Patterico's Pontifications

3/19/2019

Devin Nunes Sues Everyone, Including His Mom*

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 7:09 am



Devin Nunes has taken the very wise and not at all boneheaded step of filing a whiny lawsuit against Twitter and a bunch of troll accounts:

Stung by obscene and pointed criticism, Representative Devin Nunes, a Republican from California, said he was suing Twitter and three users for defamation, claiming the users smeared him and the platform allowed it to happen because of a political agenda.

The complaint, which Fox News reported was filed in Virginia on Monday, seeks $250 million in damages. In making his case, Mr. Nunes, a loyal ally of President Trump and the former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, repeated several common Republican complaints that Twitter has repeatedly denied: that it censors Republicans, “shadow bans” their accounts and actively helps their opponents.

Though absorbing criticism comes with the territory for politicians, the complaint described the objectionable tweets from the three users as something “that no human being should ever have to bear and suffer in their whole life.”

One of the defendants is Liz Mair, who stands accused of runnning certain troll accounts including one named “Devin Nunes Mom.”

Devin Nunes has always been a national joke. It’s just that, thanks to his own stupid actions, a lot more people are getting it now:

What surprises me about this — although it probably shouldn’t — is that the guy is still on Twitter. Fair warning: if any of you mooks ever sues me for oppressing your precious free speech rights here, guess what the first thing I’m doing is? That’s right: banning you.

But I’m sure the lawyers advised against it: it will just play into his narrative and so forth.

Ah well. This is a perfect example of why I blog less lately. The stories, and the people the stories are about, are self-parodizing. Even as we speak, the President of the United States has taken to social media to call the husband of one of his top communications aides a “total loser” — and all I can think is: ha, won’t it be fun to watch her answer questions about that! Meanwhile the national debt stands at over $22 trillion, we live in a world where nothing is being done about the spread of weapons that could end the human race, and we have apparently lost all popular understanding of the importance of free markets that have lifted millions upon millions out of poverty. But at least we have our bread and circuses, hur hur, and so in the end — well, I’d have a snappy final line, but sorry, I gotta go check Kellyanne’s Twitter feed see ya

*No, Devin Nunes, you litigious dullard, I am not actually saying that you are suing your actual mom.

[Cross-posted at The Jury Talks Back.]

113 Responses to “Devin Nunes Sues Everyone, Including His Mom*”

  1. how many threads were given to the dumpster fire avenatti, pretending he was someone of substance, or wolff’s rank insinuations, how much has been pointed out about the subterfuge simpson, engineered in conjunction with major silicon valley players, and this stinks of liz mair,

    narciso (d1f714)

  2. Meanwhile, a majority of the free press is colluding with the circus cartel (Trump, Beto, AOC, Nunes, ad nauseum) to ensure that the public is not tempted to think seriously about bread.

    John B Boddie (66f464)

  3. How about when Adolf Hitler sued American citizens in our very own American courts to keep the unexpurgated translation of Mein Kampf from being published in the United States? How about that, eh?

    nk (dbc370)

  4. I miss you, Pat. I really do. 🙁

    Gryph (08c844)

  5. Adam Schiff is a painful joke, but frankly it’s the only kind that’s eligible for state wide office, his collusion with glen simpson is a case in point,

    narciso (d1f714)

  6. how many threads were given to the dumpster fire avenatti, pretending he was someone of substance, or wolff’s rank insinuations, how much has been pointed out….”

    I’m sure it was exhausting.

    harkin (09d352)

  7. Schiff certainly collaborated with the rizzotto press, and twitter, but I repeat my self, to create that phony recusal, to cover his collaboration with simpson and comey and McCabe,

    narciso (d1f714)

  8. So Nunes is punching back, good for him.

    I enjoy watching Mark Levin’s Fox News show, he always has interesting guests on and thoughtful discussion ensue. He had Bill Bennett on last Sunday and Bennett shared his thoughts on and opinions of the significance of the Trump presidency. Worth viewing!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  9. probably both,

    http://thefederalist.com/2019/03/19/peter-strzok-lie-spy-targeting-trump-campaign/

    the Murdoch boys don’t want any of that, they are moving Levin around like a pea under a cup, like corey katz went after mark steyn,

    narciso (d1f714)

  10. now the bureau looks the other way with mory tobins boiler room scam, and they nab some small fish, also this medicare fraudster esformes, who apparently was paying bribes with the money he was grifting off medicare, but he wasn’t sharp for a whole host of reasons,

    narciso (d1f714)

  11. Shadow banning, if true, is an act of fraud. Twitter may be free monetarily, but no one can seriously claim there isn’t a transaction going on with both sides giving up something.

    “If they can do this to me, they can do it to you. They can do it to anyone.”

    “I can pursue legal options….”

    Yes, but would that be “whiny”? I don’t think so. (Those quotes aren’t from Nunes.)

    Munroe (b9cb12)

  12. “Even as we speak… Meanwhile…”

    Thought for certain when John Lennon was gunned down this crazy society would make changes for the better- instead, we got Ronnie, Nancy and Rush.

    Welcome to middle age. 😉

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  13. London calling…

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  14. Beto’s been goin’ ape-sh-t from the start; what you be flingin’ O’Rourke?!…

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=strWmj-vZ88

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  15. Shadow banning, if true, is an act of fraud.

    This, IMO, is a better legal avenue to deal with the problem. It’s not the censorship — Twitter or anyone else is free to “censor” whatever it wants on its own platform.

    But the problem is when one claims to follow one policy and then in reality follows another. Then we are getting into the realm of fraud or false advertising.

    Perhaps Congress should require every platform to disclose its policies for removing posts from their platform or banning particular posters. And then there is a suitable penalty — such as losing one’s DMCA immunities — if it turns out those disclosures are false.

    Bored Lawyer (998177)

  16. The trouble with indiscriminate partisanship is that the sufferers’ mothers send them to the store for apples and they come back with orange juice.

    Yes, that is a reference to Munroe and his comment @12.

    nk (dbc370)

  17. I think the distinction need to be said here:
    Platform: a company or technology that enables communication and distribution of information.
    Publisher:
    a company or person that curates and distributes content.

    And then there’s the Communications Decency Acts that:
    Provides protection for online service providers and users from actions against them based on the content of third parties, stating in part that “No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.” Effectively, this section immunizes both ISPs and Internet users from liability for torts committed by others using their website or online forum, even if the provider fails to take action after receiving actual notice of the harmful or offensive content.

    So…here’s my question: ‘Who’ or ‘by what actions’ determines any entity a Platform vs Publisher?

    Because if it’s by action…woah momma…Twitter/Facebook can be in a world of hurt, as they’re obviously curating content.

    whembly (fd57f6)

  18. But I agree that Twitter is NOT free. Not only do its subscribers provide it with content which it uses as a platform for ads; but it also “licenses”, as in s-e-l-l-s, its subscribers’ data to third parties for mucho moolah.

    nk (dbc370)

  19. nk, what brand of OJ did you buy?

    Munroe (a068dd)

  20. Fifth Avenue Fresh Squeezed.

    nk (dbc370)

  21. If Devin’s “mom” were some humorless shrieking harpy, that would be one thing, but the old gal is flipping hi-larious.
    https://am14.akamaized.net/med/cnt/uploads/2019/03/nunes-mom.jpg
    And thanks to his ill-conceived lawsuit, he just made his “mom” internationally famous. Couldn’t have happened to a bigger tool.

    Paul Montagu (cbbfc4)

  22. #18

    First of all, it’s not the DMCA (which deals with copyright) but the Communications Decency Act of 1996, or the CDA.

    The CDA does not make a distinction between platforms and publishers. It defines various roles on the internet, including an ISP. The intent was to overturn cases that treated internet platforms as publishers for defamation law, particularly Stratton-Qalanont. Inc. v. Prodigy Servs. Co., 1995 N.Y. Misc. Lexis 229 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. 1995). (There is an exception for IP claims. I was counsel on one of the early cases that discussed that exception.)

    But, basically, Twitter does enjoy CDA immunity for third party postings (which is virtually everything on it). So Twitter is likely to get out pretty fast on this one.

    Bored Lawyer (998177)

  23. Liz Mair is the lady who triggered the feud between Trump and Cruz by publishing sexy pitchers of Melania?

    nk (dbc370)

  24. Yes the very same crow, that was biz markeys doing if memory serves.

    Narciso (464705)

  25. She deepsixed walkers campaign before it sank under the water.

    Narciso (464705)

  26. Are the qataris picking up her bar tab, like with Rick Wilson, she cant be sober at any time of the day.

    Narciso (464705)

  27. Liz Mair was claiming that Nunes was the financial part of a child sex ring. If you don’t think that fits the definition of libel and defamation, well…

    NJRob (4d595c)

  28. If something like this troll-attack was happening to Congressman Kevin M (HAH!), my response would be a series of matching bots that altered the target and names to Jack Dorsey and regenerated them, to see the swiftness of the response.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  29. How about when Adolf Hitler sued American citizens in our very own American courts to keep the unexpurgated translation of Mein Kampf from being published in the United States?

    Copyright is a clearer matter.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  30. It’s not the censorship — Twitter or anyone else is free to “censor” whatever it wants on its own platform.

    So, you cannot get Free Speech from the private sector, but if a Socialist government nationalizes it, you can? There are public square doctrines which might come into play.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  31. Hey, Montagu… I checked “is Devin Nunes a tool?” on Politifact and couldn’t find a thing.

    So I rate that False.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  32. Thought for certain when John Lennon was gunned down this crazy society would make changes for the better- instead, we got Ronnie, Nancy and Rush.

    If gunning down some aging rock stars could get us Ronnie back — the most effective President in the last 50 years — there would be a shortage of hiding places for them.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  33. 28… it’s all just to giggle, Rob.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  34. Copyright is a clearer matter.

    But satire apparently not.

    nk (dbc370)

  35. It appears long after the average T-level and semen quality of liberal biological males hits all-time lows, they will be breeding them in the labs…

    https://www.cnet.com/news/worlds-oldest-semen-makes-sheep-babies-50-years-later/

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  36. But, basically, Twitter does enjoy CDA immunity for third party postings (which is virtually everything on it). So Twitter is likely to get out pretty fast on this one.

    If it is acting in good faith with impartiality as it sees impartiality, yes. But suppose it became known that the service encouraged or allowed some libel and acted to prevent other libel in a systematic way, based on the libeler or libelee. Doesn’t it lose its third-party status at some point?

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  37. But satire apparently not.

    Touché

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  38. What huge, pathetic, baby.
    I don’t live in his district so I don’t have the opportunity to vote against him. But I envy those that do. It must feel good to able to primary this mewling man child.

    Time123 (b4d075)

  39. Up until recently I lived in Maxine Waters’ district. Being able to vote against someone who is surely going to win, but will never serve the “cracker” area where you live (gerrymandered out of existence into her district), I gotta say it’s not really all that enjoyable.

    Get a voodoo doll, it might work better.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  40. RIP @DevinNunesMom . . . Or is it . . .?

    Q! (86710c)

  41. Kevin, You’re probably right. This is just such an annoying bit of performance theater that it really bugs me. Maybe I’ll get lucky and Ken White will rip on him over at Popehat. Those are usually fun to read.

    Time123 (b4d075)

  42. Based on the “250 million” damage request, I was wondering if Nunes had the same clown lawyer as Nicholas Sandmann… but no. It turns out there are at least two different bad lawyers out there in the world.

    And like Sarah Palin before him, Nunes was apparently dumb enough to forget that he is a public figure.

    Leviticus (efada1)

  43. performance is avenatti, the circumcision king, yang the conqueror holy e pleb nista, skippy kennedy and his magic skateboard,

    narciso (d1f714)

  44. > there are at least two different bad lawyers

    it’s not clear to me if this is the result of a bad lawyer, or a lawyer who is just doing what his client insists on.

    aphrael (e0cdc9)

  45. Yeah, Nicholas Sandmann has the same clown lawyer as Richard Jewell — you know, that guy who won all those many libel cases and never had to work a day for the rest of his short life.

    Munroe (e24993)

  46. Nunez is a hero to all who are deplorable.

    mg (8cbc69)

  47. Wish Trump had more worker bees like him.

    mg (8cbc69)

  48. suing his mom? why for not having an abortion? maybe she did.

    lany (1ffb96)

  49. well it’s not like she’ll be legally accountable,

    https://dailycaller.com/2019/03/18/ocasio-cortez-justice-democrats-pac/

    narciso (d1f714)

  50. If you don’t think that fits the definition of libel and defamation, well…

    Like when Trump accused Cruz’s dad of culpability in the JFK assassination? I expect any judge who will rule on the Nunes case, will say something to the effect of “suck it up, buttercup.”

    Paul Montagu (cbbfc4)

  51. Hey, Montagu… I checked “is Devin Nunes a tool?” on Politifact and couldn’t find a thing.

    That’s because you’re confused about the difference between opinions and facts. Happy to clear that up for you.

    Paul Montagu (cbbfc4)

  52. “it’s not clear to me if this is the result of a bad lawyer, or a lawyer who is just doing what his client insists on.”

    – aphrael

    I would say that a lawyer who just blindly does what his client insists on, regardless of the legal viability of the action or the likelihood of success, is in fact a bad lawyer.

    Leviticus (122c55)

  53. @4. How about when General Motors and assorted “American” corporations sued the U.S. government “in our very own courts” for damaging their various facilities in Europe in WW2 bombing raids… how ’bout that, eh?!

    http://www.ranknfile-ue-org/uen_nastybiz.html

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  54. See e.g. Michael Cohen

    Leviticus (122c55)

  55. @33. Cloning would have been easier; but then there’s that belief in science thingy.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  56. 50, that’s his way of getting the Omar/Tlaib vote.

    urbanleftbehind (cc3dfe)

  57. the news is a joke, Hillary Clinton gets away scot free instead of facing a 100 years in jail, a traitor enabler like diane Feinstein sits on the intelligence committee, her driver was a Chinese state security operative, mueller and Weismann should have been disbarred years ago but they cover their tracks well,

    narciso (d1f714)

  58. your first question was Deborah harry was still alive?

    https://babalublog.com/2019/03/19/predictable-blondie-praises-che-and-fidel-blasts-trump/

    narciso (d1f714)

  59. Last year, Devin Nunes co-sponsored the Discouraging Frivolous Lawsuits Act. Twelve days ago, he voted for a House Amendment “to express a sense of Congress that free speech should be protected.”
    And yesterday, he sued an internet cow for making fun of him.

    https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20190319/10212841825/rep-devin-nunes-sues-internet-cow-saying-mean-things-about-him-online.shtml

    Davethulhu (fab944)

  60. it’s not up there with Trudeau and snc Lavalin, but still,

    https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2019/03/kamala-harris-refused-to-investigate-donor.php

    narciso (d1f714)

  61. 54… same thing at Snopes, Montagu… dammit.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  62. 47… ouch!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  63. 61… one way or another she’ll smarten up…

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  64. If it is acting in good faith with impartiality as it sees impartiality, yes. But suppose it became known that the service encouraged or allowed some libel and acted to prevent other libel in a systematic way, based on the libeler or libelee. Doesn’t it lose its third-party status at some point?

    Under the CDA, Twitter can do anything it wants in terms of taking down or leaving up posts. It doesn’t have to be “impartial.” It doesn’t matter if it allowed libelous posts, or even encouraged them. Whether that is good policy is debatable, but that is the law.

    As I have written here before, that is very different from a newspaper. If I take out an ad in a newspaper that is libelous, and the paper runs it — even if it did nothing but put in my copy — it can be liable for defamation as a publisher. Same for TV or radio spots. The internet is special. Or that is the theory of the CDA, the internet needs this immunity to grow. Whether that is still true today, 23 years later after the CDA was passed in 1996, you can decide for yourself.

    If Twitter engaged someone to write libelous posts, then yes. I assume Twitter is smart enough not to go there.

    Bored Lawyer (998177)

  65. same thing at Snopes, Montagu… dammit.

    When you’ve got is an ad hom hammer…

    Paul Montagu (cbbfc4)

  66. 68… I know a bad lawyer!

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  67. “The internet is special. Or that is the theory of the CDA, the internet needs this immunity to grow. Whether that is still true today, 23 years later after the CDA was passed in 1996, you can decide for yourself.”
    Bored Lawyer (998177) — 3/19/2019 @ 3:24 pm

    Unfortunately, immunity for Twitter, Facebook, etc. shields them from suits more significant than defamation.

    https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sanbernardino-attack-decision-idUSKCN1OW16Q

    Munroe (84e316)

  68. @9. What are the odds; safe bet Bennett could tell you.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  69. @62. Trumpster Rule 101a: help make every day about him; ‘suing an internet cow’ = jangling a bright object for the Captain to distract attention from something else and stay his course.

    Give the Devin his due; strawberry shortcake for dessert tonight!

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  70. your first question was Deborah harry was still alive?

    Just fora day, could we have Trump is literally Hitler Day? Even Trump as Che Day would be good.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  71. 71… I suppose you are suggesting Bennett has or had a gambling problem. It must be a burdensome existence being perfect, chaste and without sin, DCSCA. Bless your heart.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  72. We never found what new info they found on thaf cell, McCabe was in charge at the time.

    Haney was head of DHS targeting cell, which detected the presence of the tabligh network.

