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SGT Mary G.
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During the numerous years when I was a poll worker or an observer - there was only one possible incidence at the polls where I was. There was no reason to assume the two ladies involved were fraudulent (who may or may not have been citizens, who may or may not have been registered voters themselves) They were care givers helping a very elderly gentleman in a reclined wheel chair who they brought to the polls to vote. Anyone is allowed to have someone assist them with voting, so these two ladies were voting, presumably based on his choices that were on a piece of paper they were using.
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
2 mo
SGT Mary G. Excellent Bit of Perspective, My Father was a Poll Worker, Election Official for Years! I Have No Use for Willful Ignorance when it comes to Our Democratic Processes!
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SGT Mary G.
SGT Mary G.
2 mo
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel Wishing more folks had no use for willful ignorance. (Self introspection is not easy for some . . . but it is always necessary for better outcomes.)
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Maj Cyberspace Operations
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We have a great research program at one of the universities here that studies influence and disinformation in social media. It’s amazing how much this can be boiled down and studied like you would study mice. Unfortunately there are many people who have been influenced, including many here. The study originated to study external influence but has recently added the domestic influence operations.

I was discussing with a fellow group member and she summed it up nicely with the idea that some people are unwillingly influenced but we have so many who are willfully influenced because it fits the narrative of their beliefs. Unfortunately, the influencers see this as an opportunity to push them further down the narrative path into these lies which they drink up willingly.
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SGT Mary G.
SGT Mary G.
2 mo
Maj (Join to see) That is good news. I suppose that these days "influencers" are what was referred to in past generations a "peer pressure" from friends which we were not allowed to cite as a valid reason for anything we wanted or needed.
As irritating as we can be, when we were raised to question everything (at least by one parent! who enouraged rational thinking) I have to say that if more parents would encourage that in their children and explain the process of questioning and not jumping to conclusions before "investigating" there would not be so many willingly and unwillingly influenced.
I don't recall that being encouraged to question anything during k-12 either. We did a research paper in high school - however, it was not connected to investigating facts . . . like a current controversial topic. Hopefully, things have improved for K-12. More of todays teens seem to take an interest in current issues AND question them . . . a seeming benefit of "the internet", imo.
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SGT Mary G.
SGT Mary G.
2 mo
Maj (Join to see) That is good news. I suppose that these days "influencers" are what was referred to in past generations a "peer pressure" from friends which we were not allowed to cite as a valid reason for anything we wanted or needed.
As irritating as we can be, when we were raised to question everything (at least by one parent! who enouraged rational thinking) I have to say that if more parents would encourage that in their children and explain the process of questioning and not jumping to conclusions before "investigating" there would not be so many willingly and unwillingly influenced.
I don't recall that being encouraged to question anything during k-12 either. We did a research paper in high school - however, it was not connected to investigating facts . . . like a current controversial topic. Hopefully, things have improved for K-12. More of todays teens seem to take an interest in current issues AND question them . . . a seeming benefit of "the internet", imo.
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Maj Cyberspace Operations
Maj (Join to see)
2 mo
SGT Mary G. - it's a bit more than just influencers, but they can be a part of the problem. In many cases, it's just old fashioned influence operations but using modern day methods. The sources are hidden and there is a nugget of truth for the gullible to latch onto.

I've know the lead researcher of this facility for years and he's a known name in the research community around here. They are doing amazing work. I just thought it was interesting that they had unemotionally boiled down those being duped into the equivalent of laboratory mice.
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Maj Cyberspace Operations
Maj (Join to see)
2 mo
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel - It's not as obvious or blatant these days. It comes from serious sounding sources (many of the links that a certain group on this site posts). Unfortunately, they are really just propaganda machines running at full steam. If it were as blatant as Tokyo Rose or Axis Sally, it would be easier to brush off as the BS it is.
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