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The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

dallasobserver.com

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Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#141

Post by jessaustin »

dirktheman wrote: post #118
jessaustin wrote: post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your first response to this clear case of injustice amounts to "well it's understandable, we certainly can't blame the authorities for being vindictive idiots who destroyed this kid's life over a throwaway joke." If enough people did blame the authorities, we wouldn't have the horrible system we have. It wouldn't even have to be a majority; we've made progress in the past based on a principled minority of citizens pu…

Whoa! Jumping to conclusions here! My first reaction was not that it's understandable and that we can't blame authorities. It was more 'we can't put 100% blame on the autorities'. Let me be very clear: I'm 100% pro freedom of speech. Everyone should be allowed to say/post whatever they want, no matter how deranged. Unfortunately, that's just not the reality we live in. The reality is that the US has become a surveill…

I appreciate that you have a special nuanced opinion about this case, but nuance doesn't right wrongs. Tyranny thrives when people convince themselves that their "correct" behavior will keep them out of the woodchipper.

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#142

Post by nitrogen »

mjolk wrote: post #92
Nux wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

USA is a lovely country, too bad it's inhabited. ;-)

Shut up. This snide comment isn't even cute. The US is vastly better than many parts of the world and we get a disproportionate amount of attention on our ills because we're an economic powerhouse that does many things. The country is a collection of states that each have their boons and drawbacks. Texas is near (or at) last in public education. Don't make public threats to kill children in a state that might not und…

This is the first time I've ever read the words "Shut up" on HN. I am disappointed.

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#143

Post by gutnor »

dirktheman wrote: post #50
alan_cx wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"But threatening to shoot up a school, in the light of recent events... really? " Yes, absolutely, really. If you are in playground type ranting slanging match, you go of the most extreme things to say, which could cause shock in the recipient. Right now, things like school shootings are the current shock fodder, and well in peoples minds. So people will use that subject. Same with pedophiles and terrorists. And of c…

I'd say it depends on the occasion. For instance, when Louis C.K. says something similar while performing a comedy show, it's absolutely clear that he's not actually going to shoot up a school. It's meant to shock his audience. When you're posting these things on the internet to people you probably don't even know in person (so they have no way to know wether you're joking or not), things can get hairy quickly. I'm s…

And how is that clear that Louis C.K. will not blow up a school ?

Because of the context. What is the context in this case ? We don't know because the US justice system decided that context is not important.

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#144

Post by mjolk »

nitrogen wrote: post #142
mjolk wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Shut up. This snide comment isn't even cute. The US is vastly better than many parts of the world and we get a disproportionate amount of attention on our ills because we're an economic powerhouse that does many things. The country is a collection of states that each have their boons and drawbacks. Texas is near (or at) last in public education. Don't make public threats to kill children in a state that might not und…

This is the first time I've ever read the words "Shut up" on HN. I am disappointed.

Sigh. Read the comment, it's totally justified.

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#145

Post by dopamean »

zimpenfish wrote: post #76
DanBC wrote: post #37

For the people who think that this kind of direct threat needs a punishment: what would be suitable?

I'd rate "being a dumbass insensitive asshat" as "about 20 hours of community service".

Couldn't agree more. Community service is great for young first time non-violent offenders. It lets people know that what they did was taken seriously without screwing up their lives.

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#146

Post by nervousvarun »

ItendToDisagree wrote: post #39
zacinbusiness wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia - fear these places.

Any state south of the Mason-Dixon line is portrayed as a cartoonish land of religious fanatics, racism, and overreaction. In truth it is not exactly so, but I personally wouldn't want to live in any of those places. I probably wouldn't be happy living in the mid-west either though. It generally holds true that these sorts of things can happen in any state now. If you 'threaten' to shoot up a school (no matter how jo…

Lived in the south my entire life (currently in Nola).

There's definitely an I don't know...afterglow effect? with this stereotype at play in the south today. It certainly used to be highly isolated culture with it's own weird problems ("fanatics, racism, and overreaction").

These days though thanks to television, the internet, decades of immigration etc. it's pretty much the rest of the US...with better weather.

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#147

Post by mcv »

Don't make threats if you don't intend to follow up on them.

Also, from his lawyer: "They didn't find pentagrams and candles. He wasn't listening to Judas Priest."

WTF does that have to do with anything? Do only Judas Priest fans shoot up kindergartens? Is there something wrong with liking pentagrams and candles? I think that lawyer is the real creep here, and that kind of defense deserves to be ineffective.

In any case, if you threaten to shoot up a kindergarten, of course the police is going to look into you. Imagine the outrage if they got a tip like that, ignored it, and then the guy shot up a kindergarten? They have no option but to detain him, and the lack of candles in his home is utterly irrelevant to that.

And of course they then need to gather complete evidence, which includes the facebook conversation, details of his past, his mental health, etc. And maybe they messed up there. They clearly messed up some other stuff, in particular the jail where someone can get sexually molested, and the fact that they conned him out of a lawyer. The article does list a number of worrying aspects of US law enforcement injustice that seems way too common lately. But that doesn't change the fact that if you make a death threat, you should expect to get arrested.

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#148

Post by throwaway344 »

zacinbusiness wrote: post #68
spacehome wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was hoping to live in some of these places in the future. Would you mind clarifying why the states on this list are especially bad rather than others?

Most of it comes down to the fact that you have extremely geographically isolated people. Communities in the mountains of the Carolina's for instance may not even have a bank or a post office. These people are extremely paranoid and fearful of change, and thus they elect politicians that share their views and that, worse, feed into them with religious and political rhetoric about how the bad man with dark skin is goi…

Not a criticism but how much time have you spent in the South?

Re: The Facebook Comment That Ruined a Life

#149

Post by drjesusphd »

Nux wrote: post #44
rplnt wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is not an isolated case either. I don't mean facebook-comment-wise, but rather wtf-wise. From Internet, through airports and car stops to interacting with random strangers. Lot's of horrific stories where you end up in the justice system, while done absolutely nothing that breaks the law or would endanger someone in any way. But maybe because the US is so big it's bound to happen sometimes? I don't know, but USA…

USA is a lovely country, too bad it's inhabited. ;-)

Be careful. Some people might take that as a threat.

My country has lost its damn mind.

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