Reddit exodus illustrates state of free speech online

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WASHINGTON POST

Some users are finding fault with Reddits failure to protect absolute free speech.

Reddit, the long-time haven of weirdos, perverts and miscreants the internet over, has been, from its beginning, the mainstream bulwark for free speech online.

A beginner's guide to Reddit

Reddit's opinionated audience grows

But in a strange twist that perfectly illustrates the current culturewide debate around online speech, a group of disgruntled users have begun an exodus off the site - claiming, against all odds, that Reddit is censoring them as a matter of corporate policy.

This is, for the record, the same Reddit that defended Violentacrez, the Texas man who ran forums on beating women and sexualising underage girls. The Reddit that allowed rampant speculation about the Boston bombing, even when it became dangerous. The Reddit that, just this past fall, supported a booming trade in stolen celebrity nude photos, and still, even now, hosts a variety of racist, misogynistic, homophobic and otherwise "NSFL" content that I dare not link to from here.

If this isn't enough free speech, what is?

To understand that question (let alone the answer to it), you have to start with a working knowledge of Reddit's labyrinthine depths. The site is, for the uninitiated, basically a social news service divided into tens of thousands of themed forums, called subreddits. Users submit links, photos and in-jokes to the forums, which are voted up or down by other users. The forums themselves are run by volunteer moderators, or mods, who can basically make and enforce rules as they see fit. In general, corporate Reddit - Advance Media-owned Reddit, US$50-million-funding-round Reddit, only-35-employees Reddit - doesn't step in unless the company is at risk of being sued.

The core philosophy, co-founder Alexis Ohanian explained in a book on Reddit's early days, was "giving the people what they want." Whatever they want. Accordingly, each forum looks a little different. In r/aww - one of my personal favourites - mods ban slurs, harassing comments and anything "sad." In r/thefappening, where users shared the celebrity nudes that ruled September's news cycle, slurs and harassing comments were basically the norm. (And that was, on its own, pretty sad.)

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Reddit exodus illustrates state of free speech online

Phil Robertson To Receive Free Speech Award

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Phil Robertson, conservative and outspoken patriarch of Duck Dynasty fame, will be rewarded for standing by his faith and comments about the LGBT community.

The star of the hit A&E show will be given the Andrew Breitbart Defender of the First Amendment Award for free speech.

Phil Robertson will be given the honor at this years Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC.

CPAC is one of the biggest conservative political events of the year.

Phil Robertson will join last years recipient, author and conservative talk show host Mark Levin.

Phil Robertson made huge waves over a year ago when he made comments about the LGBT community that were seen as exceedingly controversial.

For example, in case anyone needs reminding, this gem, It seems like, to me, a vaginaas a manwould be more desirable than a mans anus. Thats just me. Im just thinking: Theres more there! Shes got more to offer. I mean, come on, dudes! You know what Im saying? But hey, sin: Its not logical, my man. Its just not logical.

A&E indefinitely suspended Phil Robertson from his own show, but reinstated him after a severe backlash from the shows main fanbase, politcal conservatives.

After the controvery took its toll on fans and offendees, Phil Robertson still stood behind his beliefs on the matter.

Citizens United president David Bossie said, Even when the entire mainstream media demanded he disavow his beliefs and attempted to have him fired from his own hit show for expressing these beliefs, he stood firm in his faith.

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Phil Robertson To Receive Free Speech Award

Freedom Of Speech Naam Ki Koi Chiz Hoti Hai – Alia Bhatt On AIB Controversy – Video

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Freedom Of Speech Naam Ki Koi Chiz Hoti Hai - Alia Bhatt On AIB Controversy
Alia Bhatt was asked about the AIB Knockout Controversy at the recent event. Quite smartly Alia answered the journos question saying, "Freedom of Speech naam...

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Letters to the editor: We must do more to stop terrorists

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These people did nothing wrong but exercise their basic rights: the freedom of assembly, freedom of speech and freedom of religion.

It used to be the case that you actually had to blaspheme to become a target of Islamist extremists. Now, apparently, you just have to talk about those principles to arouse the murderous intent of those who disagree with our way of life. Or it could simply be because of who you are, if you happen to be a European Jew, such as the murdered security guard who protected the central synagogue.

While it is difficult to halt lone wolf attacks of this kind, much more must be done by political leaders to tackle this growing threat in Europe. We must move the climate of discussion away from condemnation to action, and how to prevent its recurrence. If we fail to do so, we can expect further attacks to occur. Dr Alan Mendoza, executive director, The Henry Jackson Society

The latest terrorist outrages in Copenhagen, shortly after similar events in Paris, confirm the sad reality of the role that Jews and anti-Semitism play in jihadist ideology and terrorist targeting.

Each terrorist attack raises the need and the demand for further security, and so Jewish communities have reacted by implementing ever more onerous security measures. These have become a sad part of of Jewish life but they should never be regarded as normal.

Across Europe, governments and police have reacted in various ways, with Britain generally regarded as the best in nearly every aspect. UK politicians could not have been stronger in their condemnations of anti-Semitism. But this sits in stark contrast to the profound silence of many civil society groups, who ought to oppose such hatreds but seem paralysed from doing so to any remotely meaningful extent. Mark Gardner, Community Security Trust

Reactions to these sorts of heinous killings must be measured. In its crudest form, an attack such as this craves speculation and hysteria. It is, in a sense, a most ugly form of attention seeking.

We need no more reminders of Islamic States dangerous social media presence. Guessing whether it was a copycat massacre in the style of Charlie Hebdo just fuels Islamic States strategy of saturating the news media.

Let the security services deal with the mechanics of the attack, and let the public focus on what we can do to prevent such monstrous events in the future namely through standing in solidarity against extremism of all kinds with all those who despise such barbarism. Terrorists seek to divide us. Let us not allow that to happen. Nazish Khan, researcher, Quilliam

This week Which? published its annual rail passenger satisfaction survey. The bottom six operators in the survey all serve London, scoring less than 50 per cent overall for passenger satisfaction.

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Letters to the editor: We must do more to stop terrorists

North Carolina shootings do not represent Atheism

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Anyone who, like myself, does not buy the assertion that the universe must have a creator has probably faced this argument at some point. It goes something like this: Religious people do wars and terrorism, but so do atheists! Stalin and Mao were atheists! They killed more people than Hitler!

Yes, we are all forced to say. However, is that why Stalin and Mao killed so many people? There is a big difference between anti-clericalism for political and ideological dominance over a population, and the ideals of atheism or humanism. Show me a violent mob wielding copies of Richard Dawkins The God Delusion or Christopher Hitchens God is not Great, and Ill go to church this Sunday.

However, on Feb. 12, my views on this matter changed drastically.

While I had been of the belief that nobody would or could kill another person in the name of atheism, the news brought me to bear a sad truth. Three young, bright, innocent Muslim students in North Carolina were inexplicably murdered by a man named Craig Steven Hicks, who does in fact call himself an atheist.

Hicks Facebook page shows a quote from Richard Dawkins, specifically referencing how Dawkins lost all sympathy for the Islamic faith on 9/11. While Hicks shared the quote back in 2012, it would be silly to assume the work of Dawkins and others did not contribute to a festering hatred for Muslims, one which ended in tragedy last week.

My first reaction to this news was the exact same reaction of religious people whenever their texts are used to justify violence or hatred. X has nothing to do with Y. This is a misunderstanding. Nothing in this book justifies the horrific actions Hicks took.

These statements are all true. My initial reaction, like that of everyone else, was that this persons religious beliefs had nothing to do with the fact that this cruel action was taken. It has more to do with personal issues, feelings of isolation or oppression, mental instability, etc.

Again, all this is true. However, let us not fall into the same trap as religion does in the wake of every tragedy. Let us not deny any involvement or try to absolve ourselves of any culpability. Let us own up to the fact that Hicks atheism was one of many factors that contributed to his deep-seated hatred, just like religious terrorists. Let us not deny Hicks was an atheist, despite the fact he calls himself one. Most importantly, let us apologize.

To my Muslim friends, and to everyone: I am sorry for Craig Steven Hicks.

I am sorry he perverted atheism into violent hatred. I do not stand for what he did, and atheism does not explain what he did. There is nothing in this world that explains or justifies hatred or violence. At this point, we can safely say that terrorists come in all shapes, sizes, races, religions and ideologies, including atheism. Let us not condemn all Christians for the actions of Anders Breivik; let us not condemn all Buddhists for militants in Myanmar; let us not condemn all Muslims for the Charlie Hebdo attack.

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North Carolina shootings do not represent Atheism

2 reasons why it's a bad week to be an atheist

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On a trade mission to London, Walker was asked at an event whether he believed in evolution. He didn't answer. Published Feb. 17, 2015 at 3:05 p.m.

So what's making atheism tough this week? Two things.

One is Scott Walker. And I don't just say that on principle, though I can see why you might think that given my history in this space.

On a trade mission to London, Walker was asked at an event whether he believed in evolution. He didn't answer.

Local yokel Christian Schneider, a professional Walker apologist given free rein to write at the state's largest daily newspaper, tweeted out that "Walker didn't answer the evolution [question] because he was afraid his answer would be twisted."

Huh? It's a yes or no question. I am not sure how a simple yes or no could be "twisted." Twisting happens when politicians evade simple yes or no questions. Not that answering yes or no is always the end of the story think "I did not have sexual relations with that woman" but a coy decision to "punt," in Walker's own word, on the question just simply invites the pile-on.

In fact, Schneider went on in that tweet: "And coverage of his non-answer proves him right." As if we should be surprised a bunch of people wrangling with the fact that a supposedly battle-tested leader like Walker can't muster a single syllable, affirmative or negative, on a basic question like that. Had Walker offered an actual answer, we might not be talking about this still a week later. This is Politics 101 and not even what sets my atheist bones a-rattling.

