{"id":2213615,"date":"2024-04-05T08:15:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-05T12:15:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/murthy-v-missouri-is-about-not-only-coercing-big-tech-but-controlling-individuals\/"},"modified":"2024-04-05T08:15:30","modified_gmt":"2024-04-05T12:15:30","slug":"murthy-v-missouri-is-about-not-only-coercing-big-tech-but-controlling-individuals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/murthy-v-missouri-is-about-not-only-coercing-big-tech-but-controlling-individuals\/","title":{"rendered":"Murthy v. Missouri: Regulating Big Tech and Individuals"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fmurthy-v-missouri-is-about-not-only-coercing-big-tech-but-controlling-individuals%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2213615&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article\u2064 discusses the alarming \u200bimplications of \u200dpolitical\u2064 censorship highlighted in the\u200c Murthy \u200dv.\u200c Missouri\u2064 case, raising concerns about the government&#8217;s potential control \u200cover\u2062 individual\u200c conversations and relationships. It \u2064underlines the crucial role \u200cof free speech in fostering social \u200btrust and solving societal issues, emphasizing the threats\u2063 posed by censorship to personal \u2062freedoms and democratic principles.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-content\">\n<p>Censorship and loneliness always go together because political censorship is always designed to cut us off, to stop us from speaking openly to others. Let\u2019s ponder that connection as we await the Supreme Court\u2019s ruling in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.supremecourt.gov\/oral_arguments\/argument_transcripts\/2023\/23-411_o759.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>Murthy v. Missouri<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>But first, let\u2019s dispense with the formalities and the legalese. The <em>Murthy<\/em> case is supposedly about whether or not the government has a right to try to \u201cpersuade not coerce\u201d third parties, including social media companies, to shut down content it claims is incorrect and\/or potentially harmful.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2-long d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-625806728\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1379703300879-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-fcbaf8b527e5927df704208039c2c544 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-fcbaf8b527e5927df704208039c2c544\"><\/div>\n<p>This is not a narrow case that stops at allowing government actors to talk to third parties about content they deem \u201cmisinformation\u201d affecting national security or public health. <em>Murthy<\/em> is ultimately about enabling an enormous <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mtaibbi\/status\/1633830002742657027\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">censorship-industrial complex<\/a> to control individuals\u2019 conversations \u2014 <em>and by extension, individuals\u2019 relationships<\/em> \u2014 at the behest of government actors.<\/p>\n<p>Any SCOTUS ruling in favor of the government would blow the door wide open to undermining the First Amendment\u2019s guarantee of free speech for hundreds of millions of individual Americans.<\/p>\n<p>Even if you don\u2019t believe that, you should at least consider the connection between such political censorship and social isolation. We cannot think of free speech as an abstract value or an outdated convenience.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, at stake is the right to communicate openly, which translates into your right to build families and your right to make friends without state interference.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c13d99b35e460ae7fb7a22076df56cae fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-6\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c13d99b35e460ae7fb7a22076df56cae\"><\/div>\n<p>Ultimately, any ruling for the government in <em>Murthy<\/em> would correspond to the proverbial camel\u2019s snout spitting its orders into the tents of every American\u2019s private life.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Yes, <em>Your<\/em> Private Life<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Too few people understand that the primary purpose and the main effect of political censorship is intensely <em>personal<\/em>, a point I\u2019ve explained <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/06\/02\/how-ending-freedom-of-expression-gives-up-your-right-to-a-private-life\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">here at The Federalist<\/a>. In addition to cutting us off from other people and ideas, censorship instills fear of punishment for wrongthink. As more people fear speaking openly, we create a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Spiral-Silence-Public-Opinion-Social\/dp\/0226589366\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=UY3EV0AEYDRJ&#038;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.63nbni_GQp3ku-4khk2ADM0_dPKXx4sKn3hvyJZEf2UQt6nvt_YYYpu6zeaG9GdBsW4PTpNeB168vkbc68QD3cnyx8VS2yUv8Vj-EDbykOTh5N9TMyOWnStj-S7BeYQqTgJtIdQuZ1XENpEmqtILY9jGAgkxnbYKbXat0eW3XG_jYRLVyu5rnPdtKgm2sIw8NyyCfHk4I7Qf0ibm5POkjTXk6Ql_UfoZ3rJrjl1YiU4.L_rqAK28LliiCGohsZk3lHBf3u2qKwcPVxLipeS-7Hs&#038;dib_tag=se&#038;keywords=spiral+of+silence&#038;qid=1711468628&#038;sprefix=spiral+of+silence%2Caps%2C98&#038;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">spiral of silence<\/a> that isolates us further. This dilutes personal relationships along with the potential for building relationships and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Weaponization-Loneliness-Tyrants-Isolation-Silence\/dp\/1637582021\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1HYVZD4AF6BTM&#038;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.7PJ7ejg4IvKM1Neutfs3Zw.C8ojPTkP2r6jZc5Qj3lRlXKkIeXMChqHLGX4hlqqQgM&#038;dib_tag=se&#038;keywords=weaponization+of+loneliness+stella&#038;qid=1712168239&#038;sprefix=weaponization+of+%2Caps%2C116&#038;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">breeds a more alienated and dysfunctional society<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Free speech is how people get to know one another, building social trust and a healthy private sphere. It\u2019s how we are able to solve problems through the cross-pollination of ideas. It\u2019s the first line of defense against tyranny.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s really what\u2019s at stake in this case. We should be alarmed by justices who seemed to be toying with our First Amendment rights during the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.c-span.org\/video\/?534283-1\/murthy-v-missouri-supreme-court-oral-argument\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">oral arguments<\/a> of the <em>Murthy <\/em>case last month.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-606d5ba501893b6f6bb3fb888419be3d fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-10\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-606d5ba501893b6f6bb3fb888419be3d\"><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Cringeworthy Moments During Oral Arguments<\/h2>\n<p>There were several unsettling moments during the oral arguments. From Justice Kantanji Brown Jackson complaining that the First Amendment could \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/18\/justice-jackson-complains-first-amendment-is-hamstringing-feds-censorship-efforts\/\">hamstring<\/a>\u201d the government to several of the justices using brazen hypotheticals, there were <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/21\/8-big-takeaways-for-free-speech-in-landmark-murthy-v-missouri-censorship-case\/\">numerous indications<\/a> that the government might prevail in gutting free speech. <\/p>\n<p>Plaintiff Aaron Kheriaty thoroughly discredited one of those hypotheticals in <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/28\/scotus-errs-in-murthy-v-missouri-by-assuming-big-tech-is-just-like-print-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a recent Federalist article<\/a>, explaining there is no comparison between government interactions with a traditional media outlet and its interactions with Big Tech companies. There are \u201casymmetrical power dynamics\u201d in the latter case which \u201ccreate a relationship ripe for unconstitutional government coercion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The oral arguments also invited me to reflect on President Ronald <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nCedOQJ0ZEA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Reagan\u2019s warning<\/a> that the nine most terrifying words in the English language are, \u201cI\u2019m from the government and I\u2019m here to help.\u201d It came to mind when I heard the lead attorney for the government inject this gem into the proceedings: \u201cI think one of the flavors you get from the amicus briefs on our side of the case is there are a lot of valuable ways where the government has information or expertise that it can offer to private speakers, and it would be a shame to chill that.\u201d\u00a0One of the flavors I get from that statement is the taste of a proverbial mafia don giving \u201can offer you can\u2019t refuse.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Has government \u201cexpertise\u201d always proved valuable? \u201cAffordable\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WesleyHuntTX\/status\/1772303037601607853\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">health care?<\/a>  Its claim that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Rigged-Media-Democrats-Seized-Elections\/dp\/1684513367\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1NBIQCQAGGNDP&#038;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ohQXVM7d8ADo0AFc-3SKKqM9sWuTJwbm6wqFiMEmn3BPr9MQg9rXEEFaid3n_Axc5ARgHKgaz2bh2RcFlxzMIIvcO4WoTG2uL3OfROTLyZxQ_dR2YJCwUEMsP-Z6hhqnbHTTguPV0dRUF6Xe-PyJziYhCh1Vn1OIYE6WFENSqDkzY5lDWGV6P0MvIoGncsJU673KFe0jOTJn3midrwly4cwroYSgIEhI2KeUZIFY33E.LhZE5k7s0WQja3C7xXVP8r2bE5s1kDz54BBBA5yGq4U&#038;dib_tag=se&#038;keywords=rigged+hemingway&#038;qid=1711470031&#038;sprefix=rigged+hemingway%2Caps%2C95&#038;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">weirdest election<\/a> in American history was the freest and fairest? <a href=\"https:\/\/fee.org\/articles\/how-15-days-to-slow-the-spread-became-a-year\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Fifteen days<\/a> to flatten the curve? The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.openvaers.