Comments of the Moment: Neil Young's "The COVID Years", Joe Rogan, Spotify and Vaccine Disinformation
For those just tuning in, Neil Young published a letter on his website Monday afternoon demanding that Spotify remove all of his music.
And shortly thereafter -- all hell broke loose here on this blog and elsewhere. (See here and here)
Incidentally, it seems that Neil Young's music is still available on Spotify.
So here are a few Comments of the Moment on Neil Young's "The COVID Years", Joe Rogan, Spotify and Vaccine Disinformation.
From Aer:
I was a fan of Joe from his first LP when he was just a comedian, and a damn good one, and released "I'm Gonna Be Dead Someday". It was hilarious, and I thought he was the best Stand-up going.
Fear Factor was a dive. Joe Rogan Questions Everything was horrible. He bores me concerning the UFC. I listen to his podcast for various guests after they are over and I can fast forward etc. His acceptance of Alex Jones makes me vomit. He also supports the use of LSD, psilocybin mushrooms, and DMT toward the exploration and enhancement of consciousness, as well as introspection. He was the presenter in the 2010 documentary, DMT: The Spirit Molecule. His song,"Voodoo Punanny", is a hit in my book. His tentatively titled book - Irresponsible Advice from a Man with No Credibility - really is accurate in a lot of ways, and he knows it. He is generally irresponsible in researching his info, though, and has apologized for it.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2020/09/18/joe-rogan-uncharacteristically-apologies-for-spreading-misinformation/
Joe has more responsibility now that so many crazies listen to him.It would do him well to accept that responsibility. To assume that those that criticize Joe have never heard his podcast is just intellectually irresponsible and academically nonsense.
"I've only ever seen Joe Rogan criticized by people who've never actually listened to any of his podcasts." How is life in a vacuum? People know what he doing, and when he is spreading misinformation they quote him. I am not anonymous, and stand by my post.
In reply, a comment from hietalaarto67:
dear Aer,
I did feel like writing now, because I figured this was going to be the only forum or platform out there where it would be Rogan getting crucified for this and not Neil, and for all the wrong reasons.
If you are capable of discussing this in civil manner without going into personal insults about vacuums etc. you can contact me at hietalaarto67@gmail.com , which includes my full name and I stand behind every word I wrote because I only wrote basic, very checkable facts in my earlier post, including the fact that most of Rogan's critics don't listen to the podcast, but repeat the quotes that the media reps have picked out for them to shout out, often falsely, by claiming Rogan's guests' words as Rogan's, or simply by lying, like the claim he suggested everyone take Ivermectin for covid. Even Neil fell for the misinformation about 200 plus doctors signing a petition, that was debunked the next day, while hundreds of physicians and health care experts also stepped in to Rogan's defense on the matter.
I will also add that the Forbes link you posted shows the other reason for Rogan's massive and rapidly increasing popularity, the unthinkable fact that when he is wrong he is upright enough and ready to admit it. This is so refreshing in any media that people love it. He's also been corrected several times during his podcasts by his guests, and has changed his views accordingly. That's what real people do,no?
I will also keep supporting, buying and loving Neil's music, as I have for thirty plus years now. But to be honest, he has certainly never been the person to go to for opinions on social issues, politics, or human relations especially. And neither has Joe Rogan for that matter. But I also still believe in the old saying that "the truth does not mind being questioned. A lie does not like being challenged".
Peace and be well
A comment from Harm:
A man that stands by his principles, which I can respect.
I will continue to use Spotify since it's my prime source for listening to music at work or on the road (when I'm biking or traveling by train) and for checking out new music that is not Neil Young. If I want to listen to Neil Young's music, I will listen to him on NYA at work or on the road or CD when I'm at home.
Now, do I agree with Neil Young on this matter? No, but that's OK. I feel that just because Spotify allow Rogan to speak his mind on this matter, it doesn't necessarily mean that Spotify agree with or support Rogan's point of view. Banning him from Spotify won't do any good. What would be better is to allow him to do his podcast, the contents of which are not in violation with the American constitution, BUT add a disclaimer that Rogan's views are not those of Spotify on that some of his claims are not supported by the WHO, etc. etc. The same way we shouldn't take down statues of historical figures because they did something bad (while trying to do good), but should rather provide information about what he did wrong as well.
In the Netherlands, the East India Company (in Dutch: VOC) allowed the Netherlands to grow and prosper in what we call the golden age. Now unfortunately, slaves were used on the many trading ships the VOC used. But rather than taking down the statues of the people in charge at the time, we chose to educate people on the matter, that this wealth came at a cost by starting to add this sort of information on the sign next to the statues.
Finally, I don't believe what Rogan says. I'd rather listen to scientists from the WHO, CDD (or in the Netherlands RIVM) and adhere to government policy in the battle against COVID. So I got jabbed twice and got a booster. Unfortunately, it still didn't prevent me from testing positive after both of my children got infected at school, but I do believe it's helped me from getting very sick. I only had a bit of a sore throat, not much more.
We'll see in due time if Neil's off of Spotify for good this time.
Labels: #disCERNment, neil young
by thrasher@PermaLink: 1/28/2022 02:54:00 PM
42 comments
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Just found out that my twice "vaccinated" boss got Covid and is now home for a week isolating himself. I work at a small store with 5 other employees. 3 of them have gotten Covid and I believe all 3 were at least double "vaccinated".
Lucky for me! I now have lots more work put on my plate to make up for the absences. Yay!!!
If only I had complied and bowed down to our new God, SCIENCE, then I myself might be home with the sniffles mainlining Netflix options into my system. But instead, I remain a simple, humble Pureblood with lots more work to do to cover everyone else.
So how is Joe Rogan such a threat to our very existence, again???
Innaresting articles:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/jan/28/joe-rogan-neil-young-spotify-streaming-service
https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/in-praise-of-neil-youngs-eternal-battle-with-the-music-industry/
Good old Neil, always fighting for the underdog. In this case, it's a small, modest, non-profit little-known company called Pfizer. God bless him!
Old washed up man take a looks at your failed woke life....
I thought the Mia Farrow tweet was particularly well said lol. Good links thanks Thomas
Hey Neil, we should boycott Ikea next because it looks like Sweden is spreading the same misinformation that Robert Malone did in the evil podcast.
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/sweden-decides-against-recommending-covid-vaccines-kids-aged-5-12-2022-01-27/
Joni Mitchell sided with him and many more... They are all changing into little wannabe Mussolini who wants to decide what is right or wrong to think. Greetings from the Canary Islands.
A second attempt….
I have intentionally avoided the onslaught of posts concerning this issue until now. I’m beginning to understand what the underlying issues are that have created this onslaught of anger and polarization. The pandemic has certainly played a part, as it has encroached upon our status quo within our daily lives. This past two years have allowed people the opportunity to reassess their lives, and reconsider the choices they’ve made through the years. Meanwhile; there’s been an upheaval of social unrest that impacted so many people, in very different ways.
There’s an increasing number of people who have been disenfranchised from their lives by so many different events that many are feeling left behind from what seems like an apathetic government. This apathy has begun to reveal the fact that the government has spent decades treading water in the comfort of their own status quo.
With social media, some people are discovering that there are others who think the same way they do, and this creates these thought platforms that presume that what they think…. is right, and therefore everyone else…is wrong. Creating the mythology of US vs Them. When someone becomes convinced that they’re the one who knows the truth, and what is right, this is when society begins its painful decline. They then finds others that agree with them, and you have the beginning of a movement. As that movement grows, others begin to feel threatened, and that creates conflict.
We’ve arrived at a crossroad. Will love overcome hate, or will we collapse under the weight of turning our neighbors into the enemy? Many of the recent posts here suggest that many people have already started attacking one another. I found some of them to be unnecessarily cruel. Yet there were just enough that contained enough love, peace, and understanding to convince me that there is still hope. For those of you who feel anger, hate, and rage towards others who disagree with you, I implore you to take some time out to search for your better selves, and reconsider how your anger will affect your children, friends, neighbors and family.
Words are powerful and they can do more harm than good. Take the time to allow yourself to have independent thought for just a moment, without all the opinions you hear from others, because your life may depend on it.
Your stance on different issues don’t have to separate you from anyone else, and taking the time to reassess your position while listening to other perspectives does not pose a serious threat to you. You don’t have to change your mind, but you may find common ground where you hadn’t noticed it before; just by listening to each other.
Peace to all. 🙏
I see a large group of Joe Rogan fans/anti-vaxer's have invaded this once obscure site for talking about Neil's tunes. That's too bad.
Covid seems like it is just a prelude to a much worse encore virus that will be hitting humanity one day. If Joe Rogan fans/anti-vaxers are still around, we're all doomed.
So I'm glad Neil left Spotify. But more for how horrible Spotify is for emerging musicians.
As Crosby says:
"The record companies made a deal to sell out the artists by agreeing to a very very low rate in return for which they got ownership share in the streaming companies which the artist don’t get piece of"
Ask Aaron Lee Tasjan what he thinks of Spotify. And listen to his 'Karma For Cheap' and 'Karma For Cheap: Reincarnated' while your at it.
But now, BREAKING NEWS from the Hollywood Reporter!
Young fans will now be able to get a free four-month subscription to Amazon Music using a link created specifically for Young. The offer will be available for a week, beginning on Friday.
“Amazon has been leading the pack in bringing Hi-Res audio to the masses, and it’s a great place to enjoy my entire catalog in the highest quality available,” the artist, who has previously spoken out about his dissatisfaction with streaming audio quality, said on Friday.
Oh, man. Come on Neil, see the light! Has that high res sound blinded you from how bad Amazon is for the planet?
Spotify is an irritating mosquito buzzing around compared to the out of control bulldozer that is Amazon.
Take it from someone who lives in Seattle and has seen it complete ruin this once vibrant city.
I'm so disappointed in Neil.
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The good thing about music is that you can enjoy it, and it can really touch you, even though you don't agree with the artist. Creative artists have often got opinions and attitudes towards life that can be hard to swallow, or you don't agree upon. Personally I listen more and more to jazz with no singing, so lyrics are irrelevant. But there are three rock giants that still impress me, and give me almost a peak experience listening to: Neil Young, Bob Dylan and Van Morrison. Being a Norwegian, I have no problems at all with Neil, but Van Morrison (maybe my all time favorite) has made some statements hard to follow, and his latest record (Latest Record Project) is absolutely fantastic, but with some lyrics I may not agree to. And as a non-believer, I sometimes find some of Dylans focus and lyrics too obsessed wit religion, but I can still enjoy it. And I don't think I need to defend my music taste for anybody. These three buddies really give me so much, enriches my life, and I'm just glad they're still around and making music. So - I'm glad you all can enjoy Neil, even though some of you don't agree with all his actions. It's the music that matters, not the man.
As I said, as a Norwegian (and almost all Norwegians will agree to this), I have no problem whatsoever with Neils opinions. In newspapers here, Neil has only got support and credit for doing what he did. In Norway there have been line-ups to the caccine stations. Everybody wantes vaccines, as fast as possible, and people were celebrating with champagne the day they got the call for vaccine, and they celebrated both first dose, second dose and the booster dose. Most people can't understand at all that some would like to play russian roulette with their health, and risk both long-covid, hosiptalization or death because of a disease we've got a vaccine for. We just don't understand it, and less so that this has become a political issue in some countries. In Norway, only a handful nazis try to make an issue of being against vaccines.
The same was the matter with Living With war, which I finnd one of the better NY-albums. That is because it's a really rocking and catchy album. The lyrics didn't raise an eyebrow in Norway, because what was expressed we found obvious. I think nothing of NY is found to be controversial in Norway. On the contrary, we are just totally amazed (and quite shocked) by the fact that anybody at all could vote for Trump, a liar that try to make USA a non-democratic country with himself as a dictator "light", in the same way that Putin, Erdogan and Xi have done. We just shake our heads, and think that USA are more different from Europe than we first thought. Just like Russia, Turkey or China.
Here, all political parties, from left to right, has the same goal of minimize economical and socal differences between people, to eleminate poverty, and create social security for everybody, with great trust between people. We all gain from that, both rich and "poor". With free (public) health care, free (public) schools, alnost free Universities, free social security and economic support, equal rights for all, no matter which sex, religion, color, age or status, we experience an economical growth that everybody benefits from. We all have a good income, regardless of your parents, we have - in addition to about 10 public/religious holidays each year - minimum 5 weeks paid holiday (myself, being 63 years lod, have 7 weeks paid holiday every year), one year paid leave when giving birth to children, totally free press and freedom of expression - why should we want it differently? So we just don't understand what is happening in the USA, and we don't see any controversial aspects of NY at all.
