Already I posted my opinion on Twitter. President Trump is expected to sign an Executive Order concerning Social Media – i.e. Twitter, Facebook and company.
Now the actual EO was signed and published, I realize my assumptions about this action was wrong.
Bluntly put I’m tired of the endless “Executive Orders” by whatever administrator all taken with the force of law. In our nation executive branch employees do not write law. They administer them. They enforce them. The legislative branch writes law. This is why they are called the “legislative” branch. My apologies if this comes across as “splaining” but really. We all get caught up on this crap. Enough is enough.
Now what CAN an executive do? He/she can direct their administration to enforce the law as long as said law is in compliance with the Constitution(s).
I wrote that yesterday. This morning I realized the President’s executive order was right on the money.
Again from what I wrote yesterday…
Now about the Twitters and Facebooks of the world. Get this straight – I despise them. I am not a naturally “social” person but these things are a waste in and of themselves. This is not to say they are not entirely unuseful. I just do not like them. That said, they are private enterprises. They have EVERY RIGHT to censor whom they wish. One need not like it but we CANNOT allow any government to dictate what a SM platform can or cannot allow. This in itself is a form of censorship.
There is ONE exception I can see. As you may know from a previous post, I am involved in a discussion concerning Governor Ralphie’s dictates on a Lunenburg County FB page. This is the format the county BOS has settled on to inform the public. Apparently their WordPress website is to complex for them. In this instance, the FB page is essentially a public forum
While I stand by what I wrote, I had no idea these entities were granted special protections from the Federal government. I even understand the reasoning behind the special protections. My understanding is such:
Entities providing a platform for free speech are protected from lawsuits holding them accountable for the actions of those who publish their opinions on these platforms.
It almost irks me to say this but this actually makes sense. I’ve operated forums before, I have one available now, that neither one of my two readers use by the way, and I had no idea such protection existed.
In light of this, I applaud you, Mr. President!
God bless us all!
Andy