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Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

reuters.com

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Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#31

Post by mef »

xanados wrote: post #25
nostromo wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It was just a request. A request they are free to make and Google is free to decline. One (edit: four) of Obama's civilian employees was killed by an angry mob, ostensibly because of this video, so I don't think it's unreasonable to ask. I'm also glad Google declined.

It's not appropriate for the Executive branch to make requests to remove content that is political for political reasons. This has a chilling effect[1] and can thus be rightly judged by the populace as being against our shared reckoning on free speech. 1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilling_effect_%28law%29

The WP article specifies that there must be threat of legal sanction. There was no threat in this case, only a request.

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#32

Post by Steko »

roboneal wrote: post #27

On the same grounds, should the White House have asked Youtube to censor the numerous clips of Kerry and Biden praising the killing of Bin Laden at the DNC last week? I'm sure the Islamic world might have taken offense.

Did you mean "could" because you said "should" which makes the whole thing read like nonsense.

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#33

Post by powertower »

nostromo wrote: post #17
roboneal wrote: post #12

Does the Obama administration really want to enter the business of suppressing every "inconvenient" video that might offend the sensibilities of Middle Eastern mobs?

It was just a request. A request they are free to make and Google is free to decline. One (edit: four) of Obama's civilian employees was killed by an angry mob, ostensibly because of this video, so I don't think it's unreasonable to ask. I'm also glad Google declined.

> ostensibly because of this video

That video had nothing to do with anyone being killed. It was an excuse used by the mob to justify their desire for murder and violence, so they would not appear as complete savages.

I've watched that video, and the worst I can describe it is with words: "silly" and "amateurish". It wouldn’t even pass the litmus test for the type of speech that incites violence.

It’s clear that those people were egger and willing to kill Americans and Westerners long before this video was made.

> so I don't think it's unreasonable to ask

It's completely unreasonable to ask the American people to throw out parts of the Constitution to try to appease clearly incompatible religious and juvenile groups half a world away.

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#35

Post by salimmadjd »

YouTube should have removed the video based on their own guidelines. This can be classified as a hate speech.

http://www.youtube.com/t/community_guidelines :

We encourage free speech and defend everyone's right to express unpopular points of view. But we don't permit hate speech (speech which attacks or demeans a group based on race or ethnic origin, religion, disability, gender, age, veteran status, and sexual orientation/gender identity).

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#36

Post by waterlesscloud »

Steko wrote: post #30

I'd guess the fraudulent redubbing of these actors lines into fatwa provoking ones means the actors probably have some recourse to get the video pulled.

Maybe, maybe not. Depends on their contracts. If such documents even exist.

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#37

Post by rayiner »

spindritf wrote: post #10
naeem wrote: post #4

Why is the White House even making that request? At which point does religious appeasement start to become institutionalized through fear?

It's not religious appeasement, you don't see them appeasing Buddhists or even Christians.

Appeasement is the policy we've adopted towards trying to keep Israel and the Islamic countries from fighting. Do you remember the shitstorm at the DNC when they forgot to put "and Jeruselem shall be the capital of Israel" on the platform? What is that if not appeasement?

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#38

Post by roboneal »

Steko wrote: post #32
roboneal wrote: post #27

On the same grounds, should the White House have asked Youtube to censor the numerous clips of Kerry and Biden praising the killing of Bin Laden at the DNC last week? I'm sure the Islamic world might have taken offense.

Did you mean "could" because you said "should" which makes the whole thing read like nonsense.

Not sure what confused you. It's a rhetorical question using essentially the White Houses "incitement" argument.

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#39

Post by mayanksinghal »

powertower wrote: post #33
nostromo wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It was just a request. A request they are free to make and Google is free to decline. One (edit: four) of Obama's civilian employees was killed by an angry mob, ostensibly because of this video, so I don't think it's unreasonable to ask. I'm also glad Google declined.

> ostensibly because of this video That video had nothing to do with anyone being killed. It was an excuse used by the mob to justify their desire for murder and violence, so they would not appear as complete savages. I've watched that video, and the worst I can describe it is with words: "silly" and "amateurish". It wouldn’t even pass the litmus test for the type of speech that incites violence. It’s clear that thos…

My understanding of how mobs work might be wrong, but I think it cannot be that that mob used it as an excuse. It could be the case that there was a political/religious leader who used the video as an excuse as masses are not eager and willing to kill anyone.

Re: Google rejects White House request to pull Mohammad film clip

#40

Post by pyoung »

xanados wrote: post #25
nostromo wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It was just a request. A request they are free to make and Google is free to decline. One (edit: four) of Obama's civilian employees was killed by an angry mob, ostensibly because of this video, so I don't think it's unreasonable to ask. I'm also glad Google declined.

It's not appropriate for the Executive branch to make requests to remove content that is political for political reasons. This has a chilling effect[1] and can thus be rightly judged by the populace as being against our shared reckoning on free speech. 1: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilling_effect_%28law%29

"for political reasons"

I would say this is more of a security issue. If the protests had been peaceful, and had there been no deaths, I doubt this request would have ever been made.

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