Still - I'm glad we all can enjoy good music, and that we can meet and talk in peace, even though our political standpoints and our attitudes towards life is different.
I am three times vaxxed, and also passed Omicron. You just called me an antivaxxer. Robert Malone got his vaccine too. You obviously like most did not listen to the evil Podcast. The world is so polarized and people like me are trapped in the middle.
#Mikkelrev
As we both live in European countries where equality is a value we have a hard time grappling with a civilisation where this apparently is not the case. Americans clearly do not subscribe to it, many obviously because it comes with a price tag. And although I insist on a European perspective when commenting here, we both will have to admit that it's easy to claim not to understand. Norwegians (topping the HDI-Index list for many years now) or Germans (ranking on the 6th position)are quite ahead of the US (position 17). The number of people in the US who are poor and uneducated is far higher than in our countries. So that we are sharing well-to-do Neil Young's position on many issues is not surprising. But we also have to concede, that Norway built a huge state fund on fossil resources and Germany has been extremely lucky for many decades since 1945 - and still we are not safe from racism, discrimination or violence either (see Nazi murders in Germany or the shootings on Utoya island). Living in countries with populations of 5 or 80 million makes it a lot easier to find a societaly consensus, too.
As per her website: Joni Mitchell sides with Neil Young and pulls her catalogue from Spotify. In her childhood Joni Mitchell was affected by the same polio epidemic as her friend Neil Young.
I love Neil, among other things, because he often makes me laugh about his own "science". One actual example is in his article "More Songs and Less Sound": "This allows business people like those who run Spotify to cut down the quality to 5% of the music's content. IT'S JUST MATH. ...That's because 95% is missing" - "That's TRUE" says the bat to the dolphine "... and we can hear it (if we combine our abilities), but I doubt this applies to human beings with their creepy ears"
https://neilyoungarchives.com/news/1/article?id=Spotify-More-Songs-Less-Sound
Neil Young, Spotify, comments on TW - "A storm in a teacup, how cute" THE EARTH smiles...
#Dionys
Yes, you're right, of course, with respect to social consensus. I've been in all 48 lower states, and I see the versatility. I also see that my post became more political than first intended :-)
What I meant to say, is that it's hard if you want to follow an artist like an idol, because creative artists often have got a lot of opinions that may be hard to follow. I don't like NY, Dylan or Van Morrison because of their opinions or personalities, but because of their music. So I don't have to defend anything of what they're expressing. In this case, it's easy to agree with NY, but I don't have to be nervous about his next action or statement. That's HIS opinion, and I've got mine. And that's the good thing about music.
BTW, the wealth of Norway is only (slightly) partial because of the oil income (which now will be gradually winded up). Most of the oil money is set aside in funds for the coming generations.
I know about the Norwegian fund, I also know that money does not make happy but it has a re-assuring and pacifying effect.
I like your post Mikkelrev. The USA is in a very dire situation now. Trump is a absolute abomination who will do all he can to destroy our democracy just to further his own selfish motives. You make allot of common sense. You make Norway sound appealing. We're fucked and it aint getting better in the short. So thank you. I saw Bob and Van same show opened by the also very good Lucinda Williams something about 98 ? fun night. Again thank you for your post.
It's now all set up for a launch of the Neil Young channel on SiriusXM. Second test of the content/initial-format is now running on the Deep Tracks channel.
Meanwhile Spotify's stock lost 2 billion in value over the last week. Seems like Neil Young has more people than people think!
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@ Dan : Inspiring writing, sir! Thank you for sharing your wisdom and message. I too feel hope when I read posts such as yours, for Earth and for this Blog.
@ Thrasher : Thanks for the words.
You are correct about AI and social media dividing society & conquering us (and perhaps causing civil war!). We are all subject to it directly or indirectly. The documentary "The Social Dilemma" is crucial viewing for any social media user / victim. The experts who built AI for Google, facebook, etc., now believe with strong regret that Civil War looms upon us due to their AI creation.
As far as sharing a few beers or 5 between warring TW extremists, I like your idea, unlikely as it seems. But if my buddy buys all the rounds, it is not entirely out of the question. What happens after the rounds is difficult to predict. I would leave my "Lucky Machete" at home tho. Peace!
My intention for my involvement with TW moving forward is to enjoy it as a forum to discuss our mutual love of Neil Young's music. I believe in the power of his music, and I think it can soften hard hearts and influence us to be better people. You'll be hearing less from me, and hopefully less bickering and more polite discussion in general on the TW blog.
Opinions are out there. Either way, most of us will live long enough to see science's predictions on Global Warming come true. It will kill off most of Earth's humans if not all. Unchecked pollution, overuse of resources (like fossil fuel), and and habitat destruction will drive extinction, heat, and Superstorms in the Extinction Event we have entered. The looming threat is at hand now, and more so later. In short, we ARE screwed, but I still feel Hope somehow, partly thanks to you & Dan. "Keep on Rockin' in the Free World."
"Can we get it together? Can we make it last? Like a musical ride?" Thanks to Neil Young for modeling "Protest Action" so the rest of us can be inspired by his stand. From Ohio, Southern Man, Alabama, Who's Gonna Stand Up?, and Human Race.
Strangely, I am unconcerned as to whether Neil Young tours again. Partly this is because he has given us so much already, and there are recordings and video of a lot of it. And I have been a Lucky Bastard to have seen him play 18 times so far. I don't expect many to feel that way. I think Neil has earned some time sitting on the porch. Knowing him, he will stay busy and bring a lot more happiness our way in the form of impressive Music he has made. It is a fantasy that he has so much more for us to hear which has not yet seen the light of day, and we will savor it.
Your Brother in Seattle, Alan
Thanks for the kind words Alan, you have illustrated that you see yourself in a new light which I find inspiring. I also agree with Thrasher that neither you or anyone else here should be voted off. All are welcome, and those who desire conflict should simply be allowed to state their case. It’s important to allow every voice to be heard. I would hope that those who are willing to express themselves, would do it without attacking others. It’s simply more effective to speak to others with respect, regardless of whether they agree or not. Name calling is not an effective approach, and ultimately undermines the ability to communicate as an adult.
Peace 🙏
@ All - again, many thanks for the mostly polite, respectful and civil discussions here on TW.
Appreciated.
Also, just trying to hit a few points here below. impossible to respond to everyone. so if we miss you, don't take it anything from it.
@ wsanjose01 - missed the Mia Farrow tweet?
@ Dan - your calming words here are most welcome in these volatile tines.
Might history some day note that some of the real true hero's were those who kept their heads level, voices low, minds clear and open and actions controlled.
@ willforestwater - will try and check out Aaron Lee Tasjan and 'Karma For Cheap: Reincarnated'
@ Mikkelrev - many thanks for thoughts from Norway.
Sharing another perspective is vital for us here @ TW. We cherish the diversity here such as it is.
In fact, similar to the LWW days, we are seeing a flux of 1st timers here on TW.
Many do seem to be Joe Rogan fans/Neil bashers. In many respects they do themselves a disservice with poorly argued comments.
That said, TW is one of the very few sites remaining that do allow relatively un-moderated comments across multiple sides of an issue. Most forums are simply echo chambers amongst the true believers. While we certainly have quite a bit of that here -- no doubt -- we do openly and freely allow these counter-Neil narratives.
Again, keep it respectful and you should be good. If you get all angry, hot and stupid, your comment might just go poof!
@ Dionys - along the lines of what we've said b4 to you and Mikkelrev above.
Your perspective is most vital.
@ Brother in Seattle, Alan - like Dan says below, adjusting attitudes is inspiring.
We all do change our minds when we finally do accept new realities.
Sometimes we say "Don't ever change!" and infrequently we do say "change your mind".
Like the old joke about how many psychologists does it take to change a light bulb? (ANSWER: Zero. The light bulb will change when it's ready.)
Be true to yourself.
TW is a big/little island and there's room for just about everyone. We might have to put you one one end of the island and Jonathan on the other side, but we can make it work.
