Funniest/Most Insightful . Of The Week At Techdirt

from the say-it-again dept

This week, both our top comments on the insightful side come in response to our post about the misrepresentation of Ben Franklin’s opinion on content moderation by private platforms. In first place, it’s an anonymous commenter with some clarification:

So you, too, are unable to comprehend pretty basic sentences. Franklin is explaining that he can choose who to host and who not to host, and that means he gets to decide. He says that he would still print for those he disagrees with, but not distribute or promote their works.

In second place, it’s MrWilson with a different version of the same clarification, responding to someone who raised the above as supposed evidence that he opposes content moderation:

You’re confusing his willingness to print something with which he disagrees for money for a belief that printers should be forced to print anything anyone wants printed for money. The first is still a recognition of his right to moderate his practice. The second is authoritarian.

For editor’s choice on the insightful side, we start out with a comment from That One Guy about the latest study showing that throwing money at cops doesn’t reduce crime:

You say ‘Extra training budget’, they hear ‘Even more settlement funds’

Probably the biggest problem with the idea of ‘more money in police pockets = better police work’ is that that requires them to want to improve. No amount of extra budget for ‘training’ for example is going to help if it’s not taken advantage of or is just ignored because following the rules/laws is ‘too much work’ and it’s easier to just violate rights/laws and throw taxpayer dollars at the resulting lawsuit(s) via ‘we admit to no wrongdoing’-settlements.

Next, it’s an anonymous comment about the latest in the deluge of hopeless and evil culture-war legislation from the states:

The worst thing about performative legislation like this?

It only stays “performative” while we keep our eye on it. The moment we decide we’re “to tired” to denounce this sort of crap is the moment where the crap starts to gain traction and become less performative.

Over on the funny side, our first place winner is an anonymous reply to someone yet again asking the tiresome question of what a particular post has to do with “tech”:

What has truth social got to do with the truth?

In second place, it’s an anonymous reply to some nonsense conspiracy theory:

Yeah, happens all the time, right after they take everyone’s guns and put the entire population into one giant FEMA camp, while using HAARP’s weather and mind control rays for fun and profit. Something about silent black UN helicopters.

For editor’s choice on the funny side, we start out with radix and a comment about the guy who doubled down and refiled his roundly rejected lawsuit against women he dated:

Imagine thinking a federal judge is just a fancy-robe-wearing intro-to-law tutor who isn’t so much “rejecting your suit completely” as much as “redlining a first draft.”

Finally, it’s ThatOtherOtherGuy with another comment about state attempts to ban porn:

Easy Workaround

I’m going to build a gun that plays porn.

I dare anyone to try to make it illegal or regulate it without running up against the NRA and 2nd Amendment fanatics.

That’s all for this week, folks!