You don't know what you don't know, until you know to go and look. And in a world of panic-posts, overwhelming statistics and carefully-cultivated fear, most people don't stop to THINK about what they're not seeing.
My brush with facebook censorship around coronavirus started from sheer necessity - as a small business owner in Thailand, our income has been decimated as everyone tries to #staythefuckhome. And so the logical extension of that was to put our new hand sanitizer products online, since, unlike Thailand, people are desperately short of hand sanitizer in many countries. As a solo mom with no possible government support from my birth country, my passport country or my country of residence (all different) and no child maintenance for 15 years now, online income MATTERS right now, to keep us in food & essentials like electricity & drinking water.
Interestingly, in the weeks BEFORE corona became more than a beer, I was asked by a leading large hotel here in Chiang Mai to produce a hand sanitizer for in-room sales to their guests. We're thrilled with the result and yes, the hotel was thrilled too and is supplying it for their (few remaining 😩) guests
Our product is different than most. We use only surgical grade, plant-based ethyl-alcohol 95 at a 70% ratio of product volume. We also use chemical-free freeze dried aloe vera extract, vegetable glycerin, colloidal silver, tea tree essential oil and lemongrass essential oil. We package only in aluminium, since high potency alcohol is a solvent, and we're not enamored with the idea of absorbing toxic plastic compounds through already degraded skin on dry hands. We have a 50ml Purse-pocket pack and refill bottles in several sizes.
A no brainer, right? We have supply of a high quality, fair trade, highly sought after product. Our website ships to 241 countries. DHL delivers Express in max 5 days almost everywhere in the world. Put it up on social media. How hard can it be??
March 20th, 2020. Facebook Bans More Types of Ads in Response to COVID-19.
Facebook is banning more types ads for products people need to stay safe and prevent the spread of COVID-19. > This includes ads for:
Hand sanitizer
Surface disinfecting wipes
COVID-19 testing kids.
Previously, Facebook had already banned ads for medical face masks.
“This is anther step to protect against inflated prices and predatory behavior we’re seeing,” says Facebook’s Rob Leathern.
In addition, if Facebook detects abuse around these products in organic posts, that content will be removed too. Source
Facebook's official position:
In response to the coronavirus outbreak, Facebook is supporting the global public health community’s work to keep people safe and informed. Since the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a public health emergency in January, we’ve taken steps to make sure everyone has access to accurate information, stop misinformation and harmful content, and support global health experts, local governments, businesses and communities. Source
In practice, they are obstructing sale of much-needed products to help people stay safer. A bit like misdirecting thirsty people in the dessert by standing in front of the oasis so they can't see it and telling them there is no water.
Our Thai friends happily sewing and selling superb natural cotton facemasks (with filters)? Same problem.
Can't list in facebook marketplace or as a sponsored or paid ad. ONE complaint about the organic content of a personal post, and they have "violated community standards" and head straight to facebook jail. For 7 days, or 30 days. Or whatever. At FB's whim, no discussion.
Sadly that's the tip of the Natural Medicine censorship iceberg.
Don't even TRY to question the wisdom or safety of administering untrialed, fast-tracked #COVID-19 vaccines - that would place you under their anti-vaccine censorship category. You can read more about that official policy Here:.
But it seems the medical world, big pharma and certain governments are not satisfied with only Facebook censorship.
The World Health Organization has joined to expand censorship efforts.
WHO is also collaborating with tech giants like Google, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok to limit the spread of harmful rumors. It's pursuing a similar tactic with Chinese digital companies such as Baidu, Tencent and Weibo.
"We are asking them to filter out false information and promote accurate information from credible sources like WHO, CDC [the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and others. And we thank them for their efforts so far," said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of WHO, in a briefing earlier this month. Source.
The HUGE question is, who decides what is false information?
The people standing by to make a killing (pardon the pun) with largely untested vaccines?
I can assure you that currently it's NOT "acceptable community standard" to post about colloidal silver as an effective anti-viral agent. Silly me for finding published clinical studies clearly to the contrary.
It's not acceptable to post about intravenous Vitamin C as a harmless frontline treatment for Covid-19, despite a great deal of clinical evidence and published, peer reviewed studies.
What about drinking bleach?
Saltwater gargles "sending the virus down to your stomach"?
My question is this: rather than suppression and censorship, why not simply refute the drinking bleach claim with a simple article outlining the risks to personal health and the damage to sensitive epithelial skin in the mouth and throat, along with POISON warnings?
It troubles me deeply that in a time when there is a global public health threat, mainstream social media blocks the possibility for people to think for themselves and to potentially use effective, natural medicine to improve their immunity and stay well.
How do I deal with this, as a concerned citizen and herbal business owner?
I blog about this stuff on naturalmedicine.io and hive.io. Decentralized & uncensored.
I get VERY creative with product descriptions. The hand sanitizers we have? I've called it a "Clean Hands Care Pack". And tried to be VERY indirect in the description. You can see what I mean in the product listing HERE. Yes, we DO have stock and can ship internationally asap with DHL, or with Kerry Express throughout Thailand. Full tracking provided.
I ask and invite people to share posts, like this one, especially to wake people up to what they're not seeing.
I continue to write simple blog posts, on my OWN website, simply stating and sharing clinical published research without personally making any medical or healing claims. Like this: Traditional Thai Herb Treats Symptoms of CoronaVirus & Respiratory Flu, Says Thai Hospital
And I continue to share on my mainstream social media good (and very carefully written) articles like this: Can Supplements Help Combat COVID-19?
If you're feeling hamstrung and impotent sitting at home with the drawbridge up, you CAN be part of the global community that resists this insidious censorship.
- You can join us on https://naturalmedicine.io (free account) to CREATE your own uncensored content; want to write more broadly than just natural medicine? Sign up at hive.io
- You can SHARE articles on mainstream social media which resonate and are well annotated and researched, and which assist and empower others;
- You can continue to BUY from individuals and small business who are OUTSIDE the control of Big Pharma and mainstream media.
- You can CHOOSE what you read and listen to, and make up your own mind.
- You can GET CREATIVE - a friend in Australia sent me health information this morning through FB's Messenger, but as a voice recorded file that evades their keyword censors.
Once you learn and appreciate just how heavily our news and information is censored, you can't help but start questioning everything and moving outside of that huge, controlling, monolithic system. It's time.
Freedom. Cherish it, empower others.
Come check out my natural Thai herbal business… yes, we ship world-wide
