New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern calls free speech on the internet a “weapon of war.”

This is a very dangerous individual. pic.twitter.com/9Gbv8xz2tu

— Young Americans for Liberty (@YALiberty) September 28, 2022

Independent journalist Glenn Greenwald on the authoritarians who are now hellbent on stopping free speech and dissent online.

This is the face of authoritarianism – even though it looks different than you were taught to expect. And it’s the mindset of tyrants everywhere:

This is someone so inebriated by her sense of righteousness and superiority that she views dissent as an evil too dangerous to allow: https://t.co/kmG4zTgPwh

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) September 28, 2022

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From my latest at BASED Politics, “On Friday, HBO host and comedian Bill Maher interviewed former American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Executive Director Ira Glasser on his HBO program ‘Real Time.”

Glasser has spoken out in recent years about how much his former organization has drifted away from its roots of fearlessly defending absolute free speech for all. He argues that partisanship has diminished the ACLU, dragging it leftward to the point of no longer defending those whose speech doesn’t reflect their ‘values.’

Glasser wanted viewers to know why he believes the ACLU’s step back from defending free speech is dangerous for the preservation of basic constitutional freedoms in the United States.

‘So you were a head of this organization for 25 years, almost, from 1978 into this century,’ Maher began. ‘It’s changing. It was a stalwart defender of free speech and civil liberties. Is it still that?’

‘Not as much,’ Glasser answered.”

Read the entire story.

The post Former ACLU head blasts org’s decline away from championing free speech appeared first on Liberty Tree.

FEE’s Brad Polumbo writes, “If you ever need a reminder of how important freedom of speech is, all you need to do is look across the pond. The United Kingdom, which doesn’t have a First Amendment, has slowly seen citizens’ free speech rights eroded—and now may soon start imprisoning people for being trolls on the internet.

This blatant attempt at the censorship of online speech is deeply concerning. https://t.co/aCG0OevHhP

— FEE (@feeonline) November 4, 2021

At question is pending legislation called the ‘Online Safety Bill,’ which ostensibly punishes social media companies that allow harassment. Yet it may be expanded to include new criminal penalties for individuals who engage in mean speech online.

‘Trolls could face two years in prison for sending messages or posting content that causes psychological harm under legislation targeting online hate,’ the Times of London reports.”

Read the entire column.

The post UK considering legislation that would imprison internet trolls appeared first on Liberty Tree.

Red State: Domenech asked Paul if people should worry about appearing on government lists if they say the wrong thing, and Paul reminded acknowledged that lists like these already exist and that it would be right to fear the government in this regard.

“That’s a sad thing from someone in the government to say, but the thing is, is those lists already exist. For example, people in northern Virginia that have gone to [protests], have been then sought out by the school council, by the members of the school board and retaliated [against] in a sort of legalistic way to try to put them on some sort of list and chill their speech by letting them know there’ll be a penalty for showing up and protesting,’ Paul said…

‘If you go to a school board meeting and you’re disruptive and you don’t obey the rules of the school board meeting, then there will be local punishment,’ Paul said. ‘But that has nothing to do with the federal law, it has nothing to do with the Department of Justice. What Merrick Garland did is, he’s attempting to stifle dissent, and he’s attempting to say, ‘Beware or Big Brother’s coming after you if you speak out against my policies or against the Biden policies.”

The post The government wants to stifle dissent appeared first on Liberty Tree.

Where did all the old-fashioned liberals go?

Yes! I miss the old anti war, free speech, question the government liberals. Now we just have angry authoritarian leftists! Cc:@ACLU https://t.co/X6QSA4r5EV

— Kelley Paul (@KelleyAshbyPaul) August 17, 2021

Libertarian hip-hop artist Zuby is right that “the word ‘liberal’ has been completely unmoored from its proper meaning.”

Most on the left today can’t even agree withe basic liberal premise that people with points of views that are the opposite of theirs should be allowed to hold those views.

It’s going to be up to mostly right-leaning people to defend liberalism in the United States, as strange as that might sound on its face.

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