Peace
Some thoughts at the end of the week. The hype and loudest headlines and click bait now seems mostly based on the can't have both, "They can have Rogan or Young. Not both." which I read as an aside after Neil's decision to not be affiliated with Spotify. Media headline click bait focus was misleading, and the short letter was removed and replaced by the long piece a day or two later restating intentions and reasons more completely. I don't see a censorship advocacy at all. I see a person that doesn't like the direction of an organization he has a contract with, and wants out. It was Neil's decision to leave. Spotify still states they want him back. I see it like a Manager of a baseball team not liking the direction of the Front Office, that it doesn't fit with his MO, so he leaves. I respect that. No censorship is really a part or was requested. Neil doesn't want to be on the same team as Rogan. There are many other Rogan shows on the subject other than the one with Malone, which was very informative and interesting, and I recommend people who have not heard it to hear it, to be aware and have it part of your circle of awareness. (Malone seemed a bit bitter about his current role in the progression, but that was maybe my take, and not the takeaway from the episode). Rogan admits he is prone to saying shit that is not vetted and not factual and true. So I don't buy the sensational accusations of "Censorship" headline bait here. I have left jobs that I decided I was a bad fit for. My decisions. Not theirs. I get it.
Musicians are collectively getting shorted in payments for their art, while subsidizing the Rogan contract.... but that is another whole discussion of the streaming situation. This discussion... should not be about censorship, but a man that doesn't fit on the team, is not the biggest $ maker for them, and doesn't want to be affiliated anymore for reasons clearly stated. Not stopping free speech, not wanting to stop free speech, just separating from the same platform. I respect and understand that. I bet we see others (Joni Mitchell already has) follow. It doesn't seem like a fit to me to have Neil guest on a JRE episode, but it would be interesting for them to be the panel on a third party show like Real Time with Bill Maher.
I'm not a robot.
Spotify lost $2 Billion in stock value directly after Neil Young issued his ultamatum. Most of the talking heads predicted it would hurt Neil but not Spotify! It turns out that Neil was wielding extraordinary power with his stand. Joni Mitchell followed suit. Amazing. Neil Young has been Prophetic through the years but this is a whole new deal. Your Brother in Seattle
Amazon is surely not the perfect solution, but if Neil recommends it I will at least given them a shot.
The idea behind the vaccine is to hopefully keep us from dying or taking up valuable hospital beds, not to keep us virus-free. That's especially true with Omicron.
Even in my small midwestern state workers at the big hospitals are suffering from anxiety and getting stressed to the max. I just hope most will hang in there to help us fight this war, and not decide to quit.
Rogan misinformation is free speech in the same way yelling "FIRE!!" in a crowded theater is free speech. (Spoiler alert...it's not.)
In exercise of my right to free speech I have begun to send messages to the management of Emmylou Harris and Jethro Tull asking to consider their invovement with Spotify just like Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and Nils Lofgren did already. I do have my own playlist ... and it's very long.
*involvement
so Neil or someone on his team now has now posted a cutesy little Spotify symbol with an eraser saying 'And just like that...America chose to erase racism and junk science'
I see - so anyone who listens to Joe Rogan - or who disagrees with the so-called science regarding the COVID vaccines - is a racist.
Got it.
Just like if you don't support the Democrats, you are obviously a racist.
Don't believe in man-made climate change? You're a racist.
Think all lives matter including black lives? You're a racist.
Neil & his team can fuck off.
I love his music & will continue to love his music.
But he continues to embarrass himself with stupid shit like this.
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I attended the funeral of a COVID victim yesterday. In his 50s, no underlying medical conditions. His wife is a passionate anti vaxxer so neither spouse nor their two college age girls got vaccinated because they believed in moms pseudoscience. All four got COVID. Only dad was hospitalized and was gone within 7 days. I Wouldn’t want to live with her guilt for the rest of my life.
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For those who think Neil's decision is a form a censorship, consider this thought experiment. Suppose instead of Rogan, a nazi had a podcast on Spotify. (I'm not suggesting Rogan is a nazi, just using hyperbole to make a point.) The nazi may not say anything illegal in his podcast but the content would be extremely offensive to most people.
