Earth to Canada

come in, canada

Deadly poison, hidden in bland pudding. Canada is in deep trouble.

The Online Harms Act, just introduced in the Canadian House of Commons, is being described in news reports as a bill to regulate social media and protect children from online harm:

OTTAWA, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Canada on Monday unveiled draft legislation to combat online hate that would force major companies to quickly remove harmful content and boost the penalty for inciting genocide to life in prison.

The Liberal government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau introduced the bill with the stated aim of protecting children from online predators.

The bill says major social media companies must quickly remove content that sexually victimizes a child as well as intimate content communicated without consent. In both cases, the content would have to be removed within 24 hours, subject to an oversight and review process.

Read it. In you’re Canadian, drop everything and read it now. It says things like this:

“I hate trannies.” Liable to imprisonment for life. The Reuters story I quote above says the bill proposes life imprisonment for people who are guilty of “inciting” genocide. That’s false. It proposes life imprisonment for people who merely say that they favor genocidal violence against anyone, whether or not the statement is intended to actually incite anything, and whether not it succeeds. Be absolutely clear about what Canada is proposing:

mere statements / life in prison

From the legislative summary, available at the same link:

The bill is about posting on the Internet: “…to communicate or cause to be communicated hate speech by means of the Internet.” And it proposes life imprisonment as a punishment.

For what you post on social media. For mean tweets.

Justin Trudeau has been speaking quite often about the growing threat of authoritarianism, but I thought he meant it as a warning. Turns out he meant it as a promise.