United States Senator James David Vance has criticised Ireland’s proposed Hate Speech legislation, as international scrutiny around the law mounts.
In a social media post, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance wrote: “Ireland senator wants to criminalize speech that causes too much “discomfort” for people. If this were happening in Russia or China or many other nations we would call it totalitarian and threaten economic sanctions.”
Ireland senator wants to criminalize speech that causes too much “discomfort” for people. If this were happening in Russia or China or many other nations we would call it totalitarian and threaten economic sanctions. https://t.co/BgzB5aApXC
— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) November 27, 2023
“Hilarious to me that this person apparently never considered that speaking honestly about the public affairs of a nation might serve the common good, even if it offends some,” the Republican Senator added.
Alongside the comments posted to X, he shared a widely circulated video of Senator Pauline O’Reilly telling the Irish Seanad that “we are restricting freedom, but we are doing it for the common good,” – comments she made in reference to the Criminal Justice (Incitement to Violence or Hatred and Hate Offences) Bill 2022.
"We are restricting freedom for the common good": Irish Green Party Senator Pauline O'Reilly says that her government's hate speech bill is about "restricting freedom," and censoring views on gender identity if those views create "discomfort."#gript pic.twitter.com/H7QIT0QHmf
— gript (@griptmedia) June 15, 2023
In the wake of the Dublin knife attacks on three children and their creche worker, and the subsequent riots in the capital last Thursday night, an Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that enforcing the legislation – which was voted through in the Dáil in April, and is now at third stage before the Seanad – was a priority.
“We need it through within a matter of weeks,” Mr Varadkar told a press briefing in reference to the law, with his comments attracting international attention and sparking furore from civil rights advocates and international commentators.
Doubling down, on Sunday, Tanaiste Micheál Martin also promised that Hate Speech laws would be enacted before Christmas.
The tweet from J.D Vance was widely picked up, with many of Mr Vance’s followers objecting to the legislation.
“My big question is who is excluded from offending people and who isn’t,” one response read. Another person chimed in, “Anything can be blamed on incitement, that is one of the reasons speech is protected.”
“What in the world is going on in Ireland?” one user on X asked, as social media users said the legislation would amount to “an abuse of power.”
A number of users even called on Vance to threaten economic sanctions to be imposed on Ireland over the proposed law.
The international spotlighting of the law is ongoing, after X owner Elon Musk responded to the Taoiseach’s pledge to introduce the legislation in the wake of the unrest in Dublin by stating, “Ironically, the Irish PM hates the Irish people” in a tweet on Friday which resulted in division, and opened up a broader conversation around the law. What followed was a series of tweets about the legislation.
Ironically, the Irish PM hates the Irish people
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 24, 2023
Turning his attention back to Ireland, on Saturday, Mr Musk told his 164 million followers on his platform, “Suppression of the Irish people is the real crime.”
Suppression of the Irish people is the real crime
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 25, 2023
Musk went on to claim that “having a meme on your phone” could have serious repercussions under the legislation, as he quote-tweeted a video of police arresting someone:
“Language being proposed as law in Ireland means this could literally happen to you for having a meme on your phone,” he wrote on Monday.
Language being proposed as law in Ireland means this could literally happen to you for having a meme on your phone https://t.co/qz9sKyjw62
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 27, 2023
Criticism also came from other quarters, with retired tennis ace Martina Navratilova weighing in on the Bill, describing it as “crazy” in response to a tweet by Irish political commentator Robert Burke.
“And this is crazy. Sure-let’s make hate speech a crime without defining what is hate speech,” the Czech-American former tennis player wrote, along with the hashtag ‘#nuts’.
And this is crazy. Sure- let’s make hate speech a crime without defining what is hate speech. #nuts https://t.co/pDNswTfqTM
— Martina Navratilova (@Martina) November 26, 2023
Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson has also taken the proposed legislation to task – dedicating an episode of ‘Tucker on X’ to discussing the Dublin riots and the Taoiseach’s response.
Carlson said that Ireland was being “completely transformed by immigration,” adding, “And going forward, anyone who complains about that or questions government policy will be guilty of a felony. The new Hate Speech laws are coming to Ireland. No complaining about it.”
Ep. 41 Dublin in flames. What’s happening in Ireland will happen here, at scale. Steve Bannon explains. pic.twitter.com/KzrRUJq0ZL
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) November 27, 2023
The controversy also caught the attention of Daily Wire editor, Ben Shapiro, who dedicated a 45-minute-episode of his show to explaining “Why Conor McGregor is now under investigation” – alluding to McGregor’s posts on X, where he has been outspoken over the government’s immigration policy, and declared, “We are at war.”
“We can tell a lot about a society from the kind of speech it seeks to ban,” Shapiro said. “In Ireland, that speech amounts to criticism of open immigration.”
Shapiro referenced Thursday’s Parnell Square attack in his report, and said that people saw the incident as “indicative of the government’s looseness about migrants entering the country.”
“From April 2022, to April 2023, Ireland saw a 16-year-high of 141,600 immigrants, including 40,000 Ukrainians,” he said. “Increasing economic insecurity, combined with that high level of immigration, put Ireland on the path to conflagration,” the commentator added.
Why Conor McGregor Is Now Under Investigation
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) November 27, 2023
The response to Thursday’s violent unrest has also been the subject of op-eds in high-profile publications across the water, including in The Daily Telegraph.
Historian, columnist, and lead writer for The Telegraph, Tim Stanley, was among those scathing of the government’s response to the riots, as he penned: “Ireland’s new elite deludes itself with platitudes about mass migration.”
“Leo Varadkar epitomises how the Irish establishment papers over the truth with trivialities and bromides,” Stanley wrote, in a piece drawing international attention to the legislation.
“Ireland’s experience of mass migration, despite its elites’ sense of moral superiority, has been very similar to Brexit Britain’s. The difference is we talk about it, and while having parties like Ukip might do little for our global reputation, it does act as a pressure valve for discontent,” he penned.
🗣 "Leo Varadkar epitomises how the Irish establishment papers over the truth with trivialities and bromides," writes Tim Stanley.
Read more here ⬇️https://t.co/iINz3GmY2q pic.twitter.com/hiC7jpyen6
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) November 27, 2023
“Ireland, by contrast, has chosen to double-down on the liberal narrative and Varadkar has even promised new laws to police hate speech, only driving debate into the darker recesses of the internet or, one fears, back on to the streets.”
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Even RTE put Musk’s criticism on yesterday’s news, shame that they didn’t include Navratilova’s also to show that it’s been acknowledged as totalitarian from the differing political standpoints.
Very intelligent and sensible left wing feminists have had direct experience of police harassment, sackings, etc., merely for expressing entirely reasonable (and factual) statements, beliefs that everybody held until two minutes ago.
Musk is an ass, but his position on freedom of speech is spot on.
I have been agreeably surprised at the support from all over the world for the Irish Resistance of freedom loving citizens.
It has taken the unfortunate attacks on 3 young children and their teacher .assistant, and the subsequent reaction of riots to bring the Irish Regimes draconian HATE Speech Laws to the worlds attention.
The dissemination of the facts have gone viral worldwide,via Social Media Warriors, Conor McGregor ,Elon Musk et all.with their massive Twitter/X followers.
The puny propagandists of RTE cannot compete agains this onslaught of world opinion ,They have lost the room, where once they had a domestic monopoly.
The Truth shall set you free was never so relevant.
The hubris ,arrogance and abuse of power by the grifters of the Regime is now obvious to the world.
We are on a roll ,but we need concrete action to reclaim our Nation from the Regime gougers.
Immediate deportation of illegal.unvetted ,undocumented migrants is the first item on the agenda to reclaim our Homeland and patrimony.
The only place I’ve seen a politician/commentator from outside Ireland express support for them is from some of the guests on that insane ‘Brussels My Love’ thing on Euronews (the station which also gave self-confessed paedophile and Green politician Daniel Cohn-Bendit his own show.)
But apart from these lot, who even to an impartial eye behave like cult members, nowhere else.
There’s always been the observation that the British Empire introduced tactics in Ireland they would then use everywhere else.
I get the impression that the push for this Hate Speech debacle in Ireland is coming almost entirely from the backrooms of the EU.
She has bacteria in her bowels superior to you, you sad pathetic little creature.
I love your comment Finnovar. I had not heard that one before. I will remember it to use myself in future. There’s nothing like a good snappy insult.
Hate Speech laws = Cluster [you know the rest]
A persistent troll from “the Q continuum” (yes trolls and Q are Star Trek references) appears on the comments sections (as he/it/she/Que does here) with a repetitive frequency pattern which suggests an AI bot at play. Of course “Q” is anonymous unlike Maria Maynes who has the intelligence and the guts to articulate her opinions under her own name.I do the same in my own humble way.When I disagree with opinions in other media I attack the substance of the argument with actual facts under my own name, unlike Q who like his/her/Que SciFi clone in the Star Trek universe always plays the man/woman first and as the bird brain memory kicks in Q forgets all about any semblance of an argument.The SciFi Q was famous for throwing tantrums too.The good news is that Kirk vanquished the Trolls and Picard vanquished “Q” without spilling any blood,it was win win for everyone.The Trolls and “Q” got beamed into a bubble in the space time continuum where they could throw all the childish tantrums and ad hominem to their little heart’s content. Scottie, lock on Q and beam them/he/she/Que back into their teenage bedroom.
Speaking of Star Trek the world that the ‘progressives’ of today seem to be trying to create and force us all to live in always reminds me of Planet Beta in ‘Return of the Archons’.
Or it might have been Beta 3. But anyway , although that episode probably dates from the 60’s it now seems as Orwelllian a prophetic warning as 1984.
I think you are spot on about the AI bot. It is so laughably bad however that it is a very poor advertisement for AI .I suppose the worry is that these things improve over the years and it becomes impossible to tell them from a human.