Anyone who has anything against free speech does not belong on Kiwifarms
Consider this: there exists speech that isn't protected and shouldn't be, i.e. criminal speech. Threatening someone, blackmailing someone isn't protected speech, it's considered criminal speech. Yelling "fire" in a crowded theater is also not protected speech. Posting bomb-making instructions online: not protected speech. Repeatedly texting your BF to kill himself, and so he does: Apparently, also not protected speech, per
Carter. Telling anons on the internet how to hang themselves with step-by-step instructions: per
State v. Melchert-Dinkel, not protected speech.
Over the years I've become more tolerant of speech that I find abhorrent (see: my opinion of this forum, Kiwi Farms), but Sanctioned Suicide is not making the cut, and let me compare them to show you why:
Kiwi Farms has had and continues to have a strong internal culture of keeping their discussions of lolcows online (i.e. not weenery.) When events come up where it seems possible users may want to observe IRL, Null goes out of his way to remind users what will and won't be tolerated and best practices if they decided to go to that hearing (i.e. dress nicely, don't scream JULAY in court.) pozloading my negholep is discouraged and you can get banned for cowtipping.
That in mind, I have a much easier time agreeing that Null wouldn't be responsible for some user going rouge and posting
The Anarchist's Cookbook in General Discussion, and more sympathetic to a Section 230 defense of the Farms, then I ever could be of SS and
@afounder.
Sanctioned Suicide pretty much declares their purpose right on the tin. Lamarcus makes window-dressing gestures at being "fair and balanced', but immediately betrays them; for example, puts up a recovery forum to cover his butt, but then advises people who come to SS only for recovery content won't be given an account.
(That @afounder apparently put in place an account review process at registration, but did not meaningfully age verify users is the definition of negligence. He was willing to scrutinize applicants for being true and honestly suicidal, but not get their fucking age verified? WTF?)
So all those material facts about SS adds up to a forum with a very explicit purpose, which is inciting people to commit suicide. So, SS is pro-suicide, full stop. It's not even similar to other "right to die" communities, which are mostly interested in legalizing physician-assisted euths for the terminally ill. It's not similar to other depression and SI communities, which permit philosophical discussions, artistic expressions, and vent threads but not explicit instructions or real-time death watches.
@afounder and his team are so blackpilled they see this as "gatekeeping", and they openly denigrate recovery all the time. So it's not really a "pro-choice forum", it's more "pro-paganda forum".
That in mind, I don't really find it credible when Small tries to hide behind Section 230. He's not retarded or incapable, and he understands the community he founded. A user who CTBs on SS is using the forum
as @afounder intended.
Section 230 is meant to cover administration when users do shit that's illegal and would otherwise be liable for hosting that illegal content. It's not meant to shield an administrator as they deliberately cultivate a community inciting and encouraging members to take their own lives.