House passes bill that could lead to a TikTok ban; fight shifts to the Senate

[Pierce Manhammer]

Given what is being discussed it would seem that at least a few of the posters in this thread think that “da gubmint” wants to shut down TikTok. It doesn’t, it wants the Chinese to sell their portion of its control to a US based buyer, who is subject to US laws and not just be able to collect our information for a foreign, and hostile government intelligence apparatus.

The main issue is its ownership not that anyone wants to stifle “free speech”. Don’t be a low information poster.

 

[BaronOfHair]

So, when we talk about the whole "public square" idea in relation to the First Amendment, it gets a bit tricky with online forums. See, the First Amendment is all about keeping the government from messing with our speech and gatherings, ensuring we can speak our minds freely in public spaces. But here's the twist: online forums aren't really public spaces in the legal sense because private companies run them. It's like they're inviting us into their digital living rooms to chat.

These companies get to set the house rules, deciding what can and can't be said on their platforms. So, if they want to remove a post or moderate a discussion, they're totally within their rights without stepping on First Amendment toes. It's a bit like having a metaphorical digital public square, where we all gather to share ideas and opinions, but without the same legal protections you'd find in a physical town square.

Now, there's a ton of ongoing chatter about how these digital platforms fit into our world of free speech, especially considering how big a role they play in our conversations today. People are debating whether there should be some balance between allowing free speech and keeping the online world safe from harm, misinformation, and the like. And then there's the big question: should these digital gathering spots be regulated somehow because of their massive influence on public discourse?

The TikTok discussion also begs a question about The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution that speaks of the right of people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures. It states that this right shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. This amendment provides a fundamental protection against arbitrary governmental intrusion.

Given the Chinese routinely breach privacy in collecting information from the US aka espionage.

All my points are made in the spirit of “you cannot have it both ways”.

Yeah... There's a larger conversation to be had regarding the culture of free speech https://www.thefire.org/news/free-speech-culture-elon-musk-and-twitter , and the shi-ty state it's currently in. The law and policy aren't helpful, when a substantial portion of the citizenry believes that they're doing God's work, by stifling speech they deem either "Problematic" or(on the other end of the sociopolitical continuum) "Blue Pill"

Both of which are just stand-in terms for blasphemy/heresy

 

[BaronOfHair]

Given what is being discussed it would seem that at least a few of the posters in this thread think that “da gubmint” wants to shut down TikTok. It doesn’t, it wants the Chinese to sell their portion of its control to a US based buyer, who is subject to US laws and not just be able to collect our information for a foreign, and hostile government intelligence apparatus.

The main issue is its ownership not that anyone wants to stifle “free speech”. Don’t be a low information poster.

The US government admits outright that they're forcing a corporation to sell TikTok, under pain of it being banned if they don't. We can try to write what I'm about to say off as a slippery slope argument, nonetheless: If Big Brother succeeds here, how much longer do we think it will be before they start pulling crap like this with private businesses here in The States?

 

[Pierce Manhammer]

How do you propose we deal with the issue at hand? The Chinese government conducting surveillance on the US population?

 

[BaronOfHair]

How do you propose we deal with the issue at hand? The Chinese government conducting surveillance on the US population?

I question the notion that Red China(Or anyone else, for that matter)needs TikTok to gain personal information about Americans, along with the assertion that transferring it into American hands will cripple anyone's capacity for espionage. We speak as if accessing personal information hasn't, for the past two decades now, been easier than persuading Emily Ratajkowki to walk around in public naked, when this is demonstrably untrue

 

[MatureDJ]

An online property is not the “public square” it is private property so 1st Amendment rights do not apply, if they did I could demand that the New York Times publish my oped.

no shirt, no shoes, no service

p.s. the Chinese are up to no good, we know this they engage in spycraft in the US all the time - last week another scientist was convicted. If you think they’re not enabling in shady Shiite with TikTok you’re not paying attention.

Actually, back when there were few media outlets (i.e., pre-internet), there was a law that said that if a station aired an opinion, an interested party could demand that the station show a contrary opinion as per that party. With the internet, of course, every website is a station.

 

[Pierce Manhammer]

Well you're free to hold your own opinion on this, I'd rather heed the warnings of the experts:

It’s Time to Get Real About TikTok’s Risks

US lawmakers keep warning about the popular app. But until they can explain what makes it uniquely dangerous, it’s difficult to tailor a resolution.

www.wired.com

Why TikTok is the Latest Security Threat

TikTok is a widely-popular social media platform owned by the Chinese technology company ByteDance. Though its stated intention is to share short dance and lip-sync videos, it has become a substantial player in the targeted advertising business in recent years. TikTok and Data Collection TikTok...

www.cisecurity.org

https://www.csis.org/analysis/tiktok-and-national-security

What is TikTok & is TikTok Safe?

