Banning free speech apps is like banning free print printers.

Banning a social networks because people can post anti-Semitic content on them, is like banning HP for allowing people to print anti-Semitic flyers on them.

Before I start, let's just get one thing clear. I am a Jew.Not only a Jew but an Israeli Zionist Jew.That means that I am hated by anti-semites both from the right and the left equally.

Probably the last thing that can be said about me is that I have any affiliation with anti-semites.actually more then I hate them, I find them pretty pathetic and dumb.

And just for a quick recall, an anti-semite doesn't have to be a white supremacist, it can also be Luis farrakhan from the Nation of Islam (which are basically Muslim supremacists) speaking about the "Satanic Jews".

"but if your enemy is the government of

the United States of America must be

something to you the satanic Jews that

control everything and mostly everybody"

Now that we are clear on that we can deal with the current Issue.

Following the mass shooting in Pennsylvania there was a lot of noise in the media about Gab, the social network that the murderer found to be a member of , and that one of his posts was :

"HIAS like to bring invaders that kill our people.I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics,I am getting in"

The message the murderer left in Gab social network

A day after ,PayPal GoDaddy and Coinbase had stopped providing services for the social network on no real excuse besides :“right to terminate your account for any reason and at any time upon notice to you". (see https://www.cnet.com/news/gab-is-down-as-godaddy-paypal-pull-service-following-synagogue-shooting/)

Also Microsoft threatened to drop hosting for Gab in Azure. (see https://www.theverge.com/2018/8/9/17671188/microsoft-gab-hate-speech-hosting-ban-deplatform)

That chain of events is purely insane and has no real reason besides the fact that these companies can allow themselves to bully such a small company like Gab and get away with it.

Let's be honest, there is so much similar content posted on Facebook and Twitter every day and every hour.He could have written it on Twitter and no one would notice.

Here is for example a quick pick of videos from Google search of "the killer posted on facebook" I made:

search results on "the killer posted on facebook"

The Internet and the social media is filled with violence all over, but no one would threaten Facebook or Google to shut down services for them because no one can talk with these giants, only ask politely.They own the place.

So they bully a small network, running down any basic business ethics, just because they can !

These are serious business issues of monopoly power and antitrust violations.

Google, Microsoft and Amazon basically controls the cloud where all the servers and databases exist today.

Google and Apple controls the App Stores where is the only way to download an App for mobiles today.

So they have huge power to block competition, and If they can use their power on such ridiculous claims then Huston we have a problem !

But there is another question I want to raise here.Why at all should anyone demand so much from social media providers to do the job of healthy society and functioning police ?

If the shooter had put a flyer saying "I am going to kill Jews" what would you normally expect ? Would you expect HP or Dell to put some sophisticated software in their products that tracks down hate speech and at least refuses to print the pages or secretly call the police ? Or maybe, more reasonably, you would expect people who saw that flyer and know the person, to report it to the police immediately.

Anti-Semitic flyers

Yes, Platforms can help if they have the appropriate technology to ASSIST THE POLICE in extreme cases in doing their job. But it's the police's job together with aware citizens that report when it is actually needed.

The Idea of a big brother technology that will inspect every bit everywhere may suit China or North Korea or Iran but not the liberal west civilization.

Why won't we blame Microsoft for selling Office software to anti-semites as well and perhaps GMail for assisting anti-semites in spreading of unwanted hate content through emails ?

The list of absurdity can go on and on, It is just not the way to go when fighting hate and bad ideas.

The way to go is actually allowing freedom of speech even though it harbors some extremes, just as the way to go is to allow people drive cars even though it allows sometimes some terrible accidents.

The long term benefits of free exchange of ideas far more exceeds the short term gains of policing speech in a big brother style.

It is much better then censoring speech where we know where we start but we can never know where we will end (or actually we do...) .

Benjamin Franklin on giving up freedom for security

Freedom of speech is a large topic by itself and I will dedicate special posts just for it.

Until then

Protect your freedom of speech,

Protect your free time,

And Protect your privacy !

Sharon Salmon

Founder

Koobeca