How does Freedom of Speech contend with Defamation?

I should be able to send mails to people's bosses and their wives.

"URGENT INQUIRY- Mr x on pedophilia accusations.

"Dear boss/wife of boss, I'm a public service agent and I have been recently notified that Mr. X, who works for your company as a wagie has been associated with Joshua Connor Moon, who, citing New Zealand times, is a presumed pedophile enabler and continues using the platform for internet bloodsports and harassment of minorities. I'd like to know if the company is okay with continuing supporting financially Mr. X and how this affects the policy of your company before my publication.

Kind Regards- Justtocheck."

Free speech all the way.
 
Everyone knows that defamation is bullshit and it is used as an excuse to silence people for exposing them or making fun of them. Think about alex jones when he said some shit about sandy hook. Lost nearly a billion fucking dollars. That's more money than 99% of the US population will ever see in their entire life.
 
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I think the limits of defamation should come down to if you know what you said wasn't true and what you intended to do with that.

Examples of where it's free speech:
Baseless speculation, like Sandy Hook conspiracy theories, discussions of people on the Internet that you've never met, rumors surrounding politicians and celebrities

Examples of where it shouldn't be:
- Sustained harassment of private individuals on patently untrue things that affect that person's livelihood
- Knowingly producing falsehoods for political discourse, profit, or personal clout
 
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Because you don't have a right to a reputation or what other people think about you, you don't own the opinions of others. Just like with IP, you don't have a right in speculation and "future profits" that don't exist yet.

However, fraud and slander are still forms of tort and as such should be punishable in a civil court because you are essentially committing theft by deception.
 
"Yelling fire in a crowded theater" refers to one of the most egregious abuses of jurisprudence to come out of the Supreme Court. The full context for that quote saw Oliver Wendell Holmes saying that opposition to the WW1 draft was as crazy and inflammatory as shouting fire in a crowded theater. I repeat, saying that the US government is using you, you'll probably die, and it won't be for a cause that helps you or your family is "needlessly inflammatory".

Thank fuck that piece of shit ruling was overturned. I can yell fire in a theater if I like. People are under no obligation to believe me.
 
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