This petition would destroy Free Republic
Gotta save the country first.
We’ll worry about repairing FR afterwards.
It should be limited to platforms larger than a certain size. The target is megacorps like Goolag, Fascist book, and twitfest.
Smaller outlets do not pose a threat to public free speech.
A.). Free Republic is a forum, not a platform. There's a significant difference between the two, including that platforms are afforded protections under the DMCA that other websites are not.
B.) Would the ability for liberals to post here really destroy Free Republic? Let them! They could bring their lefty talking points over here and see them crushed. Personally, I think it would be fun. That's activism! We might convert more people to our side than we'd lose. Echo chambers can get kinda boring.
“This petition would destroy Free Republic”
Quite.
Facebook, Twitter, etc are NOT unstoppable juggernauts. I’ve seen enough come & go over the years (since I could follow every posting on Usenet daily). Don’t overestimate their user base. Don’t overestimate their influence.
And don’t overestimate unintended consequences. Remember, FR banned InfoWars etc for YEARS - do we really want to impose “public speech on private presses” rules? no. Don’t. Go. There. You’ll regret it.
“What, you’re one of those ‘get your own press’ types?” Yes indeed. Get on Gab.ai, folks. Register your own website. Use any of the many services out there. Get off Facebook (I have, cold turkey). Get off Twitter (I’ll dump that soon). Liberate yourself from the BS managing those sites. They win because the Right feels beholden to using them. Get off en mass, deny them users, take your speech where it’s wanted.
The ONLY suggestion in support of this petition: push “common carrier” rules, to wit - if a site is going to moderate content, then absolutely hold their feet to the fire for anything that’s illegal, make them responsible for content if they’re going to cull content. Give them a reason to appeal to “common carrier”, where they’re not responsible for what’s posted, and as such leave content the heck alone.
Freedom of the press means you don’t get to use someone else’s - even if they’re really influential with theirs.