Facing 30 Years Gaol For TWEET!!!

2 Mexicans deny terrorism, face 30 years for tweet...

How ridiculous is this? Soon we'll be at risk for sharing or repeating 'theories' on ATS!

A former teacher turned radio commentator and a math tutor who lives with his mother sit in a prison in southern Mexico, facing possible 30-year sentences for terrorism and sabotage in what may be the most serious charges ever brought against anyone using a Twitter social network account.

Prosecutors say the defendants helped cause a chaos of car crashes and panic as parents in the Gulf Coast city of Veracruz rushed to save their children because of false reports that gunmen were attacking schools.

"Here, there were 26 car accidents, or people left their cars in the middle of the streets to run and pick up their children, because they thought these things were occurring at their kids' schools," Buganza told local reporters.

SOURCE

The NOOSE is tightening on FREEDOM OF SPEECH my friends

reply to post by SpaceJockey1


They deserve to be charged with something.
It's the same thing as making a bomb threat without there being a bomb.
It's still a felony.
That isn't what I consider free speech.
It's more like idiots playing with computers speech.


PS - all of the 26 car crashes had the potential to be fatal. Why are you supporting these guys?

Freedom of Speech, 'eh? Well for one thing, do you know the laws pertaining to personal free speech (not to be confused with freedom of the press) in Mexico?

How is this different from something along the lines of yelling "FIRE" falsely, in a crowded stadium (in the US) as an example? Which is against the law, btw...

This twitter incident may not be Terrorism, but it very well may be (should be) against the law.

***

Did the two charged in this incident initiate the tweets or re-tweet them or one of each? The story is a bit vague. It does read like some tweets originated with the male while the female re-tweeted as fact. This would make a difference in level of criminal liability.

reply to post by SpaceJockey1


They weren't claiming it was a theory though, they claimed it was happening right there and children were being kidnapped. It wasn't like conspiracies here on ats where its discussed and ripped apart, it was a blatant lie that caused one of the biggest fears of a parent, and to make it worse he just "relayed the message" which goes to show how gullible that person was and without any critical thought.

I hear what you are all saying so far, but does the punishment fit the crime?

Honestly, people charged with MURDER get lesser sentences than this.

And BTW, did Orsen Wells get ANY goal time for his WOW radio broadcast, or was that somehow different?

Originally posted by SpaceJockey1
I hear what you are all saying so far, but does the punishment fit the crime?

Is this thread about the punishment fitting the crime or about Free Speech?
The argument in the op was violation of Free Speech.

If it's about punishment fitting the crime, then we agree that there WAS a crime, therefor not a violation of personal freedoms, yes?

It seems to me that this situation may really be more about whether or not the application of the Terrorism label is appropriate...

reply to post by SpaceJockey1


The difference between Orson Wells (not Orsen) and these two retards is that Orson Wells told a story.
Which was very common during that time.
There is no comparison. At all.

"My sister-in-law just called me all upset, they just kidnapped five children from the school," Martinez tweeted.

How is this even remotely close to what Orson Wells did?
Are your eyes open?

I hear what you are all saying so far, but does the punishment fit the crime?

I think they were lenient with them. Give them life.

reply to post by SpaceJockey1


And one more reason not to drive and tweet.

reply to post by SpaceJockey1


No comparison when we know better today, and also:

The Panic

Though the program began with the announcement that it was a story based on a novel and there were several announcements during the program that reiterated that this was just a story, many listeners didn't tune in long enough to hear them.

history1900s.about.com...

Big difference.

What he did is no different that going into a packed place and shouting "Ive got a bomb". They that on a plane and then complain about free speech and see how far that gets you.

Its go nothing to do with free speech, he deserves to go down for some time but 30 years is excessive.

SpaceJockey must support terrorism.
No other explanation.

To me it seems as though....the 2 accused people....were passing on to others....rumors they had heard....and it sounds as though ...they themselves believed these rumors.....I think they were just trying to warn people.....not cause trouble....I think also that they had good intentions.

reply to post by caladonea


Yes good intentions...absolutely no common sense. Did any of them actually call the schools or police to verify any of it, or did they start to panic jump in their cars and speed off to the schools?

This twitter incident may not be Terrorism, but it very well may be (should be) against the law...

Well said in my opinion. People see others do bad things these days, and the public automatically thinks terrorists. Because that has been pushed on society as of late. We have gotten "against the law" and "terrorism" confused.

reply to post by caladonea


If they were just relaying the tweet, then why isn't the person they heard the "rumor" from facing charges?
Seems like an excuse to me.

Originally posted by BluePillOrRedPill
Well said in my opinion. People see others do bad things these days, and the public automatically thinks terrorists. Because that has been pushed on society as of late. We have gotten "against the law" and "terrorism" confused.

This is a text book example of terrorism, they instilled fear and terror to the general public, so much so that they were driving like maniacs. Whats defined in law as terrorism is different than our perception of it.

They dont have to be middle east bombers to be terrorists.

Originally posted by SpaceJockey1

The NOOSE is tightening on FREEDOM OF SPEECH my friends

edit on 4-9-2011 by SpaceJockey1 because: Addition

Sorry SpaceJockey1, but with freedom of speech comes responsibilty and as their actions endangered life they deserve punishment. I accept that 30 years is harsh though!