No, here's what atheists like me hate about this kind of thing: evolution is not something you "believe" in. It's real; whether you believe in it or not, evolution is a simple fact of reality. People of faith sometimes have to figure out how they reconcile that reality with the things that are actual beliefs, sure, but they don't get to substitute that faith for reality.

The question shouldn't even be asked. I mean, would the moderator have asked about anything else that is settled science? "Pardon me, Gov. Walker, but have you heard this thing about the earth revolving around the sun? What do you make of that?"

Asking the question offers legitimacy to the anti-science, anti-reality position, and that's no good for anybody.

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2 reasons why it's a bad week to be an atheist

Sol 0 – Mars Colonization – Season 2 – Part 15 – Brand New Start! – We Explore our Independence! – Video

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Hubble telescope spots space 'smiley'

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(MENAFN - Gulf Times) The Hubble space telescope has spotted what resembles a "smiley" in deep space.

An image published by the US space agency Nasa and its European counterpart ESA, operators of the low-Earth-orbit telescope, shows "two orange eyes and a white button nose" along with arcs of light that look like a smile and partial contours of a face.

According to the space agencies, the "eyes" of the happy face are very bright galaxies in a galaxy cluster known as SDSS J10384849 about 4.5bn light-years from Earth in the Ursa Major constellation and the arcs are caused by an effect known as strong gravitational lensing.

Explained by Einstein's general theory of relativity and first observed nearly a century ago, gravitational lensing is the bending of light by the gravitational field of a massive object.

In this special case of the phenomenon, a ring is produced because the light source, a gravitational lens and observer are aligned.

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Hubble telescope spots space 'smiley'

Galaxy Merger Caught in Stunning Hubble Telescope Photo, Video

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A spiral galaxy gets twisted out of shape after coming too close to a cosmic neighbor in a gorgeous photo captured by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope.

The spiral galaxy, known as NGC 7714, lies about 100 million light-years from Earth. Between 100 million and 200 million years ago, NGC 7714 drifted too close to a smaller, neighboring galaxy called NGC 7715. The resulting galaxy merger has been violent and dramatic, changing the structure and shape of both NGC 7714 and NGC 7715, researchers said. Scientists used the Hubble observations to create a stunning video tour of the galaxy merger.

"Tell-tale signs of this brutality can be seen in NGC 7714's strangely shaped arms, and in the smoky golden haze that stretches out from the galactic center," European Space Agency (ESA) officials wrote in a description of the new image. (Hubble is a collaborative mission involving NASA and ESA.)

The merger has also created a bridge between the galaxies, which allows gas and other materials from the smaller NGC 7715 to travel into the larger NGC 7714.

The influx of new material has spurred bursts of star formation in NGC 7714, ESA officials said. In the Hubble image, the majority of starbirth activity can be seen at the bright center of the galaxy, although new stars are forming throughout NGC 7714.

Scientists have named the NGC 7714/NGC 7715 pair Arp 248.

NGC 7714 is classified as a Wolf-Rayet starburst galaxy. Most of its newborn stars are of the Wolf-Rayet type, which are big, hot and bright. At birth, Wolf-Rayet stars are dozens of times more massive than the sun, but powerful winds quickly carry away most of their material.

The Hubble Space Telescope launched in April 1990 aboard the space shuttle Discovery and was repaired or upgraded by astronauts on five different servicing missions between 1993 and 2009. The iconic instrument's observations have helped revolutionize astronomers' understanding of the cosmos.

Follow us@Spacedotcom,FacebookandGoogle+. Original article onSpace.com.

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Galaxy Merger Caught in Stunning Hubble Telescope Photo, Video

NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission: Pilots practice scrambling jets in face of growing Russian threat – Video

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NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission: Pilots practice scrambling jets in face of growing Russian threat
NATO pilots practised scrambling their jets on Tuesday in preparation for potential further unauthorized Russian jets which may be encountered on Baltic patr...

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‘NATO went too far, overstepped responsibility to protect’ Berlin think tank founder – Video

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#39;NATO went too far, overstepped responsibility to protect #39; Berlin think tank founder
Watch the full episode here: http://youtu.be/A-z0-dKfEz8 The recent diplomatic flurry by Angela Merkel and Francois Hollande has raised hopes for a breakthro...

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'NATO went too far, overstepped responsibility to protect' Berlin think tank founder - Video

Will NATO accept Ukraine & Syria defeat without using nuclear weapons? – Video

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Will NATO accept Ukraine Syria defeat without using nuclear weapons?
NATO #39;s nuclear relapse Under the public radar, NATO is modernising its tactical nuclear arsenal. http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2014/12/nato-nuclear-relapse-2014123161917509924.html...

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Will NATO accept Ukraine & Syria defeat without using nuclear weapons? - Video