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> it's a refutation of the new and dishonest argument that censorship actually protects freedom of speech Once you convince people that the other side is evil
by skrowl 6y ago
> it's a refutation of the new and dishonest argument that censorship actually protects freedom of speech
Once you convince people that the other side is evil and your side must win at all costs, they'll rationalize any behavior. This includes censoring and de-platforming voices that don't agree with them.
After you've convinced yourself that "I believe that we should hire whoever is the most qualified, regardless of their ethnicity" or "I believe that all lives matter equally, none more than any other" are HATE SPEECH, it's very easy to convince yourself to ban people with those opinions from being able to speak their opinion. This is why throwing around "Nazi!", "White Supremacist!" for people not actually exhibiting those behaviors is so dangerous. Once you de-humanize someone, it's easier to convince yourself to take away their human rights (like free speech).
- throwaway2048 6y agoJust to reground the rhetoric, we are talking about facebook removing posts by people that try to convince others that one of the largest genocides in human history didn't happen, not about all that other stuff.
- bjourne 6y agoThe Holocaust was peanuts compared to the looming climate catastrophe. Thus, we absolutely must silence anyone who denies that the earth must become carbon neutral by 2040.
- triceratops 6y agoI think you're right, we should.
- waterhouse 6y agoNice example. Another would be abortions. If someone believes that abortion is murder, well, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_statistics_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abortion_statistics_in_the_Uni... gives numbers that add to 46.4 million abortions reported to the CDC in 1970-2016. Imagine if the people who held the reins at Facebook were hard-line pro-life.