The first sentence in the article is "The US sentenced a blockchain researcher to more than five years in prison after he pleaded guilty to conspiring to help N

The first sentence in the article is "The US sentenced a blockchain researcher to more than five years in prison after he pleaded guilty to conspiring to help North Korea evade sanctions using cryptocurrency." Asked why what he did wouldn't be protected by freedom of speech, the parent replied "freedom of speech is not absolute ... the guy violated a federal sanction." I don't understand what you're implying about this thread of conversation - it seems fairly reasonable. The GP asked about freedom of speech - the parent didn't imply this is a freedom of speech issue. They explained why it isn't.