When The Customer Isn't King

[American Oyaji]

FREEDOM OF SPEECH - JUST WATCH WHAT YOU SAY

[Big Booger]

AK, 3 million yen is only about $30,000.

And if I was a salesman and a customer called me a nigger in a meeting and MY company let it slide...

Hell Naw

http://www.alldumb.com/content/2006080322052727/13968

Check it out LOL What would you do if you had a customer like this guy?

[American Oyaji]

He'd have a severe dental bill.

No jury of my "peers" would convict me.

[AssKissinger]

http://www.alldumb.com/content/2006080322052727/13968

Check it out LOL What would you do if you had a customer like this guy?

I think that's cool because those people just said I'll kick your bitch ass. He may have been acting tough but he was scared to back that shit up. That guy's a pussy. It may seem gutsy to do that shit but he's a pussy. He'd cry like a bitch when it really went down you can see it him.

As for all the arguments like what about in court what about slander, libel and so on. Fuck that shit! Maybe you can think of a scenerio where total free speech doesn't fly but so fucking what? My premise is that freedom of speech is more important that some cunt's feelings. Kuang had it right earlier.

[amdg]

Wrong. The Sedition Act was repealed in 1921. Note that the Sedition Act never imposed prior restraint upon speech, it only imposed penalties after the fact. Your right to Free Speech is absolute, but the Government may impose penalties after you speak.

Now, having said this, here's the pop quiz: what is the ONE exception to prior restraint laws? What is the ONE thing the government can (and WILL) stomp down on you HARD if you even attempt to publish it?

encryption?

-damn firewall at work is sometimes letting me post, and sometimes eating my posts...best to keep it short.

[Big Booger]

I think that's cool because those people just said I'll kick your bitch ass. He may have been acting tough but he was scared to back that shit up. That guy's a pussy. It may seem gutsy to do that shit but he's a pussy. He'd cry like a bitch when it really went down you can see it him.

As for all the arguments like what about in court what about slander, libel and so on. Fuck that shit! Maybe you can think of a scenerio where total free speech doesn't fly but so fucking what? My premise is that freedom of speech is more important that some cunt's feelings. Kuang had it right earlier.

You should see him trying to hire some workers for a "Deck" project he has:
http://www.yikers.com/video_amazing_racist_tricks_mexicans.html

[Mulboyne]

Maybe you can think of a scenario where total free speech doesn't fly but so fucking what?

You took an absolute approach to free speech which is unworkable as those scenarios show. If you accept that there are legitimate limits to free speech then the question becomes where do you decide to draw the line rather than whether there is a line

You say freedom of speech is more important than someone's feelings. As you mentioned before, though, if you hear someone dissing you or America, you don't ignore it or turn the other cheek, you want to redress the insult by getting back in their face so it's clear you can imagine the harm that some statements can inflict.

Most people would accept that if you accuse someone of illegal behaviour then you ought to be able to prove it or suffer the consequences. I don't know if you do. There are other ways to damage a reputation though. You can put it around that someone is a drunk or a prescription drug addict or maybe that they cheat on their spouse. I think you should have to back those statements up too but maybe you disagree.

One obvious aspect of this particular news story is that the context is Japan and it is worth examining that. Japan doesn't have a great track record of protecting minorities or outsiders. Victims of bullying, whether in school, the workplace, or the local mothers' park don't get much sympathy. One offshoot of this is that accusations tend to stick and there are numerous example in literature and drama of a hero or heroine facing social ostracism because of some slander. We can see another side of this attitude in the way that people tend to assume you are guilty if you are arrested.

It's not uncommon for someone to be denigrated in Japan. Actually, I don't need to tell you this since you put it well yourself when you wrote about the Japanese teacher who was using freedom of speech to bully a pupil of his who had an American grandfather:

This is very shocking...If this was a teacher at the school where I work I'd kick his ass so fucking hard he'd end up the first man on Mars. An individual may not reflect on the entire nation but the truth is this type of bullying and hatred of anything 'gaijin' or 'outside the norm' (one definition of 'gaijin') is in fact endemic in Japan. Shibuya Me is just bringing some ugly reality to the surface.

Friends, family and colleagues still tend to assume that someone must have done something wrong if they are being picked on and so a victim is often just encouraged to put up with it - gaman being a highly-prized virtue - and not make a fuss. You may want to dispute the merits of this case but I cannot imagine Sekisui deciding to back their employee in such a way 10 years ago.

I think a case like this is significant because it indicates that society may not always side with the bully against the victim in future. The plaintiff may of course lose his case for a number of reasons. A court could decide that they only have his word to go on which is insufficient. They may decide that the defendant was offensive but not sufficient to warrant compensation. They may decide that he wasn't offensive in the slightest.

And yet the important change is that the South Korean resident's right to bring the action is not being contested as widely as it would have been before. He would have been told to shut up and forget about it. That suggests to me that people are alert to the existence of this kind of intimidation and aware of the damage it can cause. I think that is a better state of affairs.

[AssKissinger]

I don't try to hold myself to my beliefs because I believe that fear of hypocrisy is a weakness. But still, in my gut I think I believe that there should be no restrictions on free speech, period (including those you mentioned). I also believe there should be no censorship whatsoever, all copyright laws should be abolished and all drugs should be legalized. That's my basic slant, whatever political camp that is.

[Charles]

encryption?

No. The only prior restraint that has been consistently upheld in the courts is for kiddie porn.

[Kuang_Grade]

On a somewhat related note (on the topic of free expression vs. damage that may cause and the recourse of an injured party), there was an interesting piece on Slate recently about a women who worked on Capital Hill who kissed and told about her various dealings (including enjo kosai) with men a few years back. One of the men mentioned in her blog has sued her for the tort of "public disclosure of private facts".
http://www.slate.com/id/2146763/
The filing makes for interesting reading, since it includes many of her blog posts, such as this bon mot...although W is not the person suing

I am done with W, for real this time. A man who tries to fuck you in the ass when you are sober does not love you. He should at least take you out for a few drinks to spare you the pain. Now I know that W does not care about me, only my asshole.

http://files.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/torts/steinbuchvcutler51805cmp.pdf

[Mulboyne]

I didn't follow up this case but in September 2007, it was settled out of court. The customer offered an apology and paid compensation of 300,000 yen.

The topic has just resurfaced on the web. A site called Sekisui Nezumi has been putting out criticisms of Sekisui ever since the company announced its support for the case. Now however, the content has completely changed and it looks more like PR site for the company.

Netizens are wondering whether the original owner lost rights to the domain name or whether he's been bought off.