Posted on 11/25/2022 8:22:04 PM PST by SeekAndFind
Nothing against Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio's 3rd District, but it was difficult not to raise an eyebrow at his tweet on Tuesday suggesting that the "Left is furious that there's Free Speech on Twitter."
There certainly does seem to be something going on at Twitter to allow more conservative voices to be heard, and given the openly malicious censorship on the platform that conservatives have endured these past years, that does bring more balance to the dialogue taking place there. Conservatives are celebrating this as a victory, while vexed liberals lament their loss of command in the progressive echo chamber that Twitter was until recently.
Is Twitter now a platform for more balanced discussion? Yes. But does "Free Speech" reign there? That would be incredibly difficult to argue.
For example, when new owner Elon Musk was mulling whether Donald J. Trump would be allowed to return to Twitter, he concluded that the best way to do this is to put the question to a popular vote. After more than 15 million users weighed in, it was decided by a margin of 52-48 that Trump could return to the platform.
"The people have spoken," Musk tweeted. "Trump will be reinstated. Vox Populi, Vox Dei," which, loosely translated from Latin, means "the voice of the people is the voice of God." This is little more than an ancient fallacy that is often curiously deployed by people of modern and secular sensibilities.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
Had the mob narrowly voted "no" on his return, it is implied that the former president would still be righteously silenced on the platform. But this time, it would not be unjustifiable expulsion by an oligarch named Jack Dorsey or Parag Agrawal, but a justifiably democratic decision made by "the people."
Whether one's individual right to freedom of speech is revoked by a mob or an oligarch matters little to the one whose right was revoked. And while advocates of freedom of speech might celebrate that the mob chose to allow Trump the privilege of speaking on Twitter on this occasion, and that Elon Musk was so benevolent as to bend to its will on this occasion, one can hardly say the mob allowing him to speak on Twitter is tantamount to his exercising a right to free speech.
Someone Tweeted an explanation that Musk baited bots to respond to the vote, and that Musk probably deleted them on arrival.
Then Musk responded to that post with a wink.
It was a tactic for shutting down bots.
Bill, if leaders from Iran and Russia can Tweet, than the leader of the non-fascist people of America can Tweet. IOW, STHU Billy Boy!
It’s a mutually advantageous deal for Trump and Musk.
The left—crybabies— need their villain, Trump. Trump gladly plays them like a cheap violin, to his own (and our) delight.
Musk is only too happy to provide the venue.
Elon knew he was going to reinstate him. Also knowing Trump cannot use Twitter as a primary launch site....Trump needs to post any info on his Truth Social FIRST and any other site after 6 hours so as to not violate his CONTRACT with his finance agreement.
I am not a huge fan of Elon on the surface....but dont bet against him. He has built a huge electric car company, put a few thousand satellites into space and has a huge communications platform, built a space force of his own and the rockets land on their own, and has just threatened to build his own phone to compete with android and apple. That takes a considerable set of balls to not only threaten but he has done all of those things. Right now, Elon Musk is more dangerous to global politics than JFK was before he was assassinated by Johnson and his cronies.
Dont bet against Musk as you will probably lose the bet. Money on Trump does not have the same odds.
No one let the author of the piece in on the joke. Musk was simply disproving that the whole world wanted Trump off of Twitter. He could have manipulated the question or the voting process to get 60-40 or 70-30 in either direction. Heck, he could even manufacture numbers and few would know. And if exposed, he would laugh it off, pointing out that Zuckerberg and company have been doing that all the time.
Musk is getting publicity, and also cover for his blanket amnesty (not applicable to Infowars and some others) which did NOT have such a vote. It’s his show and he’s having a blast, especially over those who have been saying “Let the market decide.” He’s trying to prove them right, and they don’t like how.
This clueless dope gets paid to write.
Re headline: “Elon Musk’s Warped Idea of Free Speech”,
such jackassery is s exactly why.
Glad you said this.
Is American Thinker made up of never-Trumper’s?
Why shouldn’t Trump be allowed back? Isn’t he an American with the rights of Freedom of Speech? Isn’t Freedom of speech FREEDOM OF SPEECH?
What’s so hard about that?
Why is this fool even talking about the Constitution?
Right? Musk holds a fake poll to troll idiots and this dummy thinks Musk was relying on his fake poll to reinstate Trump.
Pearl clutching dipshit. Musk gets free speech better than this douchebag.
The American Stinker is at it again...
Amazing how much BS & tripe can be generated by that fellow-traveling outlet...
This is written y a British “subject”. Free speech is not a British value.
It was a bot hunt. People are being silly, but we are in a silly time.
At no time nor nowhere did Musk indicate that the survey was how he made his decision. It was presented perhaps as an illustration of how most people think.
He certsinly didn’t allow the feeling of the people he fired influence his decision.,
Or he simply knew the answer before he asked the question. Framed in a poll to make liberal heads explode. Whos to say even if Trump lost the poll Musk wouldnt have unbanned him anyways? In fact it seems highly likely since Musk has stated Trump broke no law of twitter TOS.
Admittedly I kind of skimmed but did he say anywhere that Trump shpuld have been reinstated regardless of public opinion?
Hey William Sullivan, you make me nervous.
I never saw that tweet but the poll smacked of an agenda to cull bots just as you assert.
At least to me (I believe that my word at the time was “shrewd”).
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.