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">safe and effective Covid injection?<\/a> President Joe Biden\u2019s statement that different opinions about the Covid mandates were <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/technology-joe-biden-business-health-government-and-politics-0432165e772bd60e8acafc217c086d7f\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201ckilling people\u201d<\/a>? <\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s bad enough that we have several Supreme Court justices working hard to undermine the Constitution that they ever-so-quaintly swore to protect.\u00a0What\u2019s worse is that during oral arguments, some of the justices presumed to be solid on constitutional principles could conceivably rule for the government\u2019s right to regulate all internet content, possibly on a technicality such as whether or not one of the plaintiffs could prove future harm. As <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/21\/this-country-cannot-afford-a-weak-supreme-court-decision-on-internet-censorship\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Joy Pullmann noted<\/a>, Americans simply cannot afford a weak ruling in <em>Murthy<\/em>.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why Should <em>Anyone<\/em> Trust the Government?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The First Amendment exists precisely because governments cannot and should not be trusted.\u00a0The government is often called a Leviathan because it\u2019s powerful and bloated and insatiable and alienating. Individuals are being silenced by an unholy partnership among government, corporations, and Big Tech. The First Amendment guarantees that individuals \u2014 who don\u2019t have that kind of power \u2014 should at least be permitted their voices. Now more than ever!<\/p>\n<p>Another great irony in this case is that the named defendant, Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, recently produced <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">an advisory<\/a> that can serve as a <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/05\/31\/federal-loneliness-advisory-sketches-blueprint-for-regulating-everyones-private-life\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">blueprint<\/a> for unprecedented government control over our <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/06\/05\/federal-loneliness-advisory-threatens-to-destroy-freedom-by-occupying-private-life\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">social connections<\/a>, supposedly to \u201csolve\u201d our loneliness epidemic <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/05\/30\/to-address-the-loneliness-epidemic-the-feds-want-to-control-your-town-and-friends\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">in the name of public health<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.gov\/sites\/default\/files\/surgeon-general-social-connection-advisory.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Read it.<\/a> It proposes that the government track and monitor our personal relationships through the health sector and Big Tech. It proposes building a new \u201csocial infrastructure\u201d placed \u201ceverywhere people gather\u201d \u2014 in your local volunteer organization, your schools, your libraries, transportation hubs, sports leagues, you name it. So if the <em>Murthy v. Missouri<\/em> ruling goes in <em>Murthy\u2019s<\/em> favor, it will pave the way for more censorship <em>and surveillance<\/em>. Ironically, that would only worsen our epidemic of loneliness and social isolation.  <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-04c539e13159c94ec9bb91cd696e73fe fdrlst__b89e9-after-post-content\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-04c539e13159c94ec9bb91cd696e73fe\"><\/div>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">    \t\t\t\t\t   \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Political censorship is isolating, intended to silence us and sever connections. Reflect on this as we anticipate the Murthy v. Missouri Supreme Court ruling. Setting aside formalities, let&#8217;s delve into the essence. The Murthy case supposedly<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":568,"featured_media":2213616,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/robin-worrall-FPt10LXK0cg-unsplash.jpeg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2213615","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/robin-worrall-FPt10LXK0cg-unsplash.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2213615","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/568"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2213615"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2213615\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2213616"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2213615"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2213615"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2213615"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}