4 ms·

I think there are some organisations and individuals who are kinda like flag bearers.

by yumraj 8y ago

dragonwriter 8y ago
The flag bearers are probably engaging in Constitutionally protected free speech, and do probably can't be held liable in that role.
- xvector 8y ago
  Genuine question: Is telling people to commit suicide protected free speech? AVers aren’t much different here. Rather than saying “kill yourself”, it’s more like saying “kill yourself - slowly, infectiously, and painfully.”
  - true_religion 8y ago
    You can tell people to commit suicide if you have no malicious intent. For example if you think by dying you will go to a better place, then that's fine. Antivaxxers genuinely believe that vacinations cause illness. That they are wrong doesn't make their speech illegal.
  - dragonwriter 8y ago
    > Genuine question: Is telling people to commit suicide protected free speech? Telling people in general that they should is protected; telling a particular person that they should may or may not be depending on other factors. > AVers aren’t much different here. They are quite a bit different. Yes, not vaccinated increase risk of infection, sickness, and death for both the person choosing that action and other people, but it is a much less proximate relationship to any death than suicide does. Advocating suicide is not itself generally illegal, and advocating courses of action that are not intended to cause death but do in fact increase its likelihood is even less likely to be illegal in general.
- yongjik 8y ago
  I'm pretty sure free speech doesn't exempt one from getting sued for damages: otherwise all the copywriters will have a field day with misleading commercials.
  - dragonwriter 8y ago
    > I'm pretty sure free speech doesn't exempt one from getting sued for damages It does; if speech is constitutionally protected, it cannot violate the law, and if an action does not violate a legal obligation, it is not a basis for damages. This is why (for instance) it is much harder to bring a libel/slander case for damages in the US compared to Britain; US libel/slander laws (even in jurisdictions where no statutory provisions exists so the common law would otherwise control) are limited to avoid punishing protected speech. > otherwise all the copywriters will have a field day with misleading commercials. Commercial speech has for a long time been found to be less likely to be constitutionally protected than many other forms of speech.

I think there are some organisations and individuals who are kinda like flag bearers.

by yumraj 8y ago

I think there are some organisations and individuals who are kinda like flag bearers.

The flag bearers are probably engaging in Constitutionally protected free speech, and do probably can't be held liable in that role.

xvector 8y ago
Genuine question: Is telling people to commit suicide protected free speech? AVers aren’t much different here. Rather than saying “kill yourself”, it’s more like saying “kill yourself - slowly, infectiously, and painfully.”
- true_religion 8y ago
  You can tell people to commit suicide if you have no malicious intent. For example if you think by dying you will go to a better place, then that's fine. Antivaxxers genuinely believe that vacinations cause illness. That they are wrong doesn't make their speech illegal.
- dragonwriter 8y ago
  > Genuine question: Is telling people to commit suicide protected free speech? Telling people in general that they should is protected; telling a particular person that they should may or may not be depending on other factors. > AVers aren’t much different here. They are quite a bit different. Yes, not vaccinated increase risk of infection, sickness, and death for both the person choosing that action and other people, but it is a much less proximate relationship to any death than suicide does. Advocating suicide is not itself generally illegal, and advocating courses of action that are not intended to cause death but do in fact increase its likelihood is even less likely to be illegal in general.
yongjik 8y ago
I'm pretty sure free speech doesn't exempt one from getting sued for damages: otherwise all the copywriters will have a field day with misleading commercials.
- dragonwriter 8y ago
  > I'm pretty sure free speech doesn't exempt one from getting sued for damages It does; if speech is constitutionally protected, it cannot violate the law, and if an action does not violate a legal obligation, it is not a basis for damages. This is why (for instance) it is much harder to bring a libel/slander case for damages in the US compared to Britain; US libel/slander laws (even in jurisdictions where no statutory provisions exists so the common law would otherwise control) are limited to avoid punishing protected speech. > otherwise all the copywriters will have a field day with misleading commercials. Commercial speech has for a long time been found to be less likely to be constitutionally protected than many other forms of speech.