Forget the Alien & Sedition Acts, the Palmer Raids, the Red Scare or the McCarthy Hearings. The greatest threat to freedom of speech and press in American history is the scam known as “campaign finance reform.” Government tyrants and despots have a thousand ways to influence elections to promote more powerful government. They secretly (and …
Category: Free speech under siege
Dec 13
The number of journalists imprisoned for their work is now at an all-time high
Startling new report from the Committee to Protect Journalists. As of December 1, 2017, 262 journalists were behind bars around the world in relation to their work, a new record after a historical high of 259 last year. Many of these jailed journalists are in China, Turkey, and Egypt. But the western world is partially …
Nov 16
Federal Election Commission now seeks to control political discussion on the internet
Forget the Alien & Sedition Act prosecutions. Forget Lincoln’s arrests of pro-secession newspaper editors. Forget the Palmer Raids of World War I, the “Red Scares,” the imprisonment of Eugene V. Debs or the McCarthy Hearings of the 1950s. By far the greatest threat to freedom of speech and press that America ever faced was and …
Oct 27
African governments get used to SHUTTING DOWN the internet
An astounding story was published by Reuters reporters last week. In most countries, “the internet” is a multidimensional thing emanating and maintained by thousands of different businesses, people and institutions. But in some African countries, “the internet” may depend on a single cable system. “Since the start of 2016, governments in 13 African nations have …
Oct 25
Vietnamese Government Orders Student Imprisoned for 6 Years for Blog Criticisms
According to Yahoo News, a Vietnamese student has been ordered jailed for 6 years for blog posts that criticized life under the Vietnamese government. See here. Like the government of the United States, the Vietnamese government employs teams of agents to monitor the internet and control the content of what subjects post.
Oct 20
Largest governments agree to censor, ban and control ‘terror’ messaging in media
Every government ultimately comes for all freedom, all resources, all property, and to kill or cage all who resist. Now the “G7” (the world’s 7 most powerful governments) are combining with a common goal: to push for controls on the internet which are deemed “terrorist” or “jihadist.” See here. (Of course, nothing said here should …
Sep 09
UC Berkeley offers counseling services for students impacted by neoconservative speaker
America’s government colleges have become temples of elitism, privilege, intolerance, socialism and government worship. Any American becomes instantly less free upon walking onto a government college campus. Many campuses have speech codes, restricted ‘first amendment zones’ and internal intelligence units which are paid to hunt down anti-government, free-market, or politically incorrect thought. Now there are …
Aug 08
Spanish government (upon orders of Turkish government) arrests journalist for “terrorism”
Every government that ever existed has sought to equate dissent and criticism with terrorism or treason. Untold thousands of humans have been arrested, subjected to mock trials, and/or executed for saying or writing things which their masters in government did not like. Throughout European history, thousands were burned at the stake, hanged or tortured for …
Jul 13
Turkish government arrests film maker for making documentary about Turkish government
The world’s safest profession: being a pro-government news reporter or observer. The world’s most dangerous profession: being an anti-government news reporter or observer. In recent years the Turkish government has arrested hundreds of critics–including comedians, reporters and actors–for such crimes as terrorism and sedition. Now there is a report that movie director Ali Avci has …
Jun 18
Scores of protesters expose Ben & Jerry’s ice cream lies
The Associated Press is reporting that “Scores of dairy farm workers and activists marched Saturday on a Ben & Jerry’s [ice cream] factory to push for better pay and living conditions on farms that provide milk for the ice cream maker that takes pride in its social activism….. See here. Although we at Lysander Spooner …