Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Excessive free speech is a breeding ground for more Trumps
The Globe and Mail ^ | March 21, 2024 | LAWRENCE MARTIN

Posted on 03/21/2024 7:46:10 AM PDT by packagingguy

There was a bit of good news about the future of public discourse this week. The United States Supreme Court, even though stacked with right-wingers, sounded like it was ready to give the Biden administration the go-ahead to try to persuade social-media platforms not to put out content promoting nonsense about the presidential election, conspiracy theories about the pandemic and other assorted bilge and crackpottery...

When other communications revolutions like the printing press, radio, and television came along, they were still largely controlled by the elites. But when the internet came along, regulatory bodies like Canada’s CRTC backed off. It was open season for anything that anyone wanted to put out. No license needed. No identity verification.

What a far cry from the days when the masses had no outlets save things like “man-on-the-street” interviews or letters to the editor or protest placards. We moved from one extreme to the other.

The masses were finally weaponized – not with arms, but with a communications instrument that empowered them against establishment forces like they had never been empowered before. The change represented one of history’s significant power shifts...

The internet undermined the established newspaper business model, greatly reducing the number of papers and coverage and creating a void for Mr. Trump and the like-minded to fill. His cries of fake news had the impact – it’s charted well in former Washington Post editor Martin Barron’s book, Collision of Power – of compartmentalizing the media landscape into left-right silos, which helped bring on the extremes of polarization.

The way to reverse the trend is with rigid regulation, but the free speech lobby in the United States is as fierce as the gun lobby.

(Excerpt) Read more at theglobeandmail.com ...


TOPICS: Front Page News; Political Humor/Cartoons; Politics/Elections; US: District of Columbia; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: 2ndamendment; banglist; canada; canadianfascist; collisionofpower; dinomedia; dissent; districtofcolumbia; enemieslist; enemyofamerica; eurotrash; fascistjournalist; freespeech; globeandmail; humanrightsviolation; jeffbezos; lawrencemartin; martinbarron; nra; secondamendment; trump; unitedkingdom; washingtoncompost; washingtonpost
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-84 next last
To: All

Does this turn into a satire at some point ? The author seems unhinged.


21 posted on 03/21/2024 7:57:57 AM PDT by escapefromboston (Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ClearCase_guy

“taking illegal aliens into the army”

Giving lying lawbreakers guns is a really stupid idea.

I’ll happily point out where rich leftists live if a gun is pointed at me.


22 posted on 03/21/2024 7:58:18 AM PDT by Brian Griffin
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: Boomer

See what I did there? I turned it around on the evil rats, rinos, and enemedia.


23 posted on 03/21/2024 7:58:43 AM PDT by Boomer (If the Rats, Rinos, Uniparty wins, everyone loses.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: packagingguy

This is fascism, pure and unadulterated.

“Excessive free speech”.


24 posted on 03/21/2024 8:00:09 AM PDT by gitmo (If your biography doesn't match your theology, what good is it?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: abb

January 6 does resemble an Inquisition.


25 posted on 03/21/2024 8:01:44 AM PDT by MeanWestTexan (Sometimes There Is No Lesser Of Two Evils)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: one guy in new jersey

Not at all. Pope Leo X excommunicated Martin Luther because he dared print and distribute theology that was in direct conflict with the Holy Roman Church. At the time, the church was the most powerful socioeconomic power on the planet.

It was the printing press that enabled Martin Luther’s message to be spread, much as the internet has allowed “The Masses” to communicate without being filtered through ABCNBCCBSCNNFOX and the NYT/WAPO first.

I consider Martin Luther’s work to be the pioneer First Amendment battle in all of human history.


26 posted on 03/21/2024 8:02:24 AM PDT by abb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: escapefromboston
and other assorted bilge and crackpottery...

He's also projecting.

27 posted on 03/21/2024 8:03:32 AM PDT by xp38
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 21 | View Replies]

To: sjmjax

The way to reverse the trend is with rigid regulation, but the free speech lobby in the United States is as fierce as the gun lobby.

I can’t believe this was printed! I’m physically sick.

The remedy is more speech! Let’s Roll!


