A lot of People in the US have guns, so we banned Alex Jones????

[flenna]

Yes he was, but more importantly, he was the guniea pig, to see if they could get away with it, and to gage public reaction..They'll do it again to someone else soon. And as long as nobody says anything, they'll keep doing it. Silencing anybody on the right is the goal here. Frankly this is where Google, Twitter, and the rest of them be to be torn apart, as they are nothing but a information monolopy, the goal of which is to control what you see, say, on the internet or anywhere else, make you a good little minion who'll do as your told, and believe what they tell you. Time to deplatform them.. I figure it's just a matter of time before sites like this are shut down as "too dangerous".

Correct, because now most on the right are saying "so what, he's a clown anyway". Who's next? The next one will be closer to center.

[flenna]

Double tap...

[Hmac]

Yes he was, but more importantly, he was the guniea pig, to see if they could get away with it, and to gage public reaction..They'll do it again to someone else soon. And as long as nobody says anything, they'll keep doing it. Silencing anybody on the right is the goal here. Frankly this is where Google, Twitter, and the rest of them be to be torn apart, as they are nothing but a information monolopy, the goal of which is to control what you see, say, on the internet or anywhere else, make you a good little minion who'll do as your told, and believe what they tell you. Time to deplatform them.. I figure it's just a matter of time before sites like this are shut down as "too dangerous".

I don't disagree that we should all be disturbed at the trend wherein online information organizations tailor the messaging that they promote.

I also don't disagree that even clowns should have free speech, but private companies like Apple, Google, Facebook apparently don't have a legal obligation to provide it. As to the government, which does....well, it's already been established that yelling "FIRE!!" in a crowded theater isn't protected as free speech. I'm not saying that Alex Jones is doing that, but his "platform" and his rhetoric does leave the opportunity for some organizations to interpret it that way.

[Averageman]

I don't disagree that we should all be disturbed at the trend wherein online information organizations tailor the messaging that they promote.

I also don't disagree that even clowns should have free speech, but private companies like Apple, Google, Facebook apparently don't have a legal obligation to provide it. As to the government, which does....well, it's already been established that yelling "FIRE!!" in a crowded theater isn't protected as free speech. I'm not saying that Alex Jones is doing that, but his "platform" and his rhetoric does leave the opportunity for some organizations to interpret it that way.

You simply cannot put the near entirety of the media in to the hands of a few, give them special privileges and tax benifits to operate and then allow them to be the near sole censor of what is and is not free speech.
We complain about Russian oligarchs but have nothing but praise for our own.

[ralph]

You simply cannot put the near entirety of the media in to the hands of a few, give them special privileges and tax benifits to operate and then allow them to be the near sole censor of what is and is not free speech.
We complain about Russian oligarchs but have nothing but praise for our own.

BINGO!!!! This is why they need to be broken up, apply the anti- trust laws and chop them up...

[RetroRevolver77]

BINGO!!!! This is why they need to be broken up, apply the anti- trust laws and chop them up...

What next, the internet providers decide which websites they'll block based on opinions that don't reflect their echo chamber community standards? How long do you think firearm forums would last at that point? Oh but it's their business, their rules so we'll just all be complacent until we no longer have a voice.

[MountainRaven]

What next, the internet providers decide which websites they'll block based on opinions that don't reflect their echo chamber community standards? How long do you think firearm forums would last at that point? Oh but it's their business, their rules so we'll just all be complacent until we no longer have a voice.

Welcome to Ajit Pai's post-internet neutrality internet.

[Averageman]

I'm pretty sure the same people who silenced AJ and wrote that article would giggle like school girls if they could shut places like this down.

[duece71]

What next, the internet providers decide which websites they'll block based on opinions that don't reflect their echo chamber community standards? How long do you think firearm forums would last at that point? Oh but it's their business, their rules so we'll just all be complacent until we no longer have a voice.

What exactly did people do before the internet came along? There is your answer.

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

Yes he was, but more importantly, he was the guniea pig, to see if they could get away with it, and to gage public reaction..They'll do it again to someone else soon. And as long as nobody says anything, they'll keep doing it. Silencing anybody on the right is the goal here. Frankly this is where Google, Twitter, and the rest of them be to be torn apart, as they are nothing but a information monolopy, the goal of which is to control what you see, say, on the internet or anywhere else, make you a good little minion who'll do as your told, and believe what they tell you. Time to deplatform them.. I figure it's just a matter of time before sites like this are shut down as "too dangerous".

So you have entrenched people like AJ that they are throwing off the island. I doubt that they will go for Rogan or Shapiro, but what they can do now is make sure that new voices don't rise up. People you have never heard of and will never hear of because they don't get the eyeballs or actively removed. It's kind of like grandfathered mag bans- we get to keep the commentators we have, but no new ones. THe other issue is that if you screw up once and they can get a campaign against you, your ability to be online will be taken away.

I don't disagree that we should all be disturbed at the trend wherein online information organizations tailor the messaging that they promote.

I also don't disagree that even clowns should have free speech, but private companies like Apple, Google, Facebook apparently don't have a legal obligation to provide it. As to the government, which does....well, it's already been established that yelling "FIRE!!" in a crowded theater isn't protected as free speech. I'm not saying that Alex Jones is doing that, but his "platform" and his rhetoric does leave the opportunity for some organizations to interpret it that way.

I would argue that they do. This whole 'private company' thing went out in the 1970s when all the laws and cases said that if you were open for business, you have to take all comers. Universities had to give time and voices to all kinds of craziness, but now that they are through the door, they want to throw out all the normal voices. Companies were compelled to advance or at least be open to the Progressive Bastard Balkanization of 'aggrieved' groups through special legal designations- which are asymmetrically used to protect their special interests and put ours at a distinct legal disadvantage. This is doubly important for companies or industries that work on the network effect where the value and power of the network is non-linear function of size. The internet giants were started on the promise of a wide-open and neutral field of communication. Now that they have reached hegemony, they want to want to change the rules.

As an ideal, you are right. That isn't where we are now and it is dangerous and out of touch with the reality of the situation.

I'm pretty sure the same people who silenced AJ and wrote that article would giggle like school girls if they could shut places like this down.

They are coming for Trump. They are coming for our guns. They are coming for our children's minds. They are coming for you.

SO AJ gets booted because his followers have guns, but Bernie gets no blow back when one of his guys attempts the largest assassination attempt in US history. We don't even talk about it any more. Fifty attempted Arch Duke Ferdinands on a baseball field, but because it was fomented by a lefty, the message is all about forgiveness and coming together. One guy on the spur of the moment drives into a bunch of people and it is an indictment of a whole political party and over half the population.