    Narciso (17def4)

  73. I don’t know very much about the CDA. Has it been challenged on Tenth Amendment grounds? The way the RFRA and the no-gun-within-a-mile-of-a-hysteric law were? Where does Congress have the authority, outside the First Amendment as incorporated into the Fourteenth, to limit state defamation actions?

    nk (dbc370)

  74. Seems like a pretty straightforward commerce clause argument – even more so today than in 1996.

    Leviticus (7006eb)

  75. @74. Bless his pot, instead: it certainly is a burden for a two-faced, hypocritical load of horseradish who quilled a book titled ‘The Book Of Virtues,’ vociferously passing judgment on the morality of others for years on various media platforms, bloviating on how they should live while gambling away millions on the sly. Dealt a flush, he folded; the House always wins.

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  76. Off topic: Today is March 19, the day the tourists return to San Juan Capistrano. Or the day they used to. This year they’ve been coming to Lake Elsinore. #poppynightmare

    Sammy Finkelman (b0ece0)

  77. Won’t be surprised to learn [like in their big dollar-deal memoirs] the Conways are in cahoots and Trump is in on it; ‘good cop, bad cop’ thing, to generate meaningless, distracting media messages for Trump to tweet at. Pitching shade at a dead senator who can’t swing back distracts, too. As for the emotive Meghan, a sweet Trump tweet would be in character and brief in characters: ‘Eat a salad.’

    ______

    Devin Devin, Devin…

    “Don’t have a cow, man.” – Bart Simpson [Nancy Cartwright] Fox TV icon

    DCSCA (797bc0)

  78. Its been said you love a good Schiff salad, DCSCA.

    mg (8cbc69)

  79. How is Conway any less ridiculous than Lawrence tribe or Louis mensch, now the latter may be a Russian mole.

    Narciso (17def4)

  80. The George and Kellyanne Conway Show? No, that’s not right. It’s “The President”, a reality show starring Donald J. Trump. George and Kellyanne are like the Tim Conway and Mrs. Wiggins segment on The Carol Burnett Show. But not as entertaining.

    nk (dbc370)

  81. So, Jake Tapper and CNN have won the “Cronkite Award for most one-sided attack piece of the year Excellence” in their “Parkland Townhall” mob lynching of guest Dana Loesch.

    When Loesch criticized CNN and Tapper for accepting an award based on numerous lies, Tapper unfollowed her on Twitter. I guess that someone had to tell him her response:

    “…go be a company man.”

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  82. With all time greats like Devin and Beto, the House has really distinguished itself.
    My new favorite Beto story is the one where he put the contents of a diaper in a bowl and told his wife it was Avocado. His wife must be kinda meek. Mine would wallop me with the bowl and then go buy herself a new car and some diamond earrings.

    Some of the same people that poo poo Trump for being unpresidential think Beto is the man for the job…

    steveg (a9dcab)

  83. the movie the candidate explains trump vs beto. can any of you do math and understand demographics? trump got the same amount of votes as romney did in 2012. hellery got 6 million (3 million black voters) less votes then obama got in 2012. and jill stein got a million more votes in 2016 over 2012. 3 million more democrat voters will have turned 18 by nov. 2020 and they have ids.

    lany (e689cf)

  84. Sh!t bum Ryan couldn’t get obamacare repealed, the wall built and will now run Fox into the ground. Perfect.

    mg (8cbc69)

  85. That all depends. Trump could deport 5 million of those 2016 Democrat voters.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  86. “All available evidence suggests that the 2016 general election was not tainted by fraud or mistake.” — Trump campaign lawyers.

    JRH (8f59ea)

  87. but keep pushin those Trump lies, they do gin up the base.

    JRH (8f59ea)

  88. Devin didnt deliver in the end; I always suspected the pursuit of Hillary and her cabal was a trade offering on his part for a malodorous legislative milestone.

    urbanleftbehind (cc3dfe)

  89. “All available evidence suggests that the 2016 general election was not tainted by fraud or mistake.” — Trump campaign lawyers.

    It was, but not enough. Hillary still lost. All those fake mail-in ballots in Democratic Machine states did not get her any additional electoral votes, just meaningless statistics for sore loser libs.

    nk (dbc370)

  90. he put the contents of a particularly verdant diaper in a bowl and told his wife it was Avocado

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  91. and called it guacamole

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  92. and Beto was his name-o

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)

  93. Shadow banning, if true, is an act of fraud. Twitter may be free monetarily, but no one can seriously claim there isn’t a transaction going on with both sides giving up something.

    “If they can do this to me, they can do it to you. They can do it to anyone.”

    “I can pursue legal options….”

    Yes, but would that be “whiny”? I don’t think so. (Those quotes aren’t from Nunes.)

    Changing the algorithm on one’s social media profile and stealing someone’s Web site in a fraudulent manner are totally the same thing! This is yet another genius observation by Munroe and shows why Trump superfans like him are such a valuable resource.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  94. @94 Well Trump said his crack Voter Fraud commission was handing over the voter fraud issue to DHS. I’m sure they are hard at work on the issue and will provide evidence any day now of millions of illegals voting in 2016. 🙂

    JRH (8f59ea)

  95. “Changing the algorithm on one’s social media profile and stealing someone’s Web site in a fraudulent manner are totally the same thing!”
    Patterico (115b1f) — 3/20/2019 @ 7:46 am

    Yes, both are acts of fraud. Though it seems only one is worth complaining about.

    Munroe (63de12)

  96. Yes, both are acts of fraud. Though it seems only one is worth complaining about.

    Because one is way, way worse than the other, and far less justifiable.

    You are trivializing an actual problem I had and comparing it to a moronic “problem” complained about by a chucklehead who shares your dopey outlook on life.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  97. 102. Getting a little salty there, are we, Pat? :-O

    Gryph (08c844)

  98. If Twitter actually shadowbans based on ideology a) they should be severely criticized and b) they have the right to do so. A company does not have the right to fraudulently steal my site from me. And btw, if I wanted to make the issue of shadowbanning a joke, I can’t think of a better way than Nunes’s idiotic lawsuit.

    The next comment you leave that takes a personal issue of mine, and uses it to try to call me a hypocrite, you are gone from this site forever, Munroe.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  99. I have edited 102 to remove a couple of choice insults that I am sure Munroe saved. I removed them within a couple of minutes because I don’t like what his personal attack caused me to say. If he repeats them, I’ll delete the comment and ban him.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  100. 105. So noted.

    Gryph (08c844)

  101. that’s not even arguable anymore they give Hezbollah which is an arm of the Iranian revolutionary guard, that killed 300 marines, bombed three embassies and the jewish community center a blue checkmark, they do the same with Farrakhan, and the so called Antifa,

    narciso (d1f714)

  102. I’ve never understood “the internet is special” argument. I thought the test was whether some sort of editorial discretion was involved. Phone companies aren’t liable for people calling in bomb threats because they don’t decide the content of telephone calls. ISP’s get the same protection for the same reason. But Twitter, Facebook, and Google aren’t ISP’s and they never have been. They provide a service over the internet but they are not internet service providers.

    Unless we’re now saying that online only newspapers are completely immune from things that would apply to companies that print things out on paper. Being “on the line” doesn’t automatically provide any immunity and maybe some more court cases will get this sorted out.

    frosty48 (5afd97)

  103. 108. The internet is a medium by which information is transferred between two points. Nothing more, nothing less. That information only has the value which we assign to it, and may or may not be truthful or factual.

    Gryph (08c844)

  104. Personal attacks, written or verbal, present us with choices ranging from no response to nuclear.
    Trump chooses to get on the twitter machine and get nasty with people like Mr.Conway who he perceives as attacking him. Trump was in control by choosing, and is 100% responsible for his choice of a nasty response. One could argue that Trump’s go to choice for responding to a personal attack seems to be nasty

    steveg (a9dcab)

  105. Someone likes Nunes: https://spectator.us/devin-nunes-hero-republic/

    So, when you hear stories about people who stood up for the truth in the face of a braying mob, know that it’s not just something that happens in fiction or in long-ago history. Remember that Devin Nunes stood in the breech and that he deserves the praise of a grateful nation. We would not long last without men like him who are willing to risk, as the signers of the Declaration of Independence said, ‘their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.’ Thank God this country still produces such men.

    Maybe his real Mom wrote it.

    Kevin M (21ca15)

  106. 108. The issue isn’t being online or not – the issue is who is responsible for publishing te content. Twitter, Facebook, and Google are platforms for other people to send messages or self-publish.

    They do restrict, in a limited way, what people can publish, and not entirely for legal reasons, but if they weRe held automatically responsible for the content published, they couldn’t exist.

    Sammy Finkelman (e70ce9)

  107. 111… one thing’s for certain. Patterico didn’t.

    Colonel Haiku (2601c0)


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