The Bill C-10 Controversy

So I read the summary of this controversial Bill C-10, and here's my take:

The people braying about how it's "censorship"...they're exaggerating. And those exaggerations are backed by...Conservative/Right-Wing voices. Politicians and critics, "journalists", lawmakers, academics, everyone who is a right-leaning fuckwit, is crying about the bill. And the gist of their argument is this:

 

It makes room for censorship of individual expression.

 

And that's because of the ambiguity that was left in the bill. This argument they're pushing is what's called a "slippery slope" fallacy. All that the Bill C-10 does its AMEND current broadcasting regulations to include streaming services, and the likes of YouTube and TikTok, in promoting Canadian content and to try to make their programming more accessible to minority groups, including the disabled (such as myself). 

 

You see, these dishonest critics are making a mountain of a molehill. They're doing it because they don't expect damn near anyone who they're trying to appeal to to actually READ THE BILL ITSELF, because it's a long document and isn't fucking interesting to read. Well, it's a legal document made to enact legal and regulatory change, so of course it won't be interesting to read. But it's informative because you know what it's meant to do.

 

Why are the Conservative-types doing this? Because they're contrarian assholes, that's why. Imagine if you will, the Conservatives wanted to make their own bill akin to Bill C-10, which AMENDS current regulations regarding broadcasting. These dishonest assholes in our media, regardless of medium (social media, TV media, print media, etc.), would praise it to the heavens. 

 

This is sociopolitical theatre, people. It's showmanship. They think their voters — the people who see things a certain way that benefits these charlatans and opportunists — are too uneducated and impulsive to challenge their divisive (and frankly distracting, likely from their real agendas, whatever they may be) machinations. And the sad thing is that they're right. This is a demonstrable and unfortunate FACT in sociopolitical discourse time and time again. And it's hurting us all in the end.

 

Don't worry about Bill C-10. Technically, all regulations and laws are fucking exploitable anyway, and that's kind of the point to begin with. Think for yourself instead of going with the reactionary bullshit that's crying about so-called "censorship" being foisted upon us with this bill. That's not what it does at all. The best that the people who are pushing this narrative have got to support their argument is that it's somewhat ambiguous in what scope of content on these newly-amended platforms (Netflix Canada, Amazon Prime, TikTok, YouTube, etc.) will be regulated. They don't even really try to substantiate anything, relying only on a slippery slope fallacy that it MIGHT lead to censorship of content.

 

Sometimes you just want to blast yourself into space somewhere and get away from all of this noise.

Word of Mouth #9: Nothing - "Guilty of Everything"

 

"Guilty of Everything" stream on NPR

This release (out March 4th) is courtesy of Relapse records.

Now, a lot of people are probably on the fence about shoegaze - hell, many people probably have not the faintest clue what shoegaze even is. Well, for those amongst us who are privy to what it is, and how it stands out enough to be called a genre of rock, let's just consider why it may polarize listeners.

It's the heavily distorted, yet melancholic wailing guitars that permeate almost the entire aural experience. In effect, much of the material that can be considered shoegaze resembles what the ambient genre would be like if it were rock-based instead of electronica based. Instead of engineering and mixing tables, sampling and electronic-based instruments, you'd use guitars, drums, bass, and often vocal tracks. Cerebral yet primal.

What the hell does all that have to do with Nothing's upcoming release, Guilty of Everything? Well, this is a remarkable shoegaze release. As I stream the album, with its droning yet consistent quality (such is the magic of shoegaze, which allows for more atmospheric, drawn-out experiences compared to the chaotic stops & turns of hardcore and metalcore), I find myself enamored with all of the sounds contained within. There's nothing like listening to an album that draws you in and doesn't let go until it is all over, and you want to listen again. That's this album in a nutshell. 

The album is streaming, entirely free, on NPR.org's streaming service. The link is to be found above. If you've not yet given it a click, then please do so. It'll dazzle you like it is dazzling me (not sure what track I currently am on, given that I chose to stream the entire album, which is a 38+ minute endeavor). Oh, and it releases on March 4th via Relapse records, just so you can consider clunking your hard-earned money into rewarding these guys for their artistry.