The TikTok app is hugely popular, but TikTok security issues & privacy concerns are widespread. Learn about TikTok data privacy & TikTok privacy settings.

usa.kaspersky.com

The TikTok Ban Is Truly An Issue Of National Security

TikTok—and really all social media platforms—could be utilized to spread misinformation and disinformation. In the case of TikTok, such campaigns could be directed from Beijing

www.forbes.com

Majority of Americans say TikTok is a threat to national security

About six-in-ten Americans (59%) see TikTok as a major or minor threat to national security in the United States.

www.pewresearch.org

I question the notion that Red China(Or anyone else, for that matter)needs TikTok to gain personal information about Americans, along with the assertion that transferring it into American hands will cripple anyone's capacity for espionage. We speak as if accessing personal information hasn't, for the past two decades now, been easier than persuading Emily Ratajkowki to walk around in public naked, when this is demonstrably untrue

 

[We_ArE_VeNOM]

Once you ban TikTok, you ban the tits that comes with it.

The ban must be stopped!!

 

[BaronOfHair]

Well you're free to hold your own opinion on this, I'd rather heed the warnings of the experts:

It’s Time to Get Real About TikTok’s Risks

US lawmakers keep warning about the popular app. But until they can explain what makes it uniquely dangerous, it’s difficult to tailor a resolution.

www.wired.com

Why TikTok is the Latest Security Threat

TikTok is a widely-popular social media platform owned by the Chinese technology company ByteDance. Though its stated intention is to share short dance and lip-sync videos, it has become a substantial player in the targeted advertising business in recent years. TikTok and Data Collection TikTok...

www.cisecurity.org

https://www.csis.org/analysis/tiktok-and-national-security

What is TikTok & is TikTok Safe?

The TikTok app is hugely popular, but TikTok security issues & privacy concerns are widespread. Learn about TikTok data privacy & TikTok privacy settings.

usa.kaspersky.com

The TikTok Ban Is Truly An Issue Of National Security

TikTok—and really all social media platforms—could be utilized to spread misinformation and disinformation. In the case of TikTok, such campaigns could be directed from Beijing

www.forbes.com

Majority of Americans say TikTok is a threat to national security

About six-in-ten Americans (59%) see TikTok as a major or minor threat to national security in the United States.

www.pewresearch.org

It's likely too late to prevent The House from going through with this. I'm inclined to wonder out loud again though: Do we really believe that The US government won't now be emboldened to pull similar crap with corporations here in The US, using national security as a pre-text?

 

[Pierce Manhammer]

It's likely too late to prevent The House from going through with this. I'm inclined to wonder out loud again though: Do we really believe that The US government won't now be emboldened to pull similar crap with corporations here in The US, using national security as a pre-text?

Possibly but so is the possibility of a number of things.

 

[Millard Fillmore]

I agree with you, but tell me one benefit that tik tok offers to society?

My opinion on that is irrelevant.

 

[Bokanovsky]

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/13/house-passes-bill-that-could-lead-to-a-tiktok-ban-fight-shifts-to-the-senate.html

Good fackin' riddance

It's a scourge. I know people that LIVE on that shyte. Everything new they try, news they hear of, everything they learned on TT. It's pathetic.

Wait, I thought we weren't allowed to discuss politics on SS?

 

[Bokanovsky]

I agree. The issue is that the Chinese Gov. are in control of TikTok and are spying on Americans. The Chinese Gov. controls just about every aspect of their citizens life. They control your bank account....look it up.

If I were American, I'd be more concerned about my own government spying on me.

 

[EyeBRollin]

If I were American, I'd be more concerned about my own government spying on me.

We can walk and chew gum at the same time.

 

[Bokanovsky]

We can walk and chew gum at the same time.

Evidently not. Otherwise Instagram, Facebook and Youtube would be getting banned too.

 

[EyeBRollin]

Wait, I thought we weren't allowed to discuss politics on SS?

It’s not, really. More like yesterday’s news.

 

[Mertz09]

An online property is not the “public square” it is private property so 1st Amendment rights do not apply, if they did I could demand that the New York Times publish my oped.

no shirt, no shoes, no service

p.s. the Chinese are up to no good, we know this they engage in spycraft in the US all the time - last week another scientist was convicted. If you think they’re not enabling in shady Shiite with TikTok you’re not paying attention.

Agreed. 100%

 

[Bible_Belt]

It’s not, really. More like yesterday’s news.

First Biden bans tiktok from government phones. Then he joins tiktok? How is that possible? Now he wants to ban it again for everyone...but until then, check him out on tiktok!

 

[Millard Fillmore]

An online property is not the “public square” it is private property so 1st Amendment rights do not apply, if they did I could demand that the New York Times publish my oped.

The first amendment applies to protecting any speech from government suppression. A content based app is no different from a printing press.

 

[Bible_Belt]

A content based app is no different from a printing press.

They are both private property. Courts have ruled that the first amendment only applies to public space. And despite the public nature of the Internet, whatever site or app we use is probably going to be private property.