I never said anything about people making laws about anything. And they do get laughed at, but then they claim that they're somehow being censored by all the negative responses they get. And none of it makes a difference. For a lot of people, universal condemnation on Facebook or Reddit or whatever is just further proof that they're on to something.
All I'm saying is that there's disinformation, and then there's harmful disinformation, and on top of that there's a recent trend amongst certain podcast listeners in a certain demographic to insist that allowing people to spread harmful disinformation as far and wide as they want to will magically reveal how fake and harmful it is to everyone. I don't know what the answers are, I just know the binary answers are wrong:
(0) The government should pass laws prohibiting free speech about stuff the government has determined is "wrong".
vs.
(1) If only everybody could just say whatever they want anywhere and anytime they want without repercussions, social pressures from Internet forums will make them realize how wrong they are! Because if there's one thing we've learned about Internet forums over the past 30 years, it's that they bring everyone together and magically help filter out truth from falsehood? Or something.
I don't have any answers, I just know that neither extreme is helpful, and I'm extremely not sympathetic to the likes of anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists.
All I'm saying is that there's disinformation, and then there's harmful disinformation, and on top of that there's a recent trend amongst certain podcast listeners in a certain demographic to insist that allowing people to spread harmful disinformation as far and wide as they want to will magically reveal how fake and harmful it is to everyone. I don't know what the answers are, I just know the binary answers are wrong:
(0) The government should pass laws prohibiting free speech about stuff the government has determined is "wrong".
vs.
(1) If only everybody could just say whatever they want anywhere and anytime they want without repercussions, social pressures from Internet forums will make them realize how wrong they are! Because if there's one thing we've learned about Internet forums over the past 30 years, it's that they bring everyone together and magically help filter out truth from falsehood? Or something.
I don't have any answers, I just know that neither extreme is helpful, and I'm extremely not sympathetic to the likes of anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists.