# Should people be going to prison for rude posts? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 26, 2015, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655 "2015-09-26T23:55:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/41 "2015-09-29T03:05:34Z")
> [@grude](#): > > I wasn’t being a bully, I mean I meant they would ask him to leave not kill him unless those door greeters are armed now. Same as the first amendment doesn’t apply to private web forums, your first amendment rights have nothing to do with whether sick comments are a bannable offense. I was kidding. Geez ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/42 "2015-09-29T06:37:15Z")
> [@Stringbean](#): > > I believe that the context matters, as well as the level of anonymity involved. … > > Even if it wasn’t in the context of an online debate and you used my real name but we have never met, if you couch it in political language (“I’m going to rape you **because you’re stupid** ,” “I’m going to rape you **because your nose is ugly** ,” “I’m going to rape you **because you’re a dumbass conservative** ”) then it should be treated as political speech and not a true threat. Context does matter, as does anonymity. But if someone is following another online with socks and the like, I think the above could plausibly be viewed as harassment. You can’t just follow somebody on the street slinging verbal abuse if you are asked to go away or to stop following. The essence of free speech involves defending the right to express unpopular opinions. There’s probably a reasonable line between that and harassment. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/43 "2015-09-29T14:22:34Z")
I’ve made rude posts from prison, you nattering nabobs of negativism! ---
**Author:** ![McDoogins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@McDoogins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/McDoogins)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/44 "2015-09-29T16:56:18Z")
Not sure if this was posted already but I remember when this happened. > **[Teenager arrested for Facebook post beaten up in prison](https://www.rt.com/usa/teen-facebook-arrested-prison-628/)** > > Things aren’t getting any better for a 19-year-old video gamer who has been locked up since March for the remarks he made over Facebook. The father of the teen now says his son is being beaten up while he waits to stand trial. “Someone had said something to the effect of 'Oh you’re insane, you’re crazy, you’re messed up in the head,’” he called, “to which he replied 'Oh yeah, I’m real messed up in the head, I’m going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts.’” According to Carter, he ended the quip with “LOL” and “JK”— Internet shorthand for “laugh out loud” and “just kidding,” respectively. A witness to the conversation in Canada became worried nonetheless and alerted the authorities, who then arrested Carter and charged him with making a terroristic threat. His bond was set at half-a-million-dollars and he spent more than three months awaiting trial before hearings were scheduled to start up earlier this week. According to NPR, Carter’s attorney has had the start date moved back to July 16 to bring up abuse complaints to try to get bond lowered. He faces up to 8-10 years. Not sure of the outcome… Someone anonymously posted bail for him and he got over 126,000 signatures to free him. > **[Teen jailed for Facebook 'joke' is released | CNN Business](https://www.cnn.com/2013/07/12/tech/social-media/facebook-jailed-teen/index.html)** > > The Texas teen facing a felony terrorism charge over an alleged threat on Facebook has been released on bail after an anonymous donor posted a $500,000 bond. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/45 "2015-09-29T17:56:31Z")
> [@Stringbean](#): > > As noted in the post above, it often is when it plainly acts as a political statement. > > Also, [this](http://www.suprmchaos.com/effigy_010407.jpg) is not a threat though it quite literally represents bodily harm to someone. Rational people realize it as something other than “I’m going to kill the president.” I should hope you see that as well and will temper your asinine (and dangerous) absolutism. Well, yes, a burned effigy is not inherently a threat. So what the fuck does it have to do with what I said? If they were shouting “We’re going to kill Bush,” then that would be a threat, political or not. There is a bright line. You want to change it. You want to be able to go around harassing people online as long as you stay anonymous. You’re advocating for another bright line that lets you do something shitty. Your argument is dumb–it’s the people you don’t know that are more likely to be dangerous. You don’t know if I actually know where you live. You don’t know whether I’m actually crazy enough to harm you. The people I know are the people least likely to harm me. Yet you want them to be treated as the credible threat, and the anonymous stranger treated as just making a political statement. As I point out, threats are not political statements. If they are political, they are a form of terrorism: “the use of violence and intimidation in the pursuit of political aims.” We don’t need a “get out of jail free” card for anonymous terrorists. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/46 "2015-09-29T18:01:50Z")
> [@McDoogins](#): > > “Someone had said something to the effect of 'Oh you’re insane, you’re crazy, you’re messed up in the head,’” he called, “to which he replied 'Oh yeah, I’m real messed up in the head, I’m going to go shoot up a school full of kids and eat their still, beating hearts.’” In context, this was clearly not a threat. But it was still an incredibly stupid thing to say, as it was also very predictable that it might be interpreted as a threat. Sarcasm doesn’t work well online. Yes, he should walk. Yes, authorities should have noticed the context and not brought charges. But it’s still not surprising this happened. It also doesn’t apply to Stringbean’s theory, since he was not anonymous, and it wasn’t a political statement. That’s still a stupid dividing line. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/47 "2015-09-29T23:56:46Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Please provide a cite for the Supreme Court of Canada sending someone to jail for a rude post. I know that there are Hate Speech Laws in Canada. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2015, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/48 "2015-09-29T23:58:17Z")
> [@grude](#): > > \>\> In USA posting sick jokes would not even be bannable on many major forums. > > You don’t understand the 1st amendment. Go exercise free speech in Walmart and get a free lesson on what it actually bans. I understand that any forum has a right to ban anyone. But so far major Social Networks are very permissive – which can change anytime. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/49 "2015-09-30T00:00:23Z")
> [@grude](#): > > Same as the first amendment doesn’t apply to private web forums, your first amendment rights have nothing to do with whether sick comments are a bannable offense. But most major Social Networks prefer not to police their hundreds of millions of users. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/50 "2015-09-30T00:06:51Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > I know that there are Hate Speech Laws in Canada. Do you know what requesting a cite means? ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/51 "2015-09-30T00:08:40Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Do you know what requesting a cite means? I must admit that I know these laws very vaguely – would be happy if anyone gave detailed citations. ---
**Author:** ![Stringbean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Stringbean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stringbean)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/52 "2015-09-30T01:05:09Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Your argument is dumb–it’s the people you don’t know that are more likely to be dangerous. You don’t know if I actually know where you live. You don’t know whether I’m actually crazy enough to harm you. > > The people I know are the people least likely to harm me. Yet you want them to be treated as the credible threat, and the anonymous stranger treated as just making a political statement. > ] Your argument [fails empirically](https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011/offenses-known-to-law-enforcement/expanded/expanded-homicide-data): \*In 2011, in incidents of murder for which the relationships of murder victims and offenders were known, 54.3 percent were killed by someone they knew (acquaintance, neighbor, friend, boyfriend, etc.); 24.8 percent of victims were slain by family members. \* Nearly 4 out of every 5 people (79.1%) is killed by someone they know. That’s why anonymous threats should not be taken nearly as serious. And you’re wrong when you say threats aren’t political speech. The Supreme Court ruling previously cited is evidence of that. ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/53 "2015-09-30T01:37:31Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Please provide a cite for the Supreme Court of Canada sending someone to jail for a rude post. [This guy](http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/christie-blatchford-ruling-in-twitter-harassment-trial-could-have-enormous-fallout-for-free-speech) is facing six months for disagreeing with feminists online. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/54 "2015-09-30T13:52:53Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > [This guy](http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/christie-blatchford-ruling-in-twitter-harassment-trial-could-have-enormous-fallout-for-free-speech) is facing six months for disagreeing with feminists online. He’s actually being charged with harassment, not for “disagreeing with feminists online.” I would like to see far more facts before I jump to any conclusions. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/55 "2015-09-30T16:27:05Z")
Yes, and the statute requires the Crown to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the accused caused the victim “reasonably, in all the circumstances, to fear for their safety.” That strikes me as quite a bit more than a rude post. ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/56 "2015-09-30T22:05:04Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > He’s actually being charged with harassment, not for “disagreeing with feminists online.” I would like to see far more facts before I jump to any conclusions. There was nothing harassing or threatening about his tweets at all. Rude tweets ? Not even that either. Tons of disagreement ? Yes. So they claimed to feel physically threatened and scared over that. It’s a joke that he was even charged. So it’s even worse that rude posts imo, it’s just disagreeing. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/57 "2015-09-30T23:14:55Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > There was nothing harassing or threatening about his tweets at all. Rude tweets ? Not even that either. Tons of disagreement ? Yes. So they claimed to feel physically threatened and scared over that. It’s a joke that he was even charged. > > So it’s even worse that rude posts imo, it’s just disagreeing. I’m not taking your word for it. In any case, harassment can happen just if you keep communicating with someone who has made it clear that it’s unwelcome. ---
**Author:** ![Stringbean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Stringbean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stringbean)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655/58 "2015-09-30T23:30:46Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > [This guy](http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/christie-blatchford-ruling-in-twitter-harassment-trial-could-have-enormous-fallout-for-free-speech) is facing six months for disagreeing with feminists online. Hey people, read this shit. It’s fucking bonkers. A god-damned injustice to humanity. The “victim” was so fearful of her safety that she convened a group of like-minded people to initiate an online campaign of shaming and harassment. She had previously posted online that she wanted to “sic the Internet” upon a young man in Northern Ontario who had invented a violent video game… SHE SHOULD BE THE ONE ON TRIAL. THAT POST PRESENTS A FAR MORE TANGIBLE THREAT TO A PERSON’S SAFETY THAN ANYTHING THE ACCUSED DID. This shit makes me wanna puke. It’s a fucking disgrace. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-people-be-going-to-prison-for-rude-posts/732655.md?page=2)