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TikTok Ban - Will You Still Use It? Will You Download It While You Still Can?

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Nov 28, 2010
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As I understand it, barring a last-minute sale plan, on or after Sunday, app stores can no longer offer the TikTok app. But as far as I know, people who already have it, can still use it.
 
Correct. It will still be a thing for a while. But you will not be able to get updates for it. So it will slowly get buggy.
 
TikTok is just a stalking horse for a substantial power grab.


“This is not an attempt to ban TikTok, it’s an attempt to make TikTok better,” is how Nancy Pelosi put it. Congress, the theory goes, will force TikTok to divest, some kindly Wall Street consortium will gobble it up (“It’s a great business and I’m going to put together a group to buy TikTok,” Steve Mnuchin told CNBC), and life will go on. All good, right?

Not exactly. The bill passed in the House that’s likely to win the Senate and be swiftly signed into law by the White House’s dynamic Biden hologram is at best tangentially about TikTok.

You’ll find the real issue in the fine print. There, the “technical assistance” the drafters of the bill reportedly received from the White House shines through, Look particularly at the first highlighted portion, and sections (i) and (ii) of (3)B:

1fb080ab-72c8-4c46-a9d1-ef2ccbf12da5_2708x1548.webp

As written, any “website, desktop application, mobile application, or augmented or immersive technology application” that is “determined by the President to present a significant threat to the National Security of the United States” is covered.

Currently, the definition of “foreign adversary” includes Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China.

The definition of “controlled,” meanwhile, turns out to be a word salad, applying to:

(A) a foreign person that is domiciled in, is headquartered in, has its principal place of business in, or is organized under the laws of a foreign adversary country;
(B) an entity with respect to which a foreign person or combination of foreign persons described in subparagraph (A) directly or indirectly own at least a 20 percent stake; or
(C) a person subject to the direction or control of a foreign person or entity described in subparagraph (A) or (B).
A “foreign adversary controlled application,” in other words, can be any company founded or run by someone living at the wrong foreign address, or containing a small minority ownership stake. Or it can be any company run by someone “subject to the direction” of either of those entities. Or, it’s anything the president says it is. Vague enough?

As Newsweek reported, the bill was fast-tracked after a secret “intelligence community briefing” of Congress led by the FBI, Department of Justice, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). The magazine noted that if everything goes as planned, the bill will give Biden the authority to shut down an app used by 150 million Americans just in time for the November elections.

Say you’re a Democrat, however, and that scenario doesn’t worry you. As America This Week co-host Walter Kirn notes, the bill would give a potential future President Donald Trump “unprecedented powers to censor and control the internet.” If that still doesn’t bother you, you’re either not worried about the election, or you’ve been overstating your fear of “dictatorial” Trump.

We have two decades of data showing how national security measures in the 9-11 era evolve. In 2004 the George W. Bush administration defined “enemy combatant” as “an individual who was part of or supporting Taliban or al Qaeda forces, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States.” Yet in oral arguments of Rosul et al v Bush later that year, the government conceded an enemy combatant could be a “little old lady in Switzerland” who “wrote a check” to what she thought was an orphanage.

Eventually, every element of the requirement that an enemy combatant be connected to “hostilities against the United States” was dropped, including the United States part. Though Barack Obama eliminated the term “enemy combatant” in 2009, the government retained (and retains) a claim of authority to do basically whatever it wants, when it comes to capturing and detaining people deemed national security threats. You can expect a similar progression with speech controls.
 
i'm just a little melancholy that the last thing i'll likely see on tiktok is the dan aykroyd e buzz miller art critic clip
 
TikTok is just a stalking horse for a substantial power grab.


“This is not an attempt to ban TikTok, it’s an attempt to make TikTok better,” is how Nancy Pelosi put it. Congress, the theory goes, will force TikTok to divest, some kindly Wall Street consortium will gobble it up (“It’s a great business and I’m going to put together a group to buy TikTok,” Steve Mnuchin told CNBC), and life will go on. All good, right?

Not exactly. The bill passed in the House that’s likely to win the Senate and be swiftly signed into law by the White House’s dynamic Biden hologram is at best tangentially about TikTok.

You’ll find the real issue in the fine print. There, the “technical assistance” the drafters of the bill reportedly received from the White House shines through, Look particularly at the first highlighted portion, and sections (i) and (ii) of (3)B:

1fb080ab-72c8-4c46-a9d1-ef2ccbf12da5_2708x1548.webp

As written, any “website, desktop application, mobile application, or augmented or immersive technology application” that is “determined by the President to present a significant threat to the National Security of the United States” is covered.

Currently, the definition of “foreign adversary” includes Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China.

The definition of “controlled,” meanwhile, turns out to be a word salad, applying to:


A “foreign adversary controlled application,” in other words, can be any company founded or run by someone living at the wrong foreign address, or containing a small minority ownership stake. Or it can be any company run by someone “subject to the direction” of either of those entities. Or, it’s anything the president says it is. Vague enough?

