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The Twitter official wasn't personally attacking Musk. And if your posts have the power to force someone from their home, you do have a moral responsibility to use that power carefully. Musk isn't just saying the official made poor decisions, he's accusing him of far worse.

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The idea that speech from anyone should be self-censored because of unpredictable or even predictable responses by others is ridiculous. If that were the standard, no speech would be allowed at all, and even if it was, the rules would be easily gamed and weaponized to prevent people from talking.

"Self-censoring" over the response to your speech and thinking about the impact of what you say is called judgement. People do this all the time, based on context, power dynamics, etiquette, etc.

I have no power to "weaponize" this, but it's entirely reasonable to question the judgement of how someone uses their speech

With great power comes great responsibility. 'Who will rid me of this meddlesome priest' may not sound like a death sentence when spoken by the corner baker but when a person in a position of great power speaks those words they may well become exactly that.

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