From Charles Brentner

Monroe

To the editor: 

What does it mean to have the right of free speech?

That’s a fair question in itself I think. What does it really mean? Well you could say it means you have the right to disagree with another person on a given topic, and you would be right, but it also means something else, something that isn’t so apparent. It means that each of us also has the obligation to act in a responsible manner. If I were to stand up in a crowded, darkened theater and yell “Fire!” I would probably be arrested, most likely on several charges depending on what injuries and property damage resulted. In other words while each of us has the right to speak our minds freely, we don’t have the right to do so to the detriment of others. Otherwise there would be no libel laws.

Mr. Trump posted tweets on his own personal twitter account and then they were also posted on the White House account. Tweets that had the potential to mislead or incite others. Twitter didn’t remove them, but they did take some steps to make certain people got a balanced understanding of the one and put some restraint on the latter so as not to add more fuel to the fire. Mr. Trump claims they are infringing on his right of free speech, but he still has his personal account and the White House account last I heard. How then is twitter interfering with his right of free speech?

If Section 230 were to be re-written how does anyone know that it wouldn’t later be expanded to interfere with the right of the citizen to do things like write letters to the editor? Editors may become afraid to print letters that disagree with this or that leader’s opinions lest they face prosecution. Yes, we have the right of free speech, but how long will that last if such measures as what Mr. Trump wants become the law of the land? With power comes the responsibility to use it wisely, not to satisfy the whims of a single individual. Thank you.