[ExI] Americans can be put in jail for poking fun at the government? Really?

[William Flynn Wallace]

The problem, as is so often the case, is overgeneralization:  a few bad
cops and unnecessary shooting and suddenly all cops are bad (like the
overgeneralization by the cops that all blacks are criminals). This is the
brain we are stuck with, folks.  So many errors.   bill w

On Thu, Oct 6, 2022 at 9:58 AM Darin Sunley via extropy-chat <
extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:

> Making powerful enemies (and your local cops are powerful, at least
> locally) is a dangerous pastime, no matter what some "constitution" says.
>
> Some people seem to have a very weird sense of entitlement about this.
>
> On Wed, Oct 5, 2022 at 11:07 AM William Flynn Wallace via extropy-chat <
> extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
>
>>  saying that because some people didn’t get the
>> joke, it violated the law.  bill k
>>
>>  I cannot believe that a judge (in this day and age, blah, blah, blah)
>> would say such a thing.  Many art cases have been adjudicated, and the
>> artist can satirize anything at all, period.  FREE SPEECH unless causing
>> riots  bill w
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Oct 5, 2022 at 11:51 AM BillK via extropy-chat <
>> extropy-chat at lists.extropy.org> wrote:
>>
>>> The Onion Files Hilarious Amicus Brief In An Important Case, And
>>> Actually Makes A Key Point In The Best Way Possible
>>> Tue, Oct 4th 2022 10:45am - Mike Masnick
>>>
>>> <
>>> https://www.techdirt.com/2022/10/04/the-onion-files-hilarious-amicus-brief-in-an-important-case-that-actually-makes-a-key-point-in-the-best-way-possible/
>>> >
>>>
>>> Quote:
>>> The case goes back to 2016 when Parma, Ohio resident Anthony Novak
>>> (who enjoys writing comedy skits for fun) created a parody Facebook
>>> page for the Parma Police Department. It was pretty obviously a
>>> parody, talking about how the department “strongly discourages
>>> minorities” from applying for jobs at the police department. It also
>>> offered “free abortions” in a police van, and promoted a “pedophile
>>> reform event.” In short, it was a parody page mocking the Parma
>>> Police.
>>>
>>> In response, the Parma police arrested Novak, claiming the parody page
>>> disrupted public services. Really. Novak spent four days in jail and
>>> then was tried but thankfully acquitted by a jury. Novak then sued the
>>> city of Parma for violating his civil rights. That case has bounced
>>> around the courts, but the rulings have not been great. The district
>>> court granted qualified immunity to the police. The 6th Circuit rolled
>>> that back in 2019 with what seemed like a good ruling at the time
>>> (with the court rightly noting “The First Amendment does not depend on
>>> whether everyone is in on the joke.”)
>>>
>>> However, on remand, the lower court again decided that the cops get
>>> qualified immunity, saying that because some people didn’t get the
>>> joke, it violated the law.
>>>
>>> Novak has asked the Supreme Court to weigh in on whether or not a
>>> police officer is entitled to qualified immunity for arresting someone
>>> solely for speech parodying the government. It also asks the court to
>>> reconsider the entire doctrine of qualified immunity.
>>> --------------
>>>
>>> The Onion brief is quite funny in places, but it makes the point that
>>> satirical parodies depend on initially fooling people, then them
>>> realising it is a joke.
>>> The Supremes have not yet decided whether to take the case.
>>>
>>> BillK
>>>
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