Hacker News Reader

HNHacker News

Top New Best Ask Show Jobs

Comment by FergusArgyll | Hacker News Reader

Parent Full thread

FergusArgyll·

"A man has been jailed today after pleading guilty to posting grossly offensive messages on social media."

- The Crown Prosecution Service

https://www.cps.gov.uk/north-west/news/man-jailed-offensive-...

View on HN

This wasn't someone posting just a meme online or anything. The guy was posting racist shit during civil unrest [1]. Literally throwing oil on a fire. Yeah, you are going to get prosecuted for that.

[1] https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gdww5lx2vo

I’m astounded by your thought process. Yes, he was posting racist shit during civil unrest, as is his right. Or at least, should be.

As a liberal, your attitude is exactly what got US democrats steamrolled in the latest election.

"In those wretched Countries where a Man cannot call his Tongue his own, he can scarce call any Thing else his own. Whoever would overthrow the Liberty of a Nation, must begin by subduing the Freeness of Speech; a Thing terrible to Publick Traytors."

- Benjamin Franklin

This is why we fought a war to be separate from your "wretched" country. You're justifying jail time for racist speech!

> You're justifying jail time for racist speech!

For inciting further civil unrest during civil unrest.

Kinda weird to just cherry pick some things from my post.

> he can scarce call any Thing else his own

Ironic coming from a future slave owner. He did become an abolitionist, after travelling to France and England and being exposed to some, for Americans, pretty radical ideas.

This hinges entirely on what the captions were. What did they say? Even US free speech laws doesn't protect certain forms of speech (eg. "imminent lawless action"), so whether it's a meme or not holds little relevance.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com