Senate Democrats Are Circulating Plans for Government Takeover of the Internet: Reason Roundup

Reason ^ | 07/31/18 | Elizabeth Nolan Brown

[Enlightened1]

All your base are belong to us. A leaked memo circulating among Senate Democrats contains a host of bonkers authoritarian proposals for regulating digital platforms, purportedly as a way to get tough on Russian bots and fake news. To save American trust in "our institutions, democracy, free press, and markets," it suggests, we need unprecedented and undemocratic government intervention into online press and markets, including "comprehensive (GDPR-like) data protection legislation" of the sort enacted in the E.U.

Titled "Potential Policy Proposals for Regulation of Social Media and Technology Firms," the draft policy paper—penned by Sen. Mark Warner and leaked by an unknown source to Axios—the paper starts out by noting that Russians have long spread disinformation, including when "the Soviets tried to spread 'fake news' denigrating Martin Luther King" (here he fails to mention that the Americans in charge at the time did the same). But NOW IT'S DIFFERENT, because technology.

"Today's tools seem almost built for Russian disinformation techniques," Warner opines. And the ones to come, he assures us, will be even worse.

Here's how Warner is suggesting we deal:

Mandatory location verification. The paper suggests forcing social media platforms to authenticate and disclose the geographic origin of all user accounts or posts.

Mandatory identity verification: The paper suggests forcing social media and tech platforms to authenticate user identities and only allow "authentic" accounts ("inauthentic accounts not only pose threats to our democratic process...but undermine the integrity of digital markets"), with "failure to appropriately address inauthentic account activity" punishable as "a violation of both SEC disclosure rules and/or Section 5 of the [Federal Trade Commission] Act."

Bot labeling: Warner's paper suggests forcing companies to somehow label bots or be penalized (no word from Warner on how this is remotely feasible)

Define popular tech as "essential facilities.

[Enlightened1]

The Globalists are making their move. That's why you never give them the ground when it comes to free speech.

For the record, all these companies are NOT private companies, but publicly traded corporations that are subject to different rules.

Guess who they are coming after next Drudge, Limbaugh, Savage, Hannity, Fox News, One Amercia's Network, etc... just ahead of the elections of 2018 and 2020.

This is election interference.

[ExTexasRedhead]

Civil War II has already begun, ya think?

[cdcdawg]

They already control it.

[Slyfox]

[DIRTYSECRET]

My friends it’s the younger gratin that will be most effected. Do you think they’re worried or even care?

[Enlightened1]

I am afraid it may lead to that.

Leftists/Globalists can’t stand the fact they lost the 2016 election and want to steal 2018 and 2020.

[bigbob]

Well since regulation is a function of the executive branch, maybe we should try a little test and let Trump control say Twitter for a while and see how they like it...

[11th_VA]

Democracy dies in darkness ... just sayin ...

[Starboard]

The sad thing is, they will find lots of allies in the Republicans who are weak and have a propensity for being manipulated by Democrats.

[KyCats]

That’s a good one.

But in the real world, Trump’s not even allowed to control who he bans on his own personal account.

[rightwingcrazy]

I think they were planning to wait to do this until HRC got elected, but decided to go for it anyway. It’s their last shot. They propose to eliminate freedom of the press, but say it’s to save the free press. I’m sure no one will notice.

[kiryandil]

We need many, many guillotines erected in Washington, DC.

[Steely Tom]

I gotta add this one to my list.

WHEN NEXT THE DEMOCRATS TAKE POWER, THEY WILL:

1. bring in between 50 and 100 million third-world immigrants with no education or skills
2. attempt (again) to do away with secret balloting in Federal elections
3. institute a per-mile tax on all driving in America
4. allow Sharia law to be enforced in areas of our country that have high Muslim population densities
5. set up government control of content on the internet

[Sarah Barracuda]

If the Commies take control of the House/Senate in November, you can say adios to Freerepublic, ANY web site that has Conservative content will be gone..ya know its ironic isn’t it, the left has been spewing their hate about Russia, yet here they are, behaving just like Putin

[RinaseaofDs]

It’s been a while since I heard the term ‘Agenda 21’. The idea behind that was that a one-world government was supposed to be in place by 2021.

See why HRC winning that last election was kinda important? GWB and Bill Clinton got the ball rolling in terms of exporting our jobs and our factories. Obama was mopping up that bit, and HRC was going to deliver the rest to the globalists.

But, there was never really anything to Agenda 21, was there? Just another conspiracy theory.

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

Welcome To The
Snail-A-Thon!

Please Donate

Click The Pic To Donate

[kaktuskid]

The pres has a veto pen and the EO, just like Obama

[kiryandil]

Leftists/Globalists can’t stand the fact they lost the 2016 election and want to steal 2018 and 2020

Since they didn't accept the results of the 2016 election, it's probably time to skip the ballot box in 2018, and move on to the next type of box...

Our side has LOTS of those kind of "voting boxes", filled with "voting pellets"...

[Slyfox]

younger gratin?

[lgjhn23]

“...We need many, many guillotines erected in Washington, DC....”
Agreed, but they need to pressed into service. May I humbly suggest at high noon on Saturdays, publicly televised worldwide, and announced in advance so that local families can pack a picnic lunch, sit on the mall and watch it all in real time....it would make great entertainment as well as a warning to others. Just like the old days.