Should Twitter, Facebook, Answerbank, Be Allowed To Ban People.

[Gromit]

Thousand turned up in London today to demonstrate about Tommy Robinson being banned by Twitter. He broke their terms and conditions of membership, and was banned earlier this year. Twitter is a business, and the ban was intended to protect their company from views that will bring the company into ill repute. Robinson could have followed the rules he signed up to when he joined, but didn’t.

Are the ragbag of far right protestors wasting their time, when the solution (i.e. following the rules) starring them in the face?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/may/06/thousands-of-far-right-protesters-march-in-london-in-support-of-free-speech

[waterboatman]

Of course they should. If you obey the rules and respect other people you won't get into trouble.

[waterboatman]

Reasoned argument is fine. Abuse is not.

[Zacs-Master]

Robinson should be banned from humanity, never mind Twitter. skirting around racism & xenophobia but you can’t hide the bigotry.

[waterboatman]

Quite.

[-Talbot-]

Where is the evidence that Robinson is a racist?

Or are you happy just to be told by the media he is a racist and don't care about any actual evidence?

Yes he despises Islam but that does not make him racist.

[youngmafbog]

Unfortunately Talbot just TR having a different viewpoint to what some thing is enough for them to want him banned or silenced.

As far as any platform goes though it is their site so their rules. Freedom of speech really has nothing to do with it, what will drive it though is if a site bans too many who are popular they will go out of business just as fast as if they allow someone whos views are considered to radical for the site to stay.

[TheRtHonSec]

jno, why is it a free site? Why would anyone want to invite all and sundry to post things on a site that was free to contributors, but has a cost for the the site owner? That's moving away from the OP, I know, but it for me it just begs the question.

[youngmafbog]

It's free for us to use, no subscription, but obviously you (the site) make the money from advertising.

[anotheoldgit]

/// Why have you labelled then all 'a ragbag of far right protestors'? ///

Because Gromit has a right to free speech even though he doesn't want those he disagrees with enjoying the same right.

A rather Fascist attitude if you ask me.

[Zacs-Master]

‘Talbot- Where is the evidence that Robinson is a racist?’


Are you serious?

[pixie374]

I would remove posts that were actually illegal. I'm not convinced about banning people- sometimes it's better to know how people think and let others respond. A disclaimer might be better... "the views of posters don't necessarily reflect those of the site...." or however they put it in newspapers.

[ichkeria]

Well, yes obviously
Scores of accounts get shut down all the time.
The ‘freedom of speech’ argument has nothing to do with it. If that principle was taken to its logical conclusion we’d allow all sorts of vile hate propaganda and goodness knows what else. I don’t know the ins and out of Robinson’s case, but there can’t be one rule for eg religious hate preachers and another for the people who use what they do as an excuse to preach their own hatred

[-Talbot-]

Zacs-Master ‘Talbot- Where is the evidence that Robinson is a racist?’


Are you serious?




Yes

[ludwig]

Obviously the answer is yes.

[vetuste_ennemi]

If there were an AB "house" rule "No bigotry and sneering", then consistent moderation would long since have got rid of Zac's Master and Gromit, wouldn't it?

Not, let me say, the kind of rule I or, I suggest, most of the people attending the demo would support.

[ludwig]

//If there were an AB "house" rule "No bigotry and sneering", then consistent moderation would long since have got rid of Zac's Master and Gromit, wouldn't it? //

But there isn't. Twitter is obviously different.

[vetuste_ennemi]

The Twitter rules Robinson (and others ) have broken are:

(1) Don't criticise Islam

...or, if you can't get them on that one...

(2) Don't say anything which may put Islam in a bad light.

[Mamyalynne]

https://help.twitter.com/en/rules-and-policies/twitter-rules

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/mar/28/tommy-robinson-permanently-banned-twitter-violating-rules-hateful-conduct

[Mamyalynne]

I do believe sites such as those listed should have the ultimate say in who stays or is banned, it's certain we won't all agree with any one quoted individual case - that has been evidenced on here today.

[vetuste_ennemi]

I'm sure Tommy Robinson has a chequered past.

The casus belli, however, of the EDL was (a) the contempt for British soldiers returning from Iraq shown by many of Luton's Muslims, and (b) the gang rape of English girls by many of Luton's Muslims.

Pointing out (a) obviously breaks rule 2, but is not quite as bad as sawing a soldier's head off.

Pointing out (b) obviously breaks rule 2 too, but is not quite as bad as organising gang rape, or turning a blind eye to it.