“There is a dystopian element to telling social media platforms to control “misinformation” when the very definition of that keeps changing.”
-Rachel Bovard
#freespeechmatters 21.07.2021
There are many plausible arguments online that suggest that the biggest threat to free speech in the United States is big tech. While I recognize the severity of their threat, I argue that the biggest threat to free speech is you. You are the one that’s easily manipulated into thinking this is okay. You are the one applauding every time a corporation chooses to silence somebody for views you disagree with.
You have gotten a little self-obsessed over the years. You ignore the popular platitude and treat the world as if it revolves around you. You demand to feel safe wherever it is you may be, even if it’s somewhere you’re not welcome. You read others’ words and consider how they are offensive to you. You don’t care for context or understanding, because there’s no reasoning with you once you’re outraged.
You are a product of the social media revolution. They have tailored to your needs for so long your forgot there are other people operating in this world. Something about freedom and individualism threatens your ego, and a threat to your ego is now a crime against humanity.
You see yourself as thoughtful. You see yourself as making a difference in this world. Your narcism blinds you to the fact that the changes you want to see in the world are not the changes the world demands. Despite your education, you’re not intelligent enough to listen to the other side of the argument without taking it personally. Why wouldn’t you take it personally? This world revolving around you is yours for the taking.
You have absolutely no respect for others, though you claim to be standing high and mighty for the oppressed. While standing with the oppressed, you’re simultaneously stripping the oppressed from their human rights by trampling on their right to speak freely. You see speech as a threat to the world you want us to live in, and refuse to let us speak out without consequence. You play mind games and place chilling effects on speech with your threats of cancel culture. You are the biggest threat to our right to free speech; big tech is just one of your many weapons.
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