censorship

The crackdown on dissent   Recently updated !

This entry was posted in Commentary and tagged censorship law liberty on by

Suppression of criticism and dissent is a hallmark of tyranny. Two egregious instances have been in the news lately. One is the FCC’s call on eight TV stations, all owned by ABC, to seek early broadcast license renewal. The official reason is possible illegal discrimination, but everyone has noticed that it followed on Jimmy Kimmel making a joke about Melania Trump which Donald didn’t like.

The other is still worse. It’s the second indictment of James Comey on fabricated charges of threatening Donald Trump’s life.

These aren’t the only cases; Trump has shown a consistent pattern of going after critics with legal threats, frivolous lawsuits, and behind-the-scenes pressure. For this piece, I’ll focus on the Comey indictment.

Comey took a picture of some seashells arranged to spell “86 47” and added the caption “Cool shell formation on my beach walk.” To “86” someone has long been slang for expelling or banishing someone. Many people use “86 47” as a short way to call for Trump’s removal from office. It’s used in restaurants to mean denying someone, such as a drunk, service. It’s the source of “Agent 86” in the TV spy comedy Get Smart. Maybe some people use it as a code for murder, but it’s not a common use.

Screenshot of Amazon page showing various "86 46" merchandiseIn any case, Comey didn’t arrange the shells himself; he just found them and posted a picture of them. There’s no way to interpret it as a threat. Amazon has lots of “8646” merchandise, calling for Biden’s removal as the 46th president. Several of the offerings clarify they’re calling for impeachment. There can’t be much of a current market for those items, but the people offering them haven’t gotten around to taking them down. None of them, as far as I know, have been prosecuted for offering the stuff.

A New York Post article reports that in 2025, FBI director Kash Patel took resources off child sex crimes and terrorism to “investigate” legal uses of “8647” protesting against Trump. Not only is he using the FBI to harass legitimate protesters, he’s ignoring dangerous people to do it. Congress should be 86-ing Patel, the worst FBI director since J. Edgar Hoover.

I’m sure Trump and Patel know there’s no hope of getting a conviction, and the case will probably be dismissed on the first day. The goal isn’t to lock Comey up but to scare everyone who criticizes Trump. And so I must declare: 8647. Or better yet: 86*.

Gagging social media in Methuen 4

This entry was posted in Censorship and tagged censorship Internet liberty libraries on by

The city of Methuen, Massachusetts, has adopted a resolution to restrict access to social media on city-owned devices. The announcement states that “City-owned devices and networks in City buildings and City-run youth programs will limit access to social media for minors under 16 whenever feasible.” This would clearly apply to Methuen’s Nevins Library, which provides computers for public use.

The statement has the tone of fanaticism that’s gone so far over the edge that it doesn’t even require yelling; of course every reasonable person will agree with it, won’t you? It’s FOR THE CHILDREN! The council favorably cites Australia’s total ban on use of social media by anyone under 16. The statement expresses hope for nationwide restrictions: “The Council also formally endorsed Mayor Beauregard’s commitment to advocate for state and federal policies that restrict social media access for children under 16 and strengthen youth digital safety protections nationwide.”

It’s the familiar idea that libraries should reject or restrict access to anything deemed “harmful to minors,” where “harmful” has a very broad definition. It’s the same mindset that demands they keep all books on certain topics away from kids’ eyes.

Nevins Memorial Library, Methuen, Mass.On Saturday I went to tne Nevins Library to find out how it’s going to be affected. The people working there said they hadn’t received any direct communication, even though the impact will fall most heavily on them. They don’t know what’s going to be expected of them.

The term “social media” can encompass any Internet service that enables public conversation. Restrictions on using social media are restrictions on discussion. Sometimes these discussions are vitally important to young people, especially if they’re dealing with domestic abuse or have issues they’re afraid to raise with their parents. They can help to get information for personal or educational reasons, and often people make friends from distant places and different cultures.

A lot of basic information is found on social media. YouTube is generally considered a social media site; anyone can upload videos, and most of them are open for comments. Many businesses use their Facebook page as their main Internet presence. Telling kids they can’t use these sites or subjecting them to heavy restrictions will cut them off from a lot of information.

The present situation is reminiscent of panics in which kids had to be “protected” from novels, comic books, rock’n’roll, TV, and video games. Who will protect us from the protectors?

The cowardice of Portsmouth’s Music Hall

This entry was posted in Commentary News and tagged censorship liberty New Hampshire on by

Last weekend I attended a concert by the Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra in the Music Hall, Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The audience seemed smaller than usual. There could be several reasons, but one possible explanation is a recent act of cowardice by the Music Hall’s management.

Update, November 6, 2025: The Music Hall’s board has removed president Tina Sawtelle in an effort to repair the damage. This is very encouraging.

Earlier in October, the Music Hall unilaterally cancelled a scheduled event by the Lovering Center of Greenland, NH. The stated reason was security concerns. What terrified Music Hall president Tina Sawtelle was news that a peaceful protest was planned outside the venue. There was no suggestion that violence or disruptive activity would happen, but the Music Hall management thought that a simple protest placed the theater in too much danger. I wonder if they barricaded their doors and windows during the October 18 “No Kings” protest in Portsmouth, which was vastly bigger. The description of the planned Music Hall protest said it was “to hold signs, pray, fill the sidewalks with chalk messages of hope and truth, and enjoy each other’s fellowship.” You don’t have to agree with their cause to recognize that it’s legitimate activity under the First Amendment.
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ICEBlock censored from Apple Store

This entry was posted in News and tagged Apple censorship ICE ICEBlock on by

The US government has crossed yet another red line, pressuring a company into removing an application that provides legitimate information to Americans. The ICEBlock account on Bluesky reports:

We just received a message from Apple’s App Review that #ICEBlock has been removed from the App Store due to “objectionable content”. The only thing we can imagine is this is due to pressure from the Trump Admin.
 
We have responded and we’ll fight this! #resist

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