Legality of threats posted on Facebook

Somewhat related to the UK's new laws about "Cyberbullying":

http://www.npr.org/2014/12/01/366534452/is-a-threat-posted-on-facebook-really-a-threat

A man going through a messy divorce has been talking about hurting/killing his ex-wife (which helps explain why she left him in the first place) on Facebook. His defense is the classic asshole's excuse: It was a joke! He was venting and never meant to hurt her. The first jury didn't buy that and he went to jail for 44 months.

Today, his lawyer is arguing before the Supreme Court. I hope he wins because if he loses, that will be a pretty bad restriction on freedom of speech. It also means that weens will get their way when they report lolcow tardrage to the police, and nobody wants that.
 
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I am very glad I checked the comments on this article, lookie what I found!

MostestDevil • 5 minutes ago
The underlying problem here is people putting themselves in positions where others have the power to destroy your life. How many people have gone through breakups or divorce and said the following? "I'd like to kill that so and so!" "I wish that so and so were dead!" "I'm going to kill you!" Homicidal and suicidal ideation are very common in breakups and divorce, especially when there are kids involved or significant losses are encountered (financial loss, parental alienation, purposeful or accidental transmittal of an STD, property loss, being left with significant debt, social alienation, emptied bank accounts, etc).

What underlies many of the most hateful comments made online are seriously nefarious actions made on the part of the "supposed victim". In other words, the "supposed victim" did something to provoke or incite the response from the actual victim, leaving the actual victim with few avenues of recourse - thinly veiled threats or overt threats, or suffering in complete silence.

I have personally been harmed in some of the ways described above and would love nothing better than to (not going to write it here, cause I'd most certainly go to prison). It took me years to overcome the hatred and bitterness, which is, believe it or not, a common psychological outcome of divorce.

While posting these thoughts online is highly inadvisable, in the middle of a psychologically induced mental/emotional breakdown, people make rash, often regrettable choices. They say and do things they normally would never say or do. Quite often, it is the actions of the "supposed victim" that brought the actual victim to this dark place in their lives. If we chose to send people to prison for these rash words, we're going to need millions of new prison cells.

The real takeaway is this: Never give anyone any significant level of legal, emotional, psychological, physical, financial or spiritual power over your life. By conducting your life this way, you will never suffer the kind of emotional trauma that leads to such rash actions and/or words.

Marriage is the number one way in which your life can be destroyed by another. Depending on the state, cohabitation can be just as damaging.

I'm a MGHOW (man going his own way) and regularly advise men on the often disastrous consequences of marriage and cohabitation. I encourage all men to carefully analyze the many ways in which your life can be destroyed through cohabitation and marriage. By underestimating the consequences, hundreds of thousands of men's lives, in the US alone, are destroyed every single year.
 
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Morbid Boredom said:
I am very glad I checked the comments on this article, lookie what I found!

MostestDevil • 5 minutes ago
The underlying problem here is people putting themselves in positions where others have the power to destroy your life. How many people have gone through breakups or divorce and said the following? "I'd like to kill that so and so!" "I wish that so and so were dead!" "I'm going to kill you!" Homicidal and suicidal ideation are very common in breakups and divorce, especially when there are kids involved or significant losses are encountered (financial loss, parental alienation, purposeful or accidental transmittal of an STD, property loss, being left with significant debt, social alienation, emptied bank accounts, etc).

What underlies many of the most hateful comments made online are seriously nefarious actions made on the part of the "supposed victim". In other words, the "supposed victim" did something to provoke or incite the response from the actual victim, leaving the actual victim with few avenues of recourse - thinly veiled threats or overt threats, or suffering in complete silence.

I have personally been harmed in some of the ways described above and would love nothing better than to (not going to write it here, cause I'd most certainly go to prison). It took me years to overcome the hatred and bitterness, which is, believe it or not, a common psychological outcome of divorce.

While posting these thoughts online is highly inadvisable, in the middle of a psychologically induced mental/emotional breakdown, people make rash, often regrettable choices. They say and do things they normally would never say or do. Quite often, it is the actions of the "supposed victim" that brought the actual victim to this dark place in their lives. If we chose to send people to prison for these rash words, we're going to need millions of new prison cells.

The real takeaway is this: Never give anyone any significant level of legal, emotional, psychological, physical, financial or spiritual power over your life. By conducting your life this way, you will never suffer the kind of emotional trauma that leads to such rash actions and/or words.

Marriage is the number one way in which your life can be destroyed by another. Depending on the state, cohabitation can be just as damaging.

I'm a MGHOW (man going his own way) and regularly advise men on the often disastrous consequences of marriage and cohabitation. I encourage all men to carefully analyze the many ways in which your life can be destroyed through cohabitation and marriage. By underestimating the consequences, hundreds of thousands of men's lives, in the US alone, are destroyed every single year.
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So, basically live your life without ever getting too close to someone so you can't get hurt by them? Seems legit.
 
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Dude makes sense to me.

When I married I got a pre-nup, the courts are way to biased against men in my opinion so I look out for my wellbeing in the case my marriage should fail. You know over 50% do, thems not good odds.

Protecting yourself isn't bad.
 
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