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PandaCommando69 t1_iyecbr4 wrote

Reply to comment by policemenconnoisseur in China to punish internet users for 'liking' posts in crackdown after zero-Covid protests by graveaffairsod

Thank you for the explanation. It seems dystopian and horrifying to me that you could be subject to any amount of criminal penalty for an insult (not defamation, that is a separate thing). I'm an American, and we don't punish people for insults--you couldn't survive in this country if your skin was that thin.

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policemenconnoisseur t1_iyeiwu4 wrote

Yeah, I've seen those Walmart and McDonalds videos.

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PandaCommando69 t1_iyejgst wrote

Sure but that's not average life lol. Europeans get a wildly distorted view of life here because we show our lunatics on the internet for entertainment/criticism purposes. Enjoy the show brüder.

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policemenconnoisseur t1_iyenhqp wrote

I get what you say. An people do insult here as well. It's just good to know that you have the right to sue and have the law on your side if you do so. It's not like insulting is something which makes freedom of speech a good thing. Freedom of speech is about having the permission to say a thought which opposes the mainstream without fearing to get beaten down by the police or thrown into jail.

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PandaCommando69 t1_iyeoyql wrote

I respectfully disagree. There is freedom in being able to call an asshole, an asshole (and in saying any other damn thing you please, provided it does not run afoul of law in terms of inciting violence or insurrection, or is actionable defamation). In the United States, you can insult the President to his face (shout out to that fat treason weasel Donald fuckingTrump), and there is not a single thing the law can do about it. Nor should there be. I think there are many nice things about Germany, but I would never trade our 1st Amendment protections for freedom of speech with yours. Not being able to say what you think is tyranny.

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