newsfortheleft.blogspot.com/2007/07/bill-oreilycom-being-investigated-by.html
com, was the anonymous blog where I posted the emails from Mark Foley to a sixteen year old House Page. That began the saga that has become famously known as Foley-gate. This site is for liberals and progressives for news and commentary. Lane Hudson Lane Hudson SUPPORT NEWS FOR THE LEFT BY MAKING A SECURE DONATION THROUGH PAYPAL!
this post by John Aravosis on AmericaBlog, I was incensed and concerned at the same time. Here is the comment on O'Reilly's blog that crossed the line: If Hillary wins, I will be respectful of our leader.
So, I did what a responsible person should do when they see something like this on a blog. This comment isn't about politics or defaming Senator Clinton. The Secret Service, who does an amazing job protecting their subjects, were very professional. The first person I spoke to transferred me to another person. But, when I read her the comment and suggested that the person could be easily identified, she took me much more seriously. She called back minutes later, asking me to talk to someone else. That agent took the information and said that he would refer it to their Internet team. It is a completely different discussion to have when debating the appropriateness of offensive comments. When the life of anyone is threatened in any part of our corner of the internet, we should take appropriate action.
I'm surprised they ended up taking this so seriously - particularly after first dismissing it. Just trying to understand what made them change their mind and take it seriously?
There are numerous comments talking about keeping guns loaded and literally saying there will be a civil war. The far right has been preaching a message of hatred (and not just of Hilary) for so long it's amazing someone hasn't already taken her out. Go take a look around Little Green Footballs and Free Republic and you'll see TONS of the same crap, including people vocally advocating murder. Those people really do make me wonder if our constitutional government is already doomed to failure. How can it succeed when so many people hold the view that the government itself is the enemy rather than the tool it was designed to be.
my Lane, aren't you a regular little junior detective and I love your Bio picture, so pensive and thoughtful looking. at least this time it's not the usual childish "they did it first" meme. But at least have the guts to point out that it's a problem across the board.
It's one of the problems with school being out for the Summer, they are left home alone to play on mommy's computer and portray themselves as black belts, special forces, and as having completed puberty;
America can't tolerate the kind of hate that seems to be so permissive on Bill O'Reilly's website and if his forums have turned into a camping ground of sorts for those who would consider harming the President, any President, I'd feel safer knowing it was investigated and the potential evil-doers rooted out, interrogated and if found to pose a threat, penalized appropriately under the full extent of the law.
I see your concern, but your response seems a little too 1984 (the book, not the year) for my taste. O'Reilley (or however you spell his name, I don't really care) doesn't sit all that well with me either, but if we go after what people are THINKING and FEELING, then I'm pretty sure all of us would have some jail time waiting for us. Save the tattle-taling for the more explicit threats some of your other commenters have described. It is not illegal to be displeased, it's not even illegal to have hatred in your thoughts.
Making retarded remarks and smears in DailyKos and JetBlue is one thing but threatening someone life is another. Freedom of speech is one thing and threatening a life is going too far.
The GOP site FreeRepublic is a goldmine of these types of psychotic statements. The media hypes up some nonsense about Daily Kos, yet there have been death threats and tons of sick stuff on major Republican sites like FreeRepublic for years. FR is a site which actually condones threats against gays especially and people there freely call them "dirty fags", "queers", and "homos" while talking of murder and execution. When is the goddamn worthless media going to connect the dots?
Glenn Johnson said that "it is only illegal to ACT on those impulses." In the case of the president, a threat is considered an act. So hatred in your heart is fine, but hatred in the form of a threat is an act that is illegal--and the Secret Service takes those VERY seriously.
What do you think happens when someone plots to carry out a terrorist attack and gets caught. You think they get off the hook because they didn't actually carry it out, but were only talking about it? If someone makes a public statement about actually wanting to harm someone, whether it be the president or a bum on the street, that is grounds for calling the police. Kudos for taking appropriate action on BillO's website -- it's insane that he tolerates such postings, then rants against others. Of course, the best hypocrites are always the preachers...
It is a federal crime to threaten the person of the President of the United States. It is a federal crime to engage in a conspiracy to threaten or assassinate the President. It is a federal crime to advocate 'civil war' or other violent domestic acts. O'Reilly and Fox will have no choice but to reveal the identity of their commenters pursuant to a valid investigation of a possible crime. There is no federal shield law for journalists (and I realize, that term applies very loosely to anyone working for Rupert Murdoch) which allows them to conceal evidence of a possible crime.
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