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Re:Can Germany Fix Facebook? by closeparen on Sunday November 05, 2017 @02:36AM (#15628554)
“Holding them accountable” for the crime of enabling an opposition party to distribute its message and court its base has not worked out so well in history.

Jailing Facebook executives over the consequences of the right-wing resurgence they enabled makes about as much sense as jailing the actual conservative voters and politicians who are implementing it. It sure would be satisfying, but there are lines you don’t cross.

Re:Can Germany Fix Facebook? by pjc50 on Sunday November 05, 2017 @06:28AM (#15628993)
Perhaps we should be talking about Catalonia rather than Germany then.

But the German constitution is a result of the Holocaust. We know that it is possible for unrestricted free speech to enable people to libel entire races and religions to the extent that it results in genocide. Every wave of mass violence or ethnic cleansing in the 20th century has been preceded by a propaganda effort to demonise the victims.

> jailing the actual conservative voters and politicians

It looks like in America they're going to end up going to jail for being unregistered agents of foreign intelligence services, and the good old standby of failing to declare bribes to the tax authorities.

Re:Can Germany Fix Facebook? by Amezarak on Sunday November 05, 2017 @10:11AM (#15629738)
> We know that it is possible for unrestricted free speech to enable people to libel entire races and religions to the extent that it results in genocide.

The Nazis were continually repressed by mob violence and later by the state. Hitler specifically credits this repression as strengthening their convictions and helping them recruit.

That is, restrictions on freedom of speech led to the Nazis.

Re:Can Germany Fix Facebook? by pjc50 on Sunday November 05, 2017 @11:47AM (#15630191)
Have you considered the possibility that Hitler may be lying or deluded?

The Nazis had their own paramilitaries to start mob violence, and in Britain the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cable_Street is credited with preventing the rise of Fascism in the UK. Effectively it's where the "antifa" movement comes from.