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by vorpalhex
2620 days ago
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What if your ISP doesn't care for security researchers or journalists, and therefore would like to terminate their internet access? Can a telephone company do the same? What about the electric company - they are often times privately owned after all. What if they don't care for people who are gay, or from a specific country? Could Facebook say, choose to ban all Christians or anyone who believes in a two state solution in the middle east? |
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First, you make a fantastic argument for regulating ISPs as common carriers, bummer that's up in flames, one step forward two steps back.
Secondly, at least in the US, the whole idea of the "protected class" is to combat over reaches just like most of your examples[0]. This is also why civil rights groups are general fighting to expand the definition of protected class (though I doubt fascists ever will be included) since private companies are very happy to act against gay and trans people, for example.
As for non-protected classes ( having opinions on Israel fall pretty firmly into that) Facebook has the opportunity for the same calculus as they have with neo Nazis and the other alt-right menagerie. Are two-state proponents driving away more people than their removal will?
Is this system perfect, I don't think so, but the idea of "forced free speech" is more distastful to me. Individuals or companies are free to curate the experience they want for their users (up and to current laws around protected classes). If the consumers don't like that they're free to set up their own network (this is why Im a huge proponent for federation).
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protected_group