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Regulation

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There is a huge difference between free speech and hate speech. Because there are people in the world who stretch their first amendment rights so far to the maximum that they become radical and think it is perfectly acceptable to type whatever pleases them, it's absolutely not.

As defined by dictionary.com, free speech is the right to express an opinion freely. Hate speech is defined as bigoted speech attacking or disparaging a social or ethnic group or a member of such a group. While one seems to circumvent or even contradict the other in the way the two are worded, it takes a moral and social understanding to know when the definitions change and the battle grounds become primed for a nasty confrontation. Hate speech is an assault like any other and subject to criminal punishment on the verbal scale, and nothing should be any different because it's being typed as opposed to spoken.

In all facets of the animal kingdom, there is a rank and file; an order. While wolves and prairie dogs alike don't know the first thing about hate speech or first amendment rights (at least as far as we can tell), there is a need for order and control in their respective kingdoms, and it exists.

The Internet and all its glory can be narrowed down to two basic primitive defense items, enhancing a person's online arsenal. We are all given two basic tools to keep us chat safe and forum mighty thanks to the hidden identity element of the virtual realm. The internet becomes a persons' sword and shield. You can be as mighty as you ever wanted to be without repercussions that you might otherwise face in the world around you, and that alone is often times taken to a level that is absolutely outlandish. And all this happens because you hide behind your shield; in this case, your identity. There is no physical presence, no mannerisms, movements or identity, all the elements you would find in a face to face discussion. Because you are essentially a phantom being, and often times hiding yourself from expressