Mimicking a policy that the west once condemned Communist China for pursuing, authoritarians are now calling for X to be shut down completely in the UK to stop civil unrest.
After the country was rocked by a series of riots over the past week in response to a 17-year-old son of Rwandan immigrants killing three little girls in Southport, the media and the political class blamed the anger on “misinformation” shared on X.
In reality, the UK has been a boiling pot of resentment and rage over mass migration for years, with huge numbers continuing to arrive, putting massive strain on the country and making some parts of major towns and cities unrecognizable, despite nobody having ever voted for it.
However, the disorder is being exploited to grease the skids for mass censorship.
Cambridge professor Sander van der Linden said the government could “geo-restrict access to a platform if the situation got so bad” and Twitter could also be “banned from the app store for violating policies.”
'Elon Musk is running into trouble by making outrageous statements and amplifying misinformation.' As the riots continue, @Sander_vdLinden warns that the government could 'restrict access to Twitter', or it could be 'banned from app stores'. pic.twitter.com/aSmQnAgH6L
— LBC (@LBC) August 6, 2024
Jessica Simor QC also called for the UK government to “pass a short bill closing down Twitter in the UK.”
The left are acting like a Middle East dictator during the Arab Spring. "We must crush the people! They're dissatisfied with our rule and noticing our lies!" pic.twitter.com/szoeFQT0Rv
— Leo Kearse – on YouTube & Saturday Night Showdown (@LeoKearse) August 7, 2024
Entrepreneur Ana Vilhete also called for Twitter to be temporarily banned in the UK to “limit the spread of inflammatory information.”
🚨🇬🇧 Should Britain BAN Social Media?“I think so”UK Powers have lost complete control of the narrative – people are seeing the truth,their Lies & Propaganda exposed.Welcome to the UK in 2024 where Fascism is very much on the rise. pic.twitter.com/k7NKwGGjjO
— Concerned Citizen (@BGatesIsaPyscho) August 7, 2024
Journalist Paul Mason, a Marxist who once worked for the BBC, demanded the government use the Online Safety Bill (which passed under the excuse of protecting children from harmful content) to “pull the plug” on X.
HMG needs to enact the full Online Safety Act now, no more consultations. They should call the two (!) execs of UK Twitter in to explain why their CEO is personally boosting hate speech, incitement and disinformation – and pull the plug on the service unless this stops. 1/
— Paul Mason (@paulmasonnews) August 6, 2024
Apparently, it’s horrendous for Middle Eastern dictators to shut down and block social media networks during times of civil unrest, as occurred during the Arab Spring, but when the UK does it, it’s fine.