If Neil decided he didn't want to be on the same platform as the nazi because he finds him loathsome and dangerous, would you say he is "censoring" the nazi and taking away his "freedom of speech"? Surely, he is not. He is simply saying he doesn't want to share the stage with someone whose views he finds repellent. He is not "censoring" the nazi in any way, who is free to continue his podcast. If Spotify decides to remove his show, the nazi would move to another platform and continue podcasting there. The nazi has a right to "freedom of expression" but does not have a right to be on Spotify, it is Spotify's decision to keep him or remove him.
Similarly, Neil is not "censoring" Rogan, he is simply saying he doesn't want to be on the same platform as someone whose show, he believes, is contributing to the deaths and suffering of many people. Neil seems to believe, rightly or wrongly, that under the guise of allowing "opposing opinions", Rogan's show is presenting false information about COVID that many impressionable people are following with deadly consequences. You can agree with his decision or disagree with it, but to call it "censorship" is to misunderstand what Neil is doing.
As mentioned in my previous post on the matter, I did not listen to Joe Rogan's podcast, so I cannot comment on its contents. Now as it turns out, as Neil confirmed in his answers to the latest batch of letters to the editor, he didn't listen to it either. Now if he wants to make a decision based what he read on the contents of the podcast elsewhere, that's up to him. It's just not something I would do.
I'll continue to use Spotify as there are not many viable alternatives available in The Netherlands, Amazon HD is not available here for example. I feel, subscribing to Spotify doesn't necessarily mean I condone or support the views of some of the people that have featured on the Joe Rogan Experience.
Now admittedly, I need to look into QoBuz (I refuse to use Apple) to see what they can offer me. I knowingly and willingly sacrifice sound quality for the convenience and the catalog size of Spotify at a decent price. If QoBuz can offer me the same catalog at a competitive price with the added bonus of higher sound quality, that's nice. For the record, while I appreciate there is a difference between 320 Kb/s and CD quality, the difference is not earthshattering and very hard to discern when using your telephone or laptop pc to listen to music when working or traveling, which is how I use Spotify. For offline listening, I use CD's on a decent set (1500 dollars worth of CD player, amp and speakers). The human ear cannot discern between 16/44.1 and 24/192, many double blind tests have pointed this out. Any difference perceived has to be due to a difference in mastering.
Censorship is ALWAYS an act of tyranny! You can couch it anyway you like, Neil Young couldn't have made his fortune at all but for the rights that we hold so dear as Americans! I have loved Neil Young all of my life,, but for him to call for censorship just because he disagrees with Rogan is a betrayal to the very essence of what it means to be free.. The truth about co-vid has been hidden and the collaboration of doctors squashed during the pandemic, something that wouldn't be happening if there were real transparency... we need to have different opinions brought out so that collaboration and improved therapies can evolve...as a nurse I can tell you that this is when healthcare does it's best and most helpful work, during such collaboration. And it all starts with the allowance of different perspectives. But you know this is true, really now, don't you.?.. I'm truly heartbroken Neil. you have now become the thought police.
No one should be held accountable for an individual expressing themselves freely. People need to hold themselves accountable and stop allowing others to do their thinking for them. I had posted a more poignant comment but it appears that in between submitting it and it getting to this web-page, it somehow got "lost in traffic." I am not surprised. I have been "deleted" for expressing myself because it did not align with the media's propaganda. We need to get to a place where we can share a variety of perspectives, experiences (no pun intended), and opinions without the fear of being ostracized or cancelled for doing so. Imagine a world where everyone thinks the same, acts the same, talks the same, eats the same; what a dull and boring existence. The beauty of life lies in its diversity and a society that cannot or will not tolerate an individuals right to express themselves (no matter how "out there" it may seem to some) is no society at all. Imagine a world where a group of people could freely share information and perspectives without it being spun into some kind of narrative. What a beautiful world that would be... we might actually learn something from each other.
It's nice to hear or read from a fellow-dutchman (a Hollander, someone who lives in the Netherlands in Europe).His opinion was a good one, although I don't agree with what he said.The music of Neil is so much better on his Archives-site,than the quality that's on Spotify.But every story has two sides, so we have to be open for both versions and than make up our minds what we think of it.Personally I think Neil's made his point by following his own feeling and judgement.We all know Neil's honest,always,never pretends of being someone he isn't,though all his moves aren't always logical and hard to understand,but afterwards it becomes clear what he meant and how he felt.Houdoe to you all,specially Harm and take care.
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