fairness and justice than to the serious fraudsters.” image source: Simon Dawson / No 10 Downing Street If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post UK Government Fast-Tracking Bill to Monitor Bank Accounts, Revoke Licenses, and Search Homes appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. In a shocking turn of events – not – Bill Gates has voiced his positive stance toward Australia’s controversial online age verification legislation. Gates has lately been on a press tour promoting his new book, speaking about his youth, comparing that environment to the world today, and going after social media – always prefacing that with his asserted concern about young people. In line with that, Australia’s new law banning all minors younger than 16 from having accounts on social platforms is something Gates finds to be a “fascinating” experiment, in terms of whether or not it turns out to be beneficial – while according to him, there’s a “good chance that that’s a smart thing.” The new rules, adopted last month as part of the Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Bill 2024, will be fully enacted within one year, and are considered among the most restrictive of their kind anywhere in the world. Microsoft co-founder Gates – who has lately had quite a few negative things to say about fellow billionaires at the helm of their respective tech juggernauts – spoke for the BBC this time to once again focus on the cons of allowing minors to be present online. But is Gates “fascinated” by the ability of a government to introduce such draconian, blanket bans affecting an entire segment of the population because he is “thinking of the children” – or because the possibility itself is something that he finds of interest? Imposing more control over the internet by governments (his activities and statements leave no question those would be, “select” governments) is something Gates supports through his foundation’s strong advocacy in favor of the proliferation of digital IDs (as part of something he, the UN, the EU, and other like-minded organizations call, “digital public infrastructure (DPI)”). At one point in the BBC interview, Gates said that a lot of thought needs to go into how children use devices and networks online, saying this was a true particularity of them – “but also even when adults do (use social media).” In other words, Gates seems to have now graduated to “thinking about the adults” – at least in terms of their online presence might be controlled. If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post Bill Gates Backs Australia’s Social Media Age Ban, Advocates for Digital ID Expansion appeared first on Reclaim The Net.