The Death of Freedom of Speech

Our Founding Fathers must be rolling in their graves. (Yes, the same Founding Fathers that owned slaves…we all know history, so let’s relax social justice warriors.) They’re rolling in their graves because the best part of America is being taken away: Freedom of Speech. It’s the one pillar that’s always made me so proud to be American. You might not always agree with someone, but in the United States of America they’re protected under the Constitution to express those opinions. But in 2017 I don’t think that really holds up.

In fact, freedom of speech took a major hit in June when Massachusetts teenager Michelle Carter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the suicide of her boyfriend. Carter was convicted and sentenced to 15 months in prison because prosecutors argued her text messages were the reason Conrad Roy III killed himself. First off, let’s get one thing clear - Michelle Carter is a terrible person. I’m not defending her actions in any way. But this verdict is a direct assault on freedom of speech. Carter NEVER actually killed him. In fact she wasn’t even near him when he killed himself. To put it bluntly: “How the fuck is she responsible?” Is she a trash bag of a human being? Yes. Was it her fault Conrad killed himself? No. The definition of suicide means you kill yourself. And that’s exactly what Conrad did, so there is literally no way Carter should be held responsible.

The ACLU also agrees with my viewpoint. They released this statement:

“Mr. Roy’s death is a terrible tragedy, but it is not a reason to stretch the boundaries of our criminal laws or abandon the protections of our constitution.

There is no law in Massachusetts making it a crime to encourage someone, or even to persuade someone, to commit suicide. Yet Ms. Carter has now been convicted of manslaughter, based on the prosecution’s theory that, as a 17-year-old girl, she literally killed Mr. Roy with her words. This conviction exceeds the limits of our criminal laws and violates free speech protections guaranteed by the Massachusetts and U.S. Constitutions.”

I couldn’t have said it any better. Welcome to 2017 where freedom of speech is being destroyed on the reg. From college campuses to social media “freedom of speech” has turned into “I don’t agree with you so I won’t allow your opinion.” Just last week this hit home for me. I was wasting my day arguing with morons who think Kobe Bryant is better than Lebron James (And if you think Kobe is better than Lebron please unfollow me). This one troll was really getting under my skin so I told him to “kill himself” in 3 separate tweets. Now if you listen to my podcast Dirty Sports you’ll know that “kill yourself” is a popular phrase used by my co-host Joe Praino. He hilariously uses the term for idiots like this guy. Because anyone who hates facts/stats and thinks Kobe is better than Lebron should kill themselves, because we can’t have these people pro-creating.

So later that night I received an email from Twitter which read:

"We have determined that you have violated the Twitter Rules, so we’ve temporarily limited some of your account features."

Ahhhhhh Twittter the bastion of free speech…not so much. Because I told some Kobe Bryant slurper to “kill himself” Twitter decided to lock my account for 12 hours. I was forced to delete those tweets and was unable to use Twitter for half a day. The horror! But let’s break it down: I didn’t threaten him in anyway or use or language that was would be considered demeaning. I simply told him to kill himself. But it got me thinking. If later that day he went full Robin Williams on himself would I be held responsible? The case of Michelle Carter has literally opened the flood gates for this exact problem. It’s a blatant attack on free speech and a very slippery slope for what people can or cannot say.

I blame the PC culture for this hypersensitive anti free speech age. Try walking onto a college campus with a different opinion. They will NOT allow it and it’s a major problem. It’s such a problem that everyone from Bill Maher, to Chris Rock, to former President Barack Obama have made public statements about it. Newsflash: Different opinions are good and they create better dialogue and stronger discussions. Maybe if we had some different opinions our country wouldn’t have been stuck with 2 morons for our last Presidential Race.

Hopefully the tide will turn but it seems like everyday free speech is being ruined by the Pussification of America. We’re too soft, too sensitive, and we loathe hearing an opinion that’s different from ours. We now live in an age where Twitter and Facebook will limit what you can and can’t say. Two forms of social media that were founded and built on the ideals of free speech. But those places are now run by pussies who worry about online bullies, as if that’s a real thing. Every-time I see the phrase online bully I think of this brilliant tweet from 2012 by Tyler the Creator.

“Hahahahahahahaha How The Fuck Is Cyber Bullying Real Hahahaha Nigga Just Walk Away From The Screen Like Nigga Close Your Eyes Haha.”

It’s just so true. Walk away, or block them. It’s really that simple. Oh someone’s bullying you on Twitter? DON’T GO ON TWITTER THEN….problem solved. I can only hope things will change because freedom of speech is the most important right we have in America. But if it goes away I just might have to kill myself. And then hopefully my parents will sue Twitter and find them responsible.