I am going to close my Facebook account

[proud2BlibKansan]

First of all, any DUers I have friended on FB can find me here. My real friends have my email address and most have my phone number as well. So I don't need FB to connect with people.

Last night I found out there is a poll on FB asking if our president should be killed. I did a little digging and discovered that poll has been on FB for over a month.

I tried to see the results of this poll but they wanted me to vote and add the application to my FB page.

Not going there. No way. Even if this was about Bush, I can't participate in this.

If FB is going to condone this kind of violent hate speech they can count me out.

Anyone care to join me?

(Sorry I am at work on my phone and can't post a link. Maybe someone will be kind enough to do that for the DUers who had not heard about this poll. IanDavid posted a screen cap last night.)

[damntexdem]

1. Welcome to the club.

I have long refused to use Facebook.

[proud2BlibKansan]

8. I've never been a big fan

but used it to connect with progressives and build support for various causes.

[Tippy]

49. After one or two trips to face book...I decided , it was not worth my time

What I saw lead me to believe no good could ever come to anyone who visited or used face book..

[tridim]

2. And if that doesn't piss you off, the daily downtime and weekly loss of cookies will

FB was fun for the first few weeks after joining, but now it's just annoying.

[boilerbabe]

24. I heard that there are a lot of viruses and malware associated with Facebook n/t

[VMI Dem]

3. Can't live without Yo'ville and Mafia Wars.

[proud2BlibKansan]

5. Add death threats against the president to that list!

[boilerbabe]

25. You can get Mafia Wars on MySpace. n/t

[Dappleganger]

44. Neither can I.

Level 176 here with nearly a thousand mafia.

Not everyone can handle FB and not everyone can handle the general public. I hear the cocoon is safe and warm inside.

</s>

[Hepburn]

4. That freaking poll had been on there for a MONTH!?!?!?!!?!

Can you post some contact info for the admin for that site?

That is just totally unforgivable!

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. Yes a month

It's despicable enough without that bit of info.

[SIMPLYB1980]

7. You need to contact FB.

They will take it down.

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. They've been contacted

Poll is still up.

[wicket]

13. What is the application?

Thanks

[proud2BlibKansan]

16. It's a poll

asking if Obama should be killed.

[wicket]

23. I mean the application it wanted you to install to vote in the poll?

[proud2BlibKansan]

31. Not sure. Sorry.

Just said application.

[wicket]

45. No worries!

I found it (already had it installed) and the app is completely suspended. Was just curious if it was that one or not. Thanks!

[SIMPLYB1980]

15. It's turning into a issue. They don't do much for one person,

but when it hits the news they will.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x6646710

[quiller4]

28. Poll was taken down late Sunday.

[City Lights]

37. No it wasn't. I voted "no" in it this morning. nt

[NewYorkerfromMass]

47. It's down now.

[raccoon]

9. K&R.

:yourock:

[drm604]

10. Does the FBI or the Secret Service know about it? n/t

[proud2BlibKansan]

12. I assume they have

The White House knows. They sent out a Tweet about it last night.

[Raine1967]

19. Yes -- see this Blog from last night:

http://thepoliticalcarnival.blogspot.com/2009/09/screen-grab-facebook-poll-should-obama.html

"I called the Secret Service. He thanked me three times, said he'd contact his "weekend" officer. They took the info, they were very glad to have it."

[jberryhill]

27. Know about it? They were probably collecting data from it

...and for good cause.

You know, it is no accident that two would-be terrorist bombers were arrested last week by the FBI agents whose attention they attracted.

[johnfunk]

36. I'd imagine that anyone who answered "Yes" is probably sweating right about now.

:evilgrin:

[damonm]

14. Don't surrender to the Haters.

if you leave FB, you'll be ceding the ground.

[SIMPLYB1980]

17. +1

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

20. +1 in my book, as well

If we retreat from every venue where the nutjobs show up, they'll have exclusive access to the electronic "public square."

Facebook is too powerful an organizing tool for us to walk away from it because it's being run by dolts.

[tblue]

21. +1 Gotta stay engaged and outweigh the nut jobs.

