Will a decision against the government in Murthy v. Missouri really shut down government censorship via social media intermediaries? From Jeffrey A. Tucker at The Epoch Times via zerohedge.com:
Who or what enforces the edicts of the court? Mostly it is the executors of state power. What if they don’t want to because they disagree with the courts? At that point, we’ve got a problem.
Let’s consider.
Next week, the Supreme Court hears arguments in Murthy v. Missouri over a major free speech issue. The question is whether the federal government can, directly or indirectly, impose itself on social media companies to game their policies in a particular way according to policy priorities of the government itself.
The First Amendment suggests the answer is no. It says that government cannot impose laws “prohibiting the free exercise” or otherwise “abridging the freedom of speech.” Social media is all about speech. For government to game the system in its favor is a major intervention in rights that are supposed to be guaranteed by the government.
This principle has been routinely tested from the early years. The Sedition Act of 1798 targeted newspaper editors who criticized the president. There was outrage about that and it swept Thomas Jefferson into office who repealed the cursed thing.
That was hardly the end. Censorship was tried again in 1835, 1861, 1918, 1940, 1954, and so on, and each time the First Amendment eventually prevailed. And yet underlying this long experience is always the push by government to control the channels of distribution of information.
Now that every citizen is in a position to be a distributor of information to a broad audience via new technologies, we have government exercising its penchant to want to control. The Constitution of the United States, unique in the world for this protection of free speech, stands against this.
That seems rather simple. Surely the court will agree.
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How many divisions does teh SCROTE have?
Apologies to Stalin.
Isn’t Brandon ignoring the Premes with the student loan debt forgiveness?
I missed the Enabling Act 1933 but maybe it was etched on a tablet at the Philadelphia V for Vendetta speech.
Dear Leader decides in the fateful hour as he is the nation, one people, one state, one Dear Leader.
Wasn’t there a great Founder Father who said let them come and enforce the law regarding the glistening and slick SCROTE of demockracy?
So nine people in robes decides for 330 million plus?
Muh demockcracy, comrade.
Andrew Jackson, the last one to pay off the debt and an enemy of the banksters made that let them come and enforce it quote.
I can’t wait to laugh at the Zimbabwe looking new 20$ which will be steaming fourth world turd just like the 2024 quarters.