EU pushes forward on law against hate speech, illegal content. Hosting companies required to take websites offline

Ozzy47 said:
I didn’t say I’m offended by words. But it’s obvious you have a chip on your shoulder so I’ll leave you to it.
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What we cannot stop is people twisting words, quoting out of context etc.

There will always sadly be narcissists and sociopaths with nil empathy. They seem to really do believe that free speech should include hate speech, incitement to violence, racial abuse, bullying, online stalking and more. They believe if you bully someone and they suffer, it is their fault for being mentally weak. Luckily many countries now have laws that stop people using both direct racial abuse (the N word) or indirect (calling the cops because a black persons seems to be in the nice part of town or driving a nice car.
 
Brad Padgett said:
Things like that can have a huge effect on teenage youth. Many teens have committed suicide over bullying many times in the past. Sure there's plenty of tough cookies who will fight back but not everyone is that way.
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D.O.A. said:
don't blame free speech for mental weakness.
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It isn't the victims who are mentally weak.

Those who bully are the mentally weak ones. Picking on ethnic minorities, the disabled or people who may look a bit overweight etc. is a sign of insecurity. So people who do it tend to form a "mob" because otherwise they may need to face up to their own insecurities or inadequacies.

Being on the receiving end of a mob is no joke, although the mob often use the excuse "they can't take a joke, it was just a bit of banter..."
 
Contextually, words in a book or delivered on screen, or any other medium - that text lacks contextualization. It lacks emotions, inflections, and other elements that provide texture to what someone is saying.

At the end of the day, that lack of texture and contextualization can change how we interpret something. Case in point, a message dictated over the phone and recorded as a text. When one messes up even basic punctuation, that can change how we interpret the same message.

From Encyclopedia Brown:

Background: Tyrone Taylor, the Idaville Casanova, is mystified when his crush responds to his latest love letter with a right cross to the jaw. The letter (which he dictated over the phone to said crush's little sister) reads as follows:

Original Message:

How I long for a girl who understands what true romance is all about. You are sweet and faithful. Girls who are unlike you kiss the first boy who comes along, Adorabelle. I'd like to praise your beauty forever. I can't stop thinking you are the prettiest girl alive.

How the message was recorded by Adorabelle's kid sister who added in their own punctuation.

How I long for a girl who understands what true romance is. All about you are sweet and faithful girls who are unlike you. Kiss the first boy who comes along, Adorabelle. I'd like to praise your beauty forever. I can't. Stop thinking you are the prettiest girl alive.
 
Some developments on this front:

www.wsj.com

France Threatens Big Fines for Social Media With Hate-Speech Law

France is empowering regulators to slap large fines on social-media companies that fail to remove postings deemed hateful, one of the most aggressive measures yet in a broad wave of rules aimed at forcing tech companies to more tightly police their services.
www.wsj.com www.wsj.com
PARIS—France is empowering regulators to slap large fines on social-media companies that fail to remove postings deemed hateful, one of the most aggressive measures yet in a broad wave of rules aimed at forcing tech companies to more tightly police their services.

France’s National Assembly passed a law Wednesday that threatens fines of up to €1.25 million ($1.36 million) against companies that fail to remove “manifestly illicit” hate-speech posts—such as incitement to racial hatred or anti-Semitism—within 24 hours of being...
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www.euractiv.com

Internet giants could be fined up to $12 million under Austrian hate speech law

Austria plans to oblige large internet platforms like Facebook and Google to delete illegal content within days and impose fines of up to 10 million euros ($12 million) in case of non-compliance, the government said on Thursday (3 September).
www.euractiv.com www.euractiv.com
Austria’s online hate speech law, now being drawn up, will target platforms with more than 100,000 users and annual revenues of more than 500,000 euros, Justice Minister Alma Zadic said. It will give victims of online insults and abuse the opportunity to fight back quickly at a low cost, she said.
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Hopefully the threshold will be 100k visitors AND 500k revenue. Not 100k visitors OR 500k revenue.
Platforms will be obliged to set up easily accessible reporting systems, appoint a contact person for users and report on the complaints received annually, according to the draft law. They will have to delete obviously criminal content within 24 hours of receiving a complaint and otherwise unlawful content within seven days.
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Hoffi said:
Oh, whow. That sounds you are in the age of 5 with a huge lack of live experience.

Please go outside, talk to 50 victims of bullying, that will change of mind, if you are an intelligent human.
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Bullying is not a "new" thing. Gone on for ages, but you didn't have people with as high of tendency to get butt-hurt about it.
It's called thick skin for a reason. Words are just that. YOU control how they affect you, not the words.

And yes, in school I was bullied upon occasion. I didn't let it effect me or what I did.
Oh, and yes, I do have a plethora of experience, considering that I've been on this planet for 57 years.
 
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The same is true regarding misinformation and conspiracy theories regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

I agree with the intent.

However, the EU has gone power mad and the proposed sanction is draconian.
 
Tracy Perry said:
YOU control how they affect you, not the words.
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To be honest, this is stupid. Many people can't act so. Be happy that you can handle this, but most people can't. I agree, it would be easier if everycan can do this, but that is not the case.

So its a matter of respect to not harm other people with your words.
 
Hoffi said:
To be honest, this is stupid. Many people can't act so. Be happy that you can handle this, but most people can't. I agree, it would be easier if everycan can do this, but that is not the case.

So its a matter of respect to not harm other people with your words.
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The word "stupid" harms me and you are no longer allowed to say it on this forum. If you do you are disrespecting me.

See how this ends? its pathetic.
 
Junx said:
The word "stupid" harms me and you are no longer allowed to say it on this forum. If you do you are disrespecting me.

See how this ends? its pathetic.
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No, I would never use it agains others, but you and Tracy mentioned, that you both are tough enoug, so I was able to use it without to harm anybody.
 
Junx said:
by his logic thats how it should be
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by his logic? whose logic? Or did you mean by His logic? :)


No seriously, calling someone stupid is not hate speech.

A better example might be making fun or light or denying it ever happened (based on racial prejudice) to somebody whose close family members were worked to death or gassed in Nazi concentration camps.

Or constantly taunting somebody who is unable to use any of their limbs.
 
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Mr Lucky said:
by his logic? whose logic? Or did you mean by His logic? :)


No seriously, calling someone stupid is not hate speech.

A better example might be making fun or light or denying it ever happened (based on racial prejudice) to somebody whose close family mermbers were worked to death or gassed in Nazi concentration camps.

Or constantly taunting somebody who is unable to use any of their limbs.
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hate speech doesnt exist.

all speech is free speech with the exception of calls to violence.

constantly taunting can be considered harassment which is an ACTUAL CRIME
 
To be frank, when words on a page become a personal problem it's time to switch the device off

However, technology is everywhere, social media has become 'conversation' and far too many are engrossed in it to the point of addiction.
 
Hoffi said:
To be honest, this is stupid. Many people can't act so. Be happy that you can handle this, but most people can't. I agree, it would be easier if everycan can do this, but that is not the case.

So its a matter of respect to not harm other people with your words.
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It's just a different way of being brought up. Words only have the power that YOU give them.
That's one of the issues with todays generations. To many are given everything and protected from everything.
To put it bluntly, they are not as "resistant" to outside influences as our older generations are. They have been coddled and catered to and cannot deal with anything outside their "comfort" zone.
Trying to legislate an inability for people to deal with reality is what is stupid. Free speech is just that. As long as it doesn't incite direct physical harm against another it is (and should be) freely allowed. Just because one is not able to ignore it doesn't mean it's subject to legislation.
 
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Hoffi said:
No, I would never use it agains others, but you and Tracy mentioned, that you both are tough enoug, so I was able to use it without to harm anybody.
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And if you notice, I don't get butt-hurt by it but respond with an (for me) appropriate response.
Words only have the power that one gives them. To argue differently is to argue against facts.
 

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