As Newsweek reported, the bill was fast-tracked after a secret “intelligence community briefing” of Congress led by the FBI, Department of Justice, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI). The magazine noted that if everything goes as planned, the bill will give Biden the authority to shut down an app used by 150 million Americans just in time for the November elections.

Say you’re a Democrat, however, and that scenario doesn’t worry you. As America This Week co-host Walter Kirn notes, the bill would give a potential future President Donald Trump “unprecedented powers to censor and control the internet.” If that still doesn’t bother you, you’re either not worried about the election, or you’ve been overstating your fear of “dictatorial” Trump.

We have two decades of data showing how national security measures in the 9-11 era evolve. In 2004 the George W. Bush administration defined “enemy combatant” as “an individual who was part of or supporting Taliban or al Qaeda forces, or associated forces that are engaged in hostilities against the United States.” Yet in oral arguments of Rosul et al v Bush later that year, the government conceded an enemy combatant could be a “little old lady in Switzerland” who “wrote a check” to what she thought was an orphanage.

Eventually, every element of the requirement that an enemy combatant be connected to “hostilities against the United States” was dropped, including the United States part. Though Barack Obama eliminated the term “enemy combatant” in 2009, the government retained (and retains) a claim of authority to do basically whatever it wants, when it comes to capturing and detaining people deemed national security threats. You can expect a similar progression with speech controls.
This is the concern. Thanks.
 
Don't really get the attraction to tik tok. it's just reels people make that you scroll through right?
 
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I have tik tok, I don't really use it. I only use it when my brother sends me tik toks. I probably won't use it, unless he sends me tik toks.
 
Don't really get the attraction to tik tok. it's just reels people make that you scroll through right?
pretty much but the algorithm is damn good

it learns what your enjoy or don't enjoy based on your "likes" on reels

for me I get a lot of food prep, sports, boobs, history, movie reviews, boobs, and DIY reels
 
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Thought I saw something about rumors it may simply be shut down totally in the US?
First step: ban the app.

Second step: Banned apps and their users can be surveilled without warrants.

Third step: Fines on ISPs that allow TikTok traffic.

Fourth step: Shut down media platforms (like this one) for allowing mention of TikTok.

Fifth step. . . ?
 
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I watch my tic tocs on Facebook reels like a proper middle aged person. I will continue doing so until Facebook myspaces.
 
Don't really get the attraction to tik tok. it's just reels people make that you scroll through right?

Honestly, I never did either until I downloaded it in 2020.

The algorithm is so damn good.

But the community is also really damn good.

Sure, there is drama, but people come together a lot to help people on there.

Banning it sucks.
 
.
You're probably right.

I just don't buy the national security part of it.

If there was any sound evidence they would present it. It reminds me of the WMD situation in Iraq before everyone found out it was bullshit.

I believe they want to ban it because they can't control the narrative on it. In another thread I mentioned I believe the potential ban was because of Israel, the US has historically tried to keep their narrative on them in a favorable light, but in this case they can't. Typically they would either not mention when Israel did something damning, they would play it down, or they would use words like "blast killed 137" instead of "Israel missile attack on refugee camp kills 137."
 
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If there was any sound evidence they would present it. It reminds me of the WMD situation in Iraq before everyone found out it was bullshit.

I believe they want to ban it because they can't control the narrative on it. In another thread I mentioned I believe the potential ban was because of Israel, the US has historically tried to keep their narrative on them in a favorable light, but in this case they can't. Typically they would either not mention when Israel did something damning, they would play it down, or they would use words like "blast killed 137" instead of "Israel missile attack on refugee camp kills 137."
 
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Thought I saw something about rumors it may simply be shut down totally in the US?
Their CEO said the U.S. servers will be shut down on Sunday. That was before Biden said the government won’t enforce the ban for 36 hours so the incoming administration can decide whether they will extend the deadline or not.
 
First step: ban the app.

Second step: Banned apps and their users can be surveilled without warrants.

Third step: Fines on ISPs that allow TikTok traffic.

Fourth step: Shut down media platforms (like this one) for allowing mention of TikTok.

Fifth step. . . ?
Yep. This has nothing to do with China. It's all about certain groups losing their control of information.
 
Trump will continue it once the Chinese wire transfer clears his back account.
Curious how Trump will do that since its technically law. Most he can do is a 90 day wait. Either way, unless congress passes another law reversing this one, Tiktok is going away.
 
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Curious how Trump will do that since its technically law. Most he can do is a 90 day wait. Either way, unless congress passes another law reversing this one, Tiktok is going away.

Trump could tell the Republicans in Congress to slap their own mothers and most would do it with a smile on their face.

If he wanted them to reverse the ban it would happen
 
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