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by ArtDev 1652 days ago
What ruined memes for me: reddit.com/r/hermainCainAward

This is the "Covid is fake" social media posts of people who died from Covid. Mostly, these are reposts of meme tropes but with a misinformed/paranoid Covid slant.

I can't help but wonder about the people who make these memes. Obviously, not all are Russian agents.. but some probably are.
1 comments
smackeyacky 1652 days ago
That subreddit is horrible. Take some selective posts of dead people and highlight them in a macabre game of "I told you so".

Its not going to change minds about vaccination or pull people out of their conspiracy mindsets, it will just reinforce the tribalism that allows misinformation to spread. I wish they would shut it down.

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paxys 1652 days ago
Why do you assume people posting there have any agenda? Heck why should everything on the internet have an agenda or end goal? That subreddit is a large-scale collection of "I told you so" Facebook posts, as you said, and that's it. It isn't some vaccination campaign. People can take whatever they want out of it. Darwin awards have been a thing for a long time and are part of internet culture.

The material there isn't what's wrong with the internet, rather all the calls for "xyz should be shut down" for anything slightly offensive to someone's sensibilities are the problem. If you don't like it, close the browser window and move on with your life.

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smackeyacky 1652 days ago
Of course there is an agenda behind it. Pro tip, the name of the subreddit is a bit of a clue.
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JetAlone 1652 days ago
There was an interesting comment in another HN thread, where something like this got talked about: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29558521

Applying that theory here would be to create a feedback loop where the Herman Cain Award content causes more digging in, causes more deaths, generates more Herman Cain Awards. Imagine if you were the creator or an early adopter/moderator of such a community and it grows explosively... If the theory is correct, this is a highly profitable activity for capitalizing socially on the deaths of your political enemies, and while controversial, could net you a status as a lionized hero in some communities, the ones who are sick and tired of the political enemies due to past experiences, and love seeing members of them die.

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