Censorship: Twitter Takeover Totally Panics Political Regime of LeftLibDemSocMediaTechPol

[grarpamp]

Who's Afraid Of Elon Musk?
Authored by Ron Paul via The Ron Paul Institute for Peace & Prosperity,

http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2022/may/09/who-s-afraid-of-elon-musk/

Any doubt that many progressives have abandoned their commitment to
free speech was erased by the hysterical reaction to Elon Musk’s
effort to purchase Twitter and return the company to its roots as a
free speech zone.

Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich and “woke” neocon Max Boot fretted
that Musk’s commitment to free speech threatens democracy.

Those confused by how free speech threatens democracy should remember
that for neoconservatives and many progressives democracy means
allowing the people to choose between two largely identical supporters
of the welfare-warfare state. In this version of “democracy,” those
whose views are outside the welfare-warfare mainstream — such as
libertarians — are marginalized.

More ominous than the griping of ex-government officials and pundits
was the threat of prominent Democratic politicians to haul Musk before
Congress. These politicians likely want an opportunity to smear Musk
and other supporters of free speech as promoters of hate and Russian
(and/or Chinese) disinformation.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin and other Senate
Democrats, none of whom seem to have read the First Amendment, are
also investigating whether it would be “appropriate” for Congress to
force tech companies to “moderate” content on their platforms.

President Biden is not waiting for legislation to ramp up the attack
on free speech. His administration has created the Disinformation
Governance Board located in the Department of Homeland Security. The
board’s purpose is to coordinate government and private sector efforts
to combat “disinformation,” with a focus on Russia. The focus on
Russia is not surprising since “Russian disinformation” has joined
racism and sexism as a go-to justification to smear and silence those
whose views (and factual information) contradict the political and
media establishment’s “party line.”

Biden’s choice to head the Disinformation Governance Board, Nina
Jankowicz, is a spreader of disinformation herself. In 2020, for
example, Jankowicz parroted the lie that Russia created the damning
materials found on Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop. Jankowicz’s résumé
also includes stints as an advisor to the Ukraine government and a
manager of National Democratic Institute programs in Russia and
Belarus. Jankowicz’s background suggests she will never call any lie
peddled by the US war party “disinformation.”

The Disinformation Governance Board may not directly censor social
media. However, by “encouraging” tech companies desperate to maintain
good relations with the federal government to remove “unapproved”
opinions from their platforms, it can achieve the same results. This
is why anyone who values free speech, which should include everyone
who cherishes liberty, should not fall for the claim that tech
companies’ behavior is nothing to be concerned about since it does not
involve government censorship.

Sadly, some misguided conservatives have joined progressives in
promoting legislation imposing new regulations on big tech. Increased
regulation will only empower Nina Jankowicz and her ilk to further
pressure tech companies to restrict free speech. It will also hurt
consumers by reducing the ability to find affordable goods and
services online. The only way to protect free speech on the internet
is to make online platforms truly private through a complete
separation of tech and state.

The drive to censor is driven by the woke mob and authoritarian
establishment’s fear that their policies could not maintain majority
support if forced to compete in a free market of ideas. This shows
that even enemies of liberty sense that the days of the
welfare-warfare state are numbered.