How about we post our own poll? I would, but I don't know how.

[donheld]

22. +1

Don't let the idiots win

[proud2BlibKansan]

40. Plenty of other places to fight the good fight.

[Parker CA]

18. Consider that if it really was allowed to be there for a month, there is a strong possibility that

the FBI or SS posted it and is using it as a means to track some of the fringe crazies. I have a very tough time believing that it would be allowed to remain for a couple of days, let alone a month if some gvmnt body were not behind it and using it to their benefit.

Just something to consider.

[jberryhill]

26. +1

Flypaper.

[DangerousRhythm]

50. I had considered this idea as well...

I really hope it's true!

[Inuca]

29. According to the AP

the poll has been posted only on Saturday and the Secret Service is investigating. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33060855/ns/technology_and_science-security/

[RoyGBiv]

38. The AP is wrong ...

The comments on the poll dated to August 25th.

Having said that, FB does not monitor every little tidbit of every application that's on the site. They rely on users to report problems. The problem with the application (and most of their applications) is that unless you know to send e-mail to [email protected], you have to use the "report" button on the app, which requires you to sign up to use the app, which a lot of people who would have reported it wouldn't do.

It's the same with every huge website. You can't hire enough people to monitor everything, so they rely on users to do so. If the users aren't inclined, or if those so inclined to report problems don't see the problems, they remain for awhile.

A blogger apparently happened across this poll yesterday. I myself hadn't seen it I saw that blogger's post, which seems to have been the initiation of the onslaught to have it removed and involve the Secret Service.

[quiller4]

30. Facebook reported the poll to the Secret Service and then

left it up for a period for Secret Service to monitor. They took it down when the Secret Service requested. All that seems really responsible. What are you squaking about?

[proud2BlibKansan]

32. I saw an August date on it

And it shouldn't have been allowed at all.

[Phx_Dem]

33. If I had one, I'd close it too. Disgusting.

[Hutzpa]

34. myspace is owned by

Rupert Murdoch, I will keep mine and not be childish about some lunatic and live it to the experts to
take control, maybe it might be Murdoch's hacks scheming facebook because it is more popular than
myspace.

So chill with the knee jerk re-action.

[johnfunk]

35. I'm STAYING with Facebook -- and staying VIGILANT to eliminationist rhetoric.

The more progressives at Facebook, the better for progressives.

Now here is a question:

Who should be more worried: the poll poster...
or the people who answered "yes"?

This could well have been a ploy by someone to ferret out eliminationists. I'm sure the Secret Service is very interested in the name of everyone who answered in the affiurmative.

[architect359]

48. +1 to this sentiment. n/t

[Cha]

39. Rec'd~ Never joined..

And, thanks for making a stand against violence on our President.

[KingFlorez]

41. Oh, they would love that

The right-wingers want to run everyone off and take over everything, don't give them what they want.

[bigwillq]

42. I love facebook.

I am going to stay. People post all types of appalling polls. It's not going to force me to leave. If I leave, they win.

[JustAnotherGen]

43. facebook is huge

And I wouldn't be caught dead on Myspace at my age (36). Way too much flair and cutesey wootsey stuff. Besides, I love the chutzpah of the owners and . . . I'm starting my own online women's magazine - so I need it. Targeted, focused advertising for women in my demographic. BTW - will be 'Advertising Liberally' too! But just the same, I need Facebook to hit my demo. We (women) are sick and tired of being called fat when we are a size 6, ugly when we have a mole, and old when we are 32 - which is what the women's magazines do these days. I've found a lot of women on FB that are anxious to see real clothes, on real women, with a focus on CONTENT as opposed to advertorIALS.

I think the app developer has responded well. As has Facebook. And honestly? I don't want a 'Big Brother' type environment. I don't want the winds to change and be muffled. Now threatening to kill the President. That's horrible. If the Secret Service has responded? Kudos to them.

[niceypoo]

46. Im not closing my facebook account because some of some RW moron

[proud2BlibKansan]

51. Me neither

I am concerned about how long it took FB to take that poll down.