Comment by Chinjut

2 months ago

The argument you seem to be proposing applies to any policy whatsoever. "Well, you have to convince people to vote for you and your policies". Ok, sure, that's what's being done.

13 comments

Chinjut

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msla  2 months ago

My point is, that process of convincing is advertising.

So they'll only ban non-political advertising... until they decide your movement isn't political for the purposes of the laws. It's too obvious, and too tempting, a cudgel for any government to have.

  • camgunz  2 months ago

    Political messaging is more than TV ads and mailers. There are rallies, online groups, town halls, organizing, basic human communication stuff.

    ---

    The way we reign in government isn't by having no rules (the argument you're making reduces to "any rule can be weaponized against political opposition"), it's political checks to ensure weaponization doesn't happen. Or put another way, there is no system of rules that constrains a regime defined by its rule breaking.

  • JoshTriplett  2 months ago

    > So they'll only ban non-political advertising

    That's likely to be the case anyway, because politicians are rarely willing to restrict themselves. The US Do Not Call list has an exception for political spam.

    (See also: why the two biggest political parties are unlikely to support better voting systems.)

    • johannes1234321  2 months ago

      There are other (democratic) countries with restriction on political ads. For the ruling party it isn't as bad as they got other means (official government communication etc.) while advertising is mostly needed as a tool for the opposition for being able to bring topics on the agenda.

  • godelski  2 months ago

    Is my comment an ad?

    Am I an ad?

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=J7XOCG_P6o4

    • 0xBDB  2 months ago

      Yes.

      The United States government is not allowed to regulate commerce unless it is interstate. So it defined interstate commerce as anything that substantially affects interstate commerce. Did you cut down a tree in your backyard and use it to make your own pencil with your own labor? That kept you from buying a pencil that might have been made in another state. Interstate commerce.

      Did you just represent an idea, and did I pay you with my attention? Advertising. Prison.

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