Comment by danlitt
6 days ago
The US's low press freedom index is precisely because people are being legally intimidated for wrongthink. It is not limited to the press, either. Mahmoud Khalil (the Palestinian activist detained by ICE on fake immigration charges for his political speech) is a famous example, but there are many.
The US's "commitment to free speech" is nowadays not very much more noble than Russia's principled stand against economic sanctions.
Plenty of people in the UK are arrested for wrongthink. You might think that's justified (e.g. because it is hateful) but it is still arresting someone for speech.
I didn't say that they weren't. Hundreds of people were arrested for opposing the proscription of Palestine Action. The UK's defence of free expression is not great.
What I did say is that the US's position is not as a defender of free speech either (and as Russia is not a defender of free trade). They have particular speech they like to promote (the KKK, stormfront) and particular speech they like to suppress (criticism of war crimes, books about being trans). Draw whatever conclusions you like from that.
Arrested for incitement not wrong think… if they had done the same thing in the street and there was evidence they would have been arrested too
Well, there was a labour councillor who said people should have their throats slit on camera in the street, and he was let off.
If this is a real take you need to rethink your view on the world.
Got anything substantive to say?
False equivalency. As a green card holder he does not share the same freedom of speech rights as that of a US citizen.
Do I need to point out that the OP describes a US commitment to the free speech of Europeans?