Posted Sep 29, 2021 by Michael L. Brown

The September 29 lead headline on Drudge Report was even more apocalyptic and alarming than normal, featuring a giant YouTube logo, front and center, covered by a red “cancel” circle. The headline declared, “YOUTUBE BANS ALL ‘ANTI-VAX’ CONTENT.’”

Secondary headlines also sounded ominous tones: “Sydney warns unvaccinated face total social isolation IDEFINITELY when lockdown ends . . .”; “UNITED AIRLINES firing employees who refuse shot”; “Biden Order Mandate Enforcement With Up To $700,000 Fine . . .” – and more.

Are things really as bad as they seem? In a word, yes.

But let me say at the outset that I am not an anti-vaxxer myself. My official, oft-stated, public position on the COVID vaccines is this: Do the research, pray for wisdom, and make an informed decision. As for my personal choices, I’m keeping those personal, since I do not have the health expertise to influence others in either direction.

As for my experience with the COVID videos our ministry has posted online, YouTube has been totally fair with us. They have not demonetized, let alone banned, a single video we have made discussing the virus or the vaccines from different points of view.

I appreciate this, but, at the same time, I recognize that this is exactly the way things should be. That’s what freedom of speech is all about. And that’s what these public platforms are all about.

Unfortunately, as reported on the MSN website, “As part of a new set of policies aimed at cutting down on anti-vaccine content on the Google-owned site, YouTube will ban any videos that claim that commonly used vaccines approved by health authorities are ineffective or dangerous. The company previously blocked videos that made those claims about coronavirus vaccines, but not ones for other vaccines like those for measles or chickenpox.”

So, while a million viewpoints on a million subjects can be freely discussed, including what foods are or are not healthy and what diets are or are not healthy and what exercise regimes are or are not healthy or what drugs for different illnesses are or are not healthy – etc., etc. – there can be no open discussion about what vaccines are or are not healthy.

This is utterly outrageous. Talk about a frontal assault on our freedoms.

And what a dangerous new precedent this sets when it comes to future censorship of banned ideas.

The rationale behind the decision is this: “Misinformation researchers have for years said the popularity of anti-vaccine content on YouTube was contributing to growing skepticism of lifesaving vaccines in the United States and around the world. Vaccination rates have slowed and about 56 percent of the U.S. population has had two shots, compared with 71 percent in Canada and 67 percent in the United Kingdom.”

But what if it is not just misinformation? What if there are genuine scientific concerns? What if there is a growing body of anecdotal evidence supporting those concerns? And, in any case, who decides what is and is not “misinformation”? More importantly, who decides which “misinformation” is permitted and which is forbidden?

Should a video with blatant misinformation about the Bible be permitted on YouTube, even if it will lead many people astray spiritually? (The answer is yes, it should be permitted.)

What about a video with misleading information about UFO’s? Should that be permitted? (Again, the answer is yes.)

But if you have genuine, well-researched, carefully-considered issues with vaccines in general, not to mention COVID vaccines in particular, your content will be banned on YouTube.

This really is ominous.

In a text thread today in response to this news, a Christian attorney wrote, “It's going to get worse, probably much worse. The full court press is on with social media, large corporate interests, and Hollywood doing the progressive Left's bidding. I'm more worried about what it portends beyond vaccinations. A governmental-business conglomeration able to do this - literally mandate what people put in their body - can dictate nearly anything about how we live and even how we think.”

He added, “I'm not optimistic that good info can stop the juggernaut. That's because it's not about rational discourse - it's about power and ultimately an antichrist spirit.” In other words, this is a bigger battle, one that is both ideological and spiritual. We dare not minimize the threat.

Looking back to March 2018, I wrote an article titled, “Why YouTube’s Conflict With Infowars Should Concern Us All.”

The article began with these words: “I have never been a fan of Alex Jones and Infowars. I strongly reject some of the conspiracy theories Jones has put forth. But if it is true that his channel could be removed from YouTube, we should not ignore this. It doesn’t matter if we are on the left or right or in between. Especially since The Daily Caller reported that ‘YouTube is getting help from the left-wing Southern Poverty Law Center in its effort to identify extremist content.’”

Fast forward back to today, and you can see that our concerns were quite valid.

In the past, a major newspaper like USA Today may have had 2-3 million subscribers, while, to this day, major network news shows may draw 5-7 million viewers per network. In contrast, YouTube currently has 2.29 billion users, meaning that when YouTube bans you, it really hurts.

Add to this the fact that we began this year with Twitter banning the most powerful man on the planet from its platform – the sitting president of the United States – and you realize that things are quickly spiraling out of control.

Let us, then, push back with wisdom, with truth, with courage, with strategic action and – for people of faith – with prayer. (My forthcoming book, The Silencing of the Lambs: The Ominous Rise of Cancel Culture and How We Can Overcome It, due out March 2022, will offer a number of practical strategies on a wide-range of fronts.)

Tags: 

Sign Up or Login to post comments.

Comments

OT posted a comment · Oct 16, 2021
Arrested Canadian leader's stark warning to U.S. on big government: 'You cannot take your freedoms for granted' Since the pandemic, other churches throughout Canada have faced imprisoned pastors, locked facilities, steep fines and continued interference from government officials.” No thanks....keep it in your cities..if you want to know what nanny state would be like look north!
user profile
yeshuais4me posted a comment · Oct 05, 2021
There is more going on than just Anti-Vaxxers. Deuteronomy 17:3 by going and serving other gods and worshipping them, the sun, the moon, or anything in the sky — something I have forbidden — Isaiah 17:8 He will pay no heed to the altars made with his own hands, he will not turn toward what his fingers made, the sacred poles and standing-stones for sun-worship. Jeremina 43:13 He will also break the standing-stones of the temple of the sun in the land of Egypt and burn to the ground the temples of the gods of Egypt.”’” Ezekiel 6:4 Your altars will be wrecked and your pillars for sun-worship broken, and I will throw down your slain ones in front of your idols. Comment: More than twenty times God our creator, the major prophets and others tell us not to worship objects in the sky. I believe when God tell us something, He is not wishy-washy about what He is telling us. I find His word very clear and direct. This also depends on what translation you are using. Read Roman history and you will see that the Romans have worshipped the sun God from approximately 1500 BC to today. First we must understand that the Romans had a very strong dislike for those who followed the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  We see this when reading the writings of Josephus, especially Chapter 18.3.1 of “The Antiquities of the Jews.  This chapter tells us that Pilate, the procurator of Judea, who removed an army from Cesarea to Jerusalem to take their winter quarters there in order to abolish God’s Torah, known in most english translations as law.  This is the same Pilate who ruled over the trial of the Messiah.   The Romans being in control of their known world were very prideful in their ways and of their worldly knowledge.  When the Romans saw that the God of Israel had a very different view of how God’s creation should live their life, conflict began.  If you read the history of God’s chosen people you will see that there was conflict from the beginning of man between good and evil with short periods of peace.  Today, looking back seemed simple that when the followers of God follow His instruction, Torah, there was peace.  However, peace disappeared when God’s instructions were not followed.  Our Creator gave His human creation “free will” to chose “good” by following God’s directions (Torah) or to chose “evil” the opposite of good which separates us from God.  I remember many years ago a talk show host told the audience that “all go to heaven” when the Messiah tells us few enter the kingdom, which is more likely.  Remember that the Messiah tells us how important God’s instructions (Torah) are if you want to have a relationship with the God of Avraham, Isaac and Jacob: The Roman Empire started out and continues to follow pagan traditions like most of the world population.  They celebrated the sun and provided many names for this god as did other pagan nations.  The celebration of the sun god started when the people could tell that the daylight was getting shorter and then longer.  It became consistent that four days after the winter solstice (December 21), which is when winter normally began, man could tell the days were getting longer and it became common to celebrate on December 25 as the coming of warmer days.   Then there was the Roman Emperor Aurelian, who is known for promoting the worship of the ‘god of the Unconquered Sun’, creating an official priesthood as well as building a temple to the sun god.  Aurelian’s proclamation happened in the year 274 CE on December 25. The pagans continued to worship the sun as their biggest celebration of the year until Constantine became ruler of the entire Roman Empire and called his Empire a Christian empire.  Then Constantine changed the name of the celebration from Sol Invictus to Christ Mas which we know today as Christmas.  December 25 is still celebrated today.  I hope most people understand that December 25 is a tradition and not command from God.  However, you will see that worship of the seventh month and 15th day during a Sh`mittah year is a command from God.  As far as worshipping the sun, the date kind of makes sense to man since the winter solstice normally happens on the 21 of December and after four days man could tell that the days were getting longer thus giving man a reason to celebrate that longer and warmer days are ahead.  The Romans were very pagan before the beginning of their nation and continued the tradition of celebrating on December 25 to the sun god, Sol Invictus.  However when Constantine came to power and Constantine wanted the Roman Empire to be a Christian nation this became a problem.  Becoming a Christian nation was mainly due to the influence of Constantine’s mother.  Of course at this time there were a lot of problems with this conversion since most of Rome followed the pagan traditions and also had little or no education of God’s Word among the majority of citizens to know the difference.  Also remember that when the Latin Vulgate was printed very few had access to this translation of God’s words.  Also most were not allowed to have access to the Latin Vulgate. Today we have physical evidence that the Romans did not follow God even to this day. When Constantine's father died Constantine the Great immediately order new coins struck at the mints he controlled by changing the inscription from the traditional “To the Genius of the Roman people” to “To the Unconquered Sun (Sol Invictus) my companion”. This new coin stayed in circulation for more than one hundred years after the death of Constantine in 337AD. So was Sol Invictus always Constantine’s companion. You can buy one of these coins today at a very reasonable price. This information comes from ‘Constantine’s Sword chapter 19’ written by James Carroll. Seeing the inscription on these new coins one needs to ask was Constantine ever baptized as some people claim. Always remember 1 John 5:19: 19 We know that we are from God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the Evil. During one of my trips to Israel I had a conversation with an Israel tank commander who told of having four tanks and a platoon and capturing 7,000 Egyptian soldiers. This reminded me of: Leviticus 26:8 8 Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand — your enemies will fall before your sword. In my lifetime there have been many prophecies fulfilled. Read Isaiah 66 to see some very important prophecies that have been fulfilled.
OT posted a comment · Oct 04, 2021
Why can’t they test to see if you are covid recovered ! Meaning you’ve had it and recovered! Why then would you force a vaccination on them ! The cdc and FDA have shown they can’t be trusted. The FDA knew for 50 yrs that talcum powder contains asbestos! This is a crazy time!
OT posted a comment · Oct 04, 2021
Rushing and Science should never be in the same sentence!
OT posted a comment · Oct 04, 2021
Seidensticker : writes Bad advice. What conclusion can you come to "but" that the experts have reached a "consensus' and that the vaccines are"very" safe" and that you’d be a "selfish fool" to not get one? The expert consensus you speak of is based on mass experimental confusion, the extent of diverse reactions to covid and vaccines no one knows how this will all play out! Telling people (the mass public) to trust mNRA vaccines that are experimental (FACT) and have not satisfactorily undergone rigorous testing trials There are a group of experts who say this “The more you speed it up … the greater the obligation you have to track what’s going on when you get it out into the real world.” said Arthur Caplan, head of medical ethics at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine. “ this vaccine will always be known as a" rush job!" its still all new and experimental! we were first told get the vaccine and your good to go! now we need a"booster" so say the same expert "consensus" the science is not "there" someone needs to shut up and stop feigning "its safe" and saying "you’d be a selfish fool to not get one?" dangerous precedence .....if "YOU" want the vaccine get it ! you are not qualified to decide for others! what bothers me is that you "presume' to think you are!
OT posted a comment · Oct 03, 2021
SWKH310 you are operating w/ selective ignorance. And by Selective ignorance I mean its not about lack of knowledge of information. Instead, it's deliberate...intentionally choosing subjects, facts, people, that you do not wish to know about. Selective participation in reality !
OT posted a comment · Oct 03, 2021
15,000 is statistically acceptable to SWKH310 they are operating w/ selective ignorance. Selective ignorance is not about lack of knowledge of information. Instead, it's intentionally choosing subjects, facts, people, that you do not wish to know about. Your mind can only take so much.
user profile
Seidensticker posted a comment · Oct 02, 2021
“My official, oft-stated, public position on the COVID vaccines is this: Do the research, pray for wisdom, and make an informed decision.” Bad advice. What conclusion can you come to but that the experts have reached a consensus and that the vaccines are very safe and that you’d be a selfish fool to not get one?
user profile
Really now posted a comment · Oct 01, 2021
And the REAL reason for mikey brown’s concern here is because one day (and one day SOON), his bigoted, homophobic, transphobic, and OUTDATED views will be banned too. How will this entitled white man survive????
user profile
texasaggie posted a comment · Oct 01, 2021
Unfortunately, SWKH310, if you weren't self-censoring yourself by only listening to the mainstream media you would know that the vaccines themselves have killed at least about 15,000 Americans by the current federal government count on the VAERS system and around 500,000 have had serious negative side effects including large numbers of heart issues in healthy young people who would not ordinarily have them. Since whistleblowers from the CDC have reported that the VAERS figures are undercounted by factors of 5x-10x and a Harvard study showed the undercount on that system is typically 100x, the death count from the vaccines in the USA alone is more like 75,000 at least and probably much more. It's one thing for the virus modified in Wuhan and funded through Dr. Fauci to have killed about 0.5% of the ones who contract the sickness on average (not the 30% believed by Democrats who were polled on the subject recently), but another for the deaths and serious side effects to be caused by government-required and encouraged "vaccines" while effective treatments have been suppressed. That makes you, SWKH310, and the government you support in this to be accomplices in what amounts to murder. It seems to be of such a magnitude that the term "crimes against humanity"would not be inappropriate. Google and other censoring media should be lumped in with that crowd at this point.
Swkh310 posted a comment · Sep 29, 2021
There are NO “genuine, well-researched, carefully-considered issues with vaccines in general, not to mention COVID vaccines in particular.” There is science/facts and then there are baseless conspiracy theories that KILL. Bravo to YouTube for doing their part to save lives.