Canadian Politician Removed From Provincial Assembly For Threats She Didn't Make On Facebook Group She Didn't Join
from the wut? dept
We've heard stories in the past about people being blamed for the comments of others on Facebook groups, such as an attempt to hold parents responsible for the groups their children join. While my position is that such blaming is reactionary and silly, there is at least a modicum of a tangential relationship between the parties. So what should the response be if such a relationship doesn't exist? What if someone is added to a group without their knowledge and members of that group advocate violence? What should be done then?
Well, if you're a member of the Newfoundland House of Assembly in Canada, apparently you are removed from the house of assembly proceedings entirely. Such was the case with Gerry Rogers.
Earlier Tuesday, Justice Minister Darin King said Rogers was a member of the Facebook group Kathy Dunderdale must GO!!! in which users had posted comments containing death threats against the premier.
"What kind of message is that sending to the people of the province, to our children in the province, when we talk about bullying and harassment and intimidation?" said King.Bullying? Well, the definition of the verb is "to treat abusively; to affect by means of force or coercion." Call me crazy, but it seems to me that forcing someone out of the duties of their elected office as a means for coercing them to apologize for something she had absolutely nothing to do with sort of meets the criteria, doesn't it? That's exactly what happened here, as Rogers aptly contends.
"I did not join this Facebook group," Rogers told reporters during the recess. Rogers said that she thinks that the government does not understand how Facebook groups work. "I was added to this group without my knowledge, without permission, and by somebody that I do not know," said Rogers.Premier Kathy Dunderdale, against whom the threats were made, responded specifically to that point, insisting that the government did indeed understand how Facebook groups operate, but it's up to each member of government to monitor all the comments on all the groups they belong to, whether they had chosen to belong to them or not. She also said:
"I'm not going to be bullied or intimidated into doing something that I don't think is in the best interests of the people in this province," said Dunderdale.No, Madame Premier, that privilege appears to be reserved for Gerry Rogers, and the people she represents, I might add, unless your government wants to rethink its concepts over whether to blame people for the actions of others.
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Filed Under: canada, democracy
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Also, how in a democratic society, can an elected official be removed from office this easily, especially when the guy doing the expelling says he knows you didn't make the speech? Surely the rules should be that you see this democratically elected official is ostensibly part of this hate group, but they can't be fired until after a thorough investigation.
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It's like seeing a photo of a Ku Klux Klan gathering and a certain politician is just seen walking by looking at them, and then losing the plot and throwing them out of the meeting room.
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As you said the huge red alert here is placing liability for what others did in the victim and implying she should police the internet by herself. It's not only absurd but insane.
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No you don't.
"Does Facebook allow you to just add random people to groups without asking them?"
Depending on your privacy settings and those of the group, yes. I've recently been added to 2 different groups by friends of mine without my prior permission, though I'm unsure of whether you can do this for everyone, members of other groups you're both members of, or just people you've friended.
I agree with the rest of your comments.
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Response to: Rikuo on Apr 18th, 2013 @ 4:06am
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Being able to send be a request to join? Sure. Automatically joining me even if it's a group I would NEVER join on my own? Not so much. But there doesn't seem to be a setting for that...
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Orly?
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in these sad, dark days, when you can be classified/persecuted as a terrorist for supporting some group that does humanitarian work, which you have no idea is SECRETLY deemed a terroristical organization because, well, just BECAUSE SOME POLITICO DIDN'T 'like' them, we are ALL vulnerable to being secretly renditioned by Empire...
...and KNOW THIS: that is EXACTLY what the powers-that-be want: we are ALL TERRORIZED by 'our' (sic) own gummint and (in)justice system, such that we are all rendered as neutered mice who dare not squeak, not men who walk proudly on their hind legs and FORCE 'our' (sic) gummint to do OUR BIDDING, not the korporatocracy's...
all according to the plutokrats plan...
shut up and consume, sheeple, that is ALL you are good for...
art guerrilla
aka ann archy
eof
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL0E40AD7C9ED34763&v=JsqhenHI-zI&feature=player_de tailpage#t=420s
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as for being Justice Minister, it sounds to me that Darin King is the last person i would want in that position. how has any justice been shown here? what proof is there?
then please explain what it is that Dunderdale (should be Dunderfoot!) is not going to be intimidated or bullied into doing/not doing?
i suppose then, that those that have forced this person out of office are going to show the proof that she actually did as they have accused? i doubt it very much and refer back to my first comment. she has pissed off someone that has now used their position to get her fired and that was probably sticking up for the people rather than an industry or organisation.
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hilarious follow up story
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Waiting
You know it's coming.
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