Church and State blog: We have permission to publish this ISAF letter of 30 September to Facebook COO Sheryl Samberg. Facebook has so severely restricted our Page's distribution since 4 September that it's almost as good as an unpublished page

Saturday, October 17, 2020

We have permission to publish this ISAF letter of 30 September to Facebook COO Sheryl Samberg. Facebook has so severely restricted our Page's distribution since 4 September that it's almost as good as an unpublished page

9/10/2020

Sorry our efforts to reach Sheryl Samberg have not brought any perceivable results.

Don Collins
Founder, International Services Assistance Fund

Our Church and State website has no less than 59 Nobel Laureates on it despite the never-ending assault on our email; see paragraph 2 under "Church and State" on this blog's sidebar (updated today).

Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms formulates what is the core of free speech. "Everyone has the right to freedom of expression." In an important interpretation of this article, the European Court of Human Rights in Handyside v. UK (1976) indicated that this "freedom of expression" should be construed as follows. It "is applicable not only to 'information' or 'ideas' that are favourably received, or regarded as inoffensive, or as a matter of indifference, but also to those that offend, shock or disturb the State or any sector of the population". Such are the demands of that pluralism, tolerance and broadmindedness without which there is no "democratic society" (see Cliteur, 2010).

On 4 September, Declan's 60th birthday, Facebook unreasonably threatened to unpublish our Page called "Network for Church Monitoring"; see my post of 4 September: Has Facebook accused me of praising Hitler? They say our Network for Church Monitoring page is at risk of being unpublished for the posting of this meme in 2017, and only allowed me to agree or disagree with their decision. Two Parliamentary letters to them revealed in this post. Since that date, they have severely restricted the distribution of the page. On 25 September, I discovered and complained that I had been accused of posting an altered photo that I do not recall posting - no link was provided to this posting. At that time the International Services Assistance Fund (ISAF) in Washington, DC were drafting a letter to Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Samberg. The figures for our Honorary Associates have improved since 30 September, when the letter was mailed. We now have 285 associates that include 17 Nobel Laureates. Declan received permission from the founder and former president of ISAF for me to publish the text of the headed letter. ISAF's efforts to reach COO Samberg still have not brought any perceivable results.

September 30, 2020

Ms. Sheryl Samberg
Chief Operating Officer
Facebook
1 Hacker Way
Menlo Park, CA 94025

Dear Ms. Sandberg:

Watching the Trump nomination of Judge Barrett which will set a 6 to 3 conservative margin on key Supreme Court decisions for years to come doubtless disturbed you as much as women all over America.

Every generation needs to understand that real personal freedom is not the unique creature of originalism.

I am prompted by Facebook's remarkable contributions to the lives of the billions to write you this letter.

You were born in Washington, DC where I have lived most of my 94 years. You announced your engagement to remarry in February after earlier tragically losing your husband, the father of your two children.

Good things can happen after bad, as I found out when I remarried. It was to the love of my life when I was 69. We will celebrate our 26th wedding anniversary on November 26th.

My MD father founded Pathfinder International in 1956. Working for women's reproductive rights aside from raising 5 children has been my main inspirational focus of my life.

Our non-profit, ISAF, on September 21, 1990 in time for the Clinton Bush Presidential 1990 campaign helped create a powerful film entitled "Whose Choice?" which at the suggestion of Jane Fonda to her then husband, Ted Turner, was shown on Turner Broadcasting System on September 21, 1990 and subsequently many other audiences. You can access that information on the attached sheet here. http://churchandstate.org.uk/2015/02/whose-choice-a-pro-abortion-film/

Let me be clear this is a not a solicitation for any financial aid but rather a plea for survival which would entail no monetary investment but could continue to allow a modest London web site to educate and encourage the liberal causes that I am sure you agree with.

About 10 years ago at the suggestion of a trusted friend, Bill Ryerson, who heads Population Media Center, my husband, Don Collins and I met its founders, Declan and Lola Heavey in London to learn about their amazing commitment to pressing issues to which we have devoted our working lives.

I have served on the local PPFA board and many other civic boards as well as Pathfinder. Don served on the National Board of Planned Parenthood and as founding Chairs the boards of what has now become FHI360, a major international development agency and Ipas, which works to facilitate choice options for women overseas. He founded ISAF in 1976.

Since our initial meetings with the Heaveys in London, we have provided the main funding toward their education program.

Their personal history is fascinating, but I will be brief here. After several years of living literally homeless in the streets of London the Heaveys managed to secure modest public housing accommodation.

From there they have been able to continue to operate what has become an extensive website to which many important authors contribute significant articles that report on the general welfare of people everywhere. The site is a favorite of mine and many Nobelists. In fact, the site has no less than 59 Nobelists on it, as well as a distinguished list of 283 Honorary Associates that includes 16 Nobelists, 11 US National Medal of Science laureates and 12 knighted professors.

A look at their site – www.churchandstate.org.uk – will quickly acquaint you with its interesting and clearly liberal political positions on choice and particularly women's rights in general. Their non-profit project deals with powerful articles on issues significant to social policy in a number of key areas, e.g., population, climate change, futurism, atheism, and free speech.

The Heaveys have expressed concern about threats Facebook has made to unpublish their page called "Network for Church Monitoring" and Lola's account known as "Lola.Heavey".

Lola on 9/25 complained about another alleged violation: namely that on 15 September Facebook stated that she shared an altered photo on her Page called "Network for Church Monitoring". However, no link was provided to this posting and thus Lola has no recollection of sharing such a photo.

Your career, Ms. Samberg, offers such a powerful example of what we see as women's place in our embattled world's future. With 40 percent of women's babies in America now born unplanned and world human numbers increasing to almost 8 billion by 2024, having been only 2 billion only 90 years ago it is obvious from nature's present reaction that this cannot continue without inflicting much damage.

So my only request to you is to allow this worthy site the chance to put these views to our audiences without interruption.

We are hopeful that a look at the distinguished scientists and experts who have endorsed our work may encourage your willingness to allow this vital education program to continue uninterrupted.

Thank you for your consideration.

Cordially

Sarah G Epstein
Secretary, Board of Directors

Enclosures

When it comes to our traffic, it has to be indisputable that with any sort of level playing field Church and State would have far exceeded the 5.7 million hits we had last year and our 2.2 million hits this year (see the last paragraph under "Church and State" on this blog's sidebar). Our top five articles have 6.5 million Facebook likes/shares between them.

I had to upload this image titled "5 Most Popular" to an alternative host for images on 21 October. It is another one of my images in MediaFire that does not appear on their site.

Metropolitan Police Crime Reference No. 5330050/20. Yesterday evening our flat door was vandalised by two thugs with a crowbar. Declan and I were in the flat at the time and fortunately our double locked door held firm. It's my opinion that they just wanted to break the door lock but didn't have enough time. The communal door lock downstairs wasn't broken. We're told that on 10 November the communal door lock will be changed and our flat door repaired.

17 October: Declan asks Peabody to escalate his Stage 1 complaint about new terms of tenancy. Last night we received their response from the Housing Ombudsman Service after our flat door had been vandalised earlier in the evening (crime reference no. 5304416/20)

Our list of 285 Honorary Associates includes 17 Nobel Prize laureates, 11 US National Medal of Science laureates and 12 knighted professors notwithstanding the excessive targeting of these three categories of emails in particular.

http://churchandstate.org.uk/honorary-associates/

"Let me recommend an important web site churchandstate.org.uk. Operating out of London this well-designed and exciting web site covers church-state, population, climate change and other issues. Check it out." Edd Doerr (1930-2020), (then) President, Americans for Religious Liberty

Church and State

MAYOR OF LONDON RSI PROPERTY
DAY 406 IN A WEEKLY PERIODIC TENANCY
SUBJECT TO A SECTION 21 NOTICE

(SEE PARA. 3 BELOW)

1. Our 308 Honorary Associates include 20 Nobel Prize laureates. Declan and I are engaged in a project that deals with the publication of issues significant to social policy in a number of key areas, e.g., climate change, population, futurism, atheism, and free speech. Established as Network for Church Monitoring, a non-profit company limited by guarantee, our main publication, found at the website, Church and State, calls attention to subjects, not the least which have been critical of the interaction between religious and secular institutions. We have been the target of numerous threats and actions, e.g., the former resulting in threats to Declan's life, and the latter, which have led to vandalism. The various incidents are on record with the police and other official agencies.

2. There are no less than 63 Nobel Prize laureates on the Church and State website from 20 Honorary Associates, eight articles, nine book excerpts and 33 petition signatories. (For example, one Nobel laureate signed our Nobel petition in support of human embryonic stem cell research and gave us permission to excerpt from one of his books.) Our list of associates also includes 18 US National Medal laureates, and six Turing Award laureates (the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in computer science). We have published one article and excerpted from the books of seven members of the British House of Lords. And there are 31 knighted professors on the site from 13 Honorary Associates, one book excerpt and 21 petition signatories. These figures are despite the never-ending assault on our email (this link reveals the targeting of our emails to, among others, a close colleague in Washington, DC as well as space advocates and Nobel laureates).

3. This is Day 406 for us living under the threat to life of a 'no fault' eviction by Peabody Trust.[1] We live in a Mayor of London's Rough Sleepers Initiative (RSI) property. Peabody's appalling new terms of tenancy have forced us into an unstable weekly periodic tenancy that poses a threat to Declan's life and inhibits our ability to exercise our rights. Declan accumulated quite a history with the Housing Ombudsman Service before he received the Ombudsman's decision not to investigate a referral from Lyn Brown MP on jurisdictional grounds. The Ombudsman was asked to consider whether or not our tenancy has been renewed like for like; and whether, if not, it should be in light of the landlord having accused us of not signing a like-for-like agreement. The Equality and Human Rights Commission will not accept a referral of discrimination from Ms Brown, the Commission's helpline (EASS) having grossly distorted the complaint against Peabody. We no longer have pro se access to the courts (see next paragraph).

4. This eviction matter came before District Judge Ruth Fine at the Central London County Court on 30 June 2020, when both counsel for St Mungo's (the charity in effective control of our tenancy) and Declan presented their positions. Declan lost the case and was ordered to pay £1,850 in costs. A publishing colleague in America cleared these costs within 24 hours of my blog post about this hearing for strike out on a related issue that was the essence of the claim, i.e., that St Mungo's would take a phone call to confirm that we are clients of the Mayor of London's RSI programme. Within a week of the hearing, St Mungo's had agreed to take this phone call for us both, the Court having ruled that they were not obliged to do so despite our circumstances. This time we escaped bankruptcy (counsel for St Mungo's asked for £3,407.50 in costs), but consider that to seek pro se access to justice in the courts has become far too dangerous for us. Declan currently has before the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman the decision of the Information Commissioner that allows St Mungo's to continue processing coercive support plans without our knowledge or consent and that also poses a threat to his life.

5. When it comes to traffic, we have had 10.7 million hits in the past three years on Facebook; however, I left the platform on 13 March 2021 for one year rather than risk being banned for life. It is indisputable that with any sort of level playing field Church and State would have far exceeded 2.5 million hits last year. In addition to a large variety of blocks without explanation, Facebook had so severely restricted our Page's distribution by October 2020 that it was almost as good as an unpublished page.[2] Currently, we are up to their 85th block since 1 December 2015, and as usual without an explanation. This block records as one half of their 3rd double block in the first five weeks of this year that lasted 60 days. Our traffic has also been curtailed by over 2.5K blocks on access to Church and State since 26 July 2016, including 29 full distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks since 17 May 2019 that have lasted for as long as 54 hours at a time.[3] About 70% of our hits are from Americans.

"This is precisely the hard hitting kind of response needed to clarify the unfair way Facebook is treating your highly reputable site." Don Collins, Founder, International Services Assistance Fund, Washington DC

Last updated: 26/06/21

_________________________

[1] Once a fixed term has elapsed, the landlord has the option to seek eviction even if the tenant has upheld their obligations in full (though of course the landlord must still apply for and obtain a county court order).

[2] 17/10/20: We have permission to publish this ISAF letter of 30 September to Facebook COO Sheryl Samberg. Facebook has so severely restricted our Page's distribution since 4 September that it's almost as good as an unpublished page

[3] Since October 2019, we have been defining a full DDoS attack as having such a high volume of up to 4-minute blocks on access to Church and State that we don't bother recording them all.

Church and State blog

Saturday, October 17, 2020

We have permission to publish this ISAF letter of 30 September to Facebook COO Sheryl Samberg. Facebook has so severely restricted our Page's distribution since 4 September that it's almost as good as an unpublished page

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