28 posted on 03/21/2024 8:05:13 AM PDT by griswold3 (Truth, Beauty and Goodness. )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: dfwgator

gotta wonder if these people who hate free speech realize that this road easily goes both ways. “all roads go two ways...even a one way” L.Star


29 posted on 03/21/2024 8:07:23 AM PDT by Qwapisking ("IF the Second goes first the First goes second" L.Star )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: packagingguy
"Excessive free speech" = " insufficient governmental control"

(In their minds.)

Regards,

30 posted on 03/21/2024 8:07:35 AM PDT by alexander_busek (Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: packagingguy

This is the whole point of free speech.


31 posted on 03/21/2024 8:07:42 AM PDT by circlecity
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: abb

The writer of the piece, I assume an employee of a newspaper misses a big point when he says that printing presses were controlled by the ‘elites’ of the time. Martin Luther’s 95 Theses were rapidly copied and sold by owners of the brand new printing press. Thus his ideas quickly spread throughout much of Germany.

The powers-that-were quickly cracked down on this dangerous liberty of spreading the word. Laws were passed requiring government approval for things printed. Not unlike the government wanting control of the internet today.

“We’ll tell you what to read and think”


32 posted on 03/21/2024 8:08:51 AM PDT by hanamizu ( )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: packagingguy

When did freepers start caring what Canadian opinion columns said?


33 posted on 03/21/2024 8:09:23 AM PDT by Kathy in OC
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: packagingguy

“Excessive” free speech? Is that like “excessive” freedom of movement? Or “excessive” freedom of religion?


34 posted on 03/21/2024 8:10:48 AM PDT by Yo-Yo (Is the /Sarc tag really necessary? Pray for President Biden: Psalm 109:8)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BrexitBen

The CIA killed JFK when he tried to expose them.


35 posted on 03/21/2024 8:11:03 AM PDT by wildcard_redneck (He who sacrifices freedom for security deserves neither.q)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: Kathy in OC

Only that now it’s a sign that liberals are saying the quiet part out loud.


36 posted on 03/21/2024 8:11:18 AM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies]

To: hanamizu

Spot on.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_copyright

The origin of copyright law in most European countries lies in efforts by the church and governments to regulate and control the output of printers.[9] Before the invention of the printing press, a writing, once created, could only be physically multiplied by the highly laborious and error-prone process of manual copying by scribes.

An elaborate system of censorship and control over scribes did not exist, as scribes were scattered and worked on single manuscripts.[10]

Printing allowed for multiple exact copies of a work, leading to a more rapid and widespread circulation of ideas and information (see print culture).[9] In 1559 the Index Expurgatorius, or List of Prohibited Books, was issued for the first time.[10]


37 posted on 03/21/2024 8:11:53 AM PDT by abb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 32 | View Replies]

To: packagingguy

“When other communications revolutions like the printing press, radio, and television came along, they were still largely controlled by the elites.”

Yes, and it was called fascism. The same leftists cry about ‘banned’ books that aren’t banned at all (no such thing here). Then call for free speech restrictions on sources they don’t like. How is that any different than banning a book?

The duplicity is astonishing...also lost on them - yet they believe they’re intellectually superior. So when people won’t go along with their ideas they must be forced to do so - for their ‘own wellbeing’.

For them, the end justifies the means, by any means necessary. They are evil. There’s no discussion to be had with them anymore.


38 posted on 03/21/2024 8:14:27 AM PDT by fuzzylogic (welfare state = sharing of poor moral choices among everybody)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: sjmjax

“It is hard for me to believe so many people and institutions are fully embracing the concept of the dystopian world envisioned in book 1984.”

I would hazard a guess that the majority of the population hasn’t read it... or anything else that doesn’t show up on their phones.


39 posted on 03/21/2024 8:15:02 AM PDT by D_Idaho ("For we wrestle not against flesh and blood...")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: packagingguy
Excessive free speech is a breeding ground for more Trumps

Yeah, how dare the common folk exchange ideas freely and make up their own minds on who they want to vote for? Who do they think they are - free citizens with God-given rights that shall not be infringed by any government? The nerve...
40 posted on 03/21/2024 8:17:35 AM PDT by AnotherUnixGeek
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-8081-84 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson