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Twitter and antisemitism

Cheese

Cheese

Bitter lover
Hi all,

this might be somewhat controversial but oh well, let's go.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2013/jul/12/twitter-data-french-antisemitic-tweets

Let me make it clear from the outset: Antisemitic messages are not a nice thing to write, especially not on Twitter where they reach thousands of average racist idiots in a few seconds. It is debatable whether Twitter's responsibility is engaged when the medium is used for criminal or racist purposes. I don't have the answer here.

Still, I struggle accepting the idea that Twitter now kind of got the order to analyse everything that passes through their servers, in order to charge potential racists. I presume that Jewish jokes will from now on be considered an offence. Again: some Jewish jokes are indeed plain stupid, but when a ten-year-old hears one at school and sends it on, it is certainly not an offence. The kid found it funny, and it would have been just as funny if it had involved gays, balds, priests, Arabs, blacks or Scots. Except that jokes about blacks will still be allowed, because blacks are - usually - just not Jewish.

I dread the time - which may well happen in a not so distant future - when our whole communication will be permanently scanned in order to preserve our oh so holy political correctness. Funny cases abound, like this junior hockey team youngster who reportedly twitted from some airport that they would 'destroy those Americans', and ended up at the local police station (I hope it's an urban legend). I don't want it to get any worse.
 
It seems fair enough to me for authorities to be able to demand twitter identify who is sending the tweets. After all, if you stood on the street with a megaphone spouting racism or inciting violence you'd almost certainly be escorted away, for your own protection if nothing else. Sending tweets is no different, except the sender wasn't man enough to identify themselves, which in some ways makes it all the more detestable.

I don't think twitter should have to automatically scan for this stuff, because, as you say casting too wide a net is probably worse than casting no net at all: leave it up to readers to report offensive material.

So I agree with you that I don't want automatic scanning and sanitizing of the web, but if certain individuals abuse the web to spread nasty stuff then I'm in favor of the authorities identifying and following them in case they are more than just mouthy, or "having a little word" to persuade them to desist.
 
Is it where the poster resides, or where the server holding the data in question resides or is it where the reader resides?
 
In certain Facebook discussion groups I've been utterly stunned by the level of antisemitism.
 
There are laws in France regarding hate speech, holocaust denial, etc. If there is a formal complaint, it is normal for the judiciary to pursue the matter and to take steps to identify who is spreading the messages. If that means asking Twitter to dig into their files, so be it.

The suggestion that Twitter is going to have to systematically filter out Jewish jokes as a result of this is IMO a non sequitur.
 
Today my twitter feed was inundated with poor taste pony jew cartoons, now I see why.
 
How are they going to police this? They trace a tweet to my IP, maybe to my phone. How do they prove I sent it and not someone else who picked up my phone when I wasn't looking? People have been doing this for decades, ever since a teenage boy decided that writing "Colin Hutchinson is gay and w*nks horses" on Colin Hutchinson's exercise book was an excellent prank.
 
A bishop, a rabbi and a priest are in a plane that's about to crash and there is only one parachute...........

Is that antisemitic? I get quite annoyed with what gets classed as antisemitic, criticise Israel over Palestine and you are antisemitic. I have Israeli friends and have been to Tel Aviv several times for work, I've had arguments (Israelis discuss by arguing) over Palestine and not once was I called racist. Do the same in the UK and you get asked what you have against Israel, why so many eggshells when a country does something wrong?
 
Oh yeah and good for twitter, racism should be prosecuted. Expecting twitter to police what is said is bonkers, they would be better off proposing that they will remove any posts that are racist within 1 hour and block the twit, twat or twot from twitter for 3 months.
 
Prosecuting promoters of racial hatred is one thing but for posting jokes, come on, jesus christ all mighty(oops! that's me fooked for blasphemy) where do you draw the line?
I've heard thousands of cracking jewish jokes-the best ones featuring on 'Old Jews telling jokes' about other Jews(BBC4), does this mean I couldn't share them with gentiles?
 
A Jew telling a Jewish joke is propagating the culture, a gentile telling a Jewish joke is being anti-Semitic.

Ditto for Polish jokes etc
 
Derek Wright said:
A Jew telling a Jewish joke is propagating the culture, a gentile telling a Jewish joke is being anti-Semitic.

Ditto for Polish jokes etc
Click to expand...

Are you being serious? A joke is a joke, it is only unfunny when the joke is used to belittle or insult someone.

Talk about a sense of humour failure.

Ban comedy it might upset someone!!!
 
More nonsense one uses to fight something , more likely it will spread further. . I bet that the affected elements will comment that it's because of Tweeters Jewish ownership -don't they own everything ?
 
thebiglebowski said:
Are you being serious? A joke is a joke, it is only unfunny when the joke is used to belittle or insult someone.

Talk about a sense of humour failure.

Ban comedy it might upset someone!!!
Click to expand...

I'm not sure it is quite that clear cut. There are some jokes, that from someone of the identity which is the subject of the humour, can come across as self deprecating or mocking prejudices others hold against them, but in a different context could easily cause offence. Take a Chris Rock 'anecdote' and picture Toby Keith telling it in third person!

That said, for me that is largely a matter of taste rather than legality, I find the notion that you can ban speech just because it is offensive deeply troubling.
 
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