Legalism & facebook

Recently, I have seen groups on facebook hoping for the death of President Obama. That's right, people who would never actively do anything to harm or support harming the president are joining facebook groups hoping, praying, and/or seeking the president's death.

They don't necessarily advocate assassination, but they certainly aren't against a rapidly progressing disease.

Please, people, how gross is that?

So yesterday, I asked this question on my status:

I am reading posts advocating death and hate and other posts advocating silencing those voices. Question: Unless there in something in the "Terms of Service," to the contrary; does facebook have the right to censor any voice? Yes, even voices that spew ignorance (I'll let you decide what accounts for ignorance if you'll allow me the same.).

Well, folks were not all pleased with my question, for the most obvious reasons. Later in the day I posted that this question is a legal question for all of the scribes and Pharisees on facebook (and I can certainly be enough of a scribe to ask a legal question). It's a legal question with a legal answer. In this case, as in so many others, this law has nothing to do with love.

An aside: Once in college, I coordinated a graffiti wall for Student Activities on Valentines Day. I let people leave messages for everyone to see all over several bulletin boards in the College Commons. Yes, there was one rule to the graffiti wall: If I found it offensive, it was gone. I would take an exacto-knife and cut out the offending patch and staple in fresh paper in its stead. If any one asked what right I had to do the editing it was simple. It was my program, they were my rules, and the rules were posted, If I was the arbiter of propriety then it was my decision and it's as simple as that. (Yes, I did cut out profane and overly lurid posts.) I set myself up as judge and jury and had the disciplinary action set. You could post as much profanity as you wanted, I would just come back and cut it out. If you didn't like it, then don't post.

I mention this because I know facebook must have something about threatening speech in their "Terms of Service." It's all about enforcement. Outside of this legal thing, I believe there is no place in our world in hoping and praying for death. The Lord is the Lord of life, not the Lord of death. Especially friends in service to God in these groups should know better than praying for the death of any soul.

In the mean time, I just hope that everyone who has joined such a group or made such a post won't be too surprised when the Secret Service knocks on their door and makes their lives miserable for a season or two. As the old song goes, don't cross the river if you can't swim the tide.

In the meantime, a little Elvis Costello asking the musical question this post begs to be answered: