US Congressional hearings: Censorship necessary to "quell information rebellions"
This week's US congressional hearings on “extremist” political views served as the occasion for members of Congress to urge technology companies to flagrantly violate the US Constitution by censoring political speech, carrying out mass surveillance, and muzzling journalists in pursuit of the government’s geopolitical aims.
The hearings exposed the real aim of the censorship carried out by Google and other Internet giants: to suppress political opposition within the US. As Clint Watts, a former US Army officer and FBI agent, declared in testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday: “Civil wars don’t start with gunshots, they start with words. America’s war with itself has already begun. We all must act now on the social media battlefield to quell information rebellions...”
As these hearings make clear, Google's move to block the WSWS is part of a campaign to censor the Internet, involving powerful corporations and governments around the world. We need your financial support to fight against the greatest threat to free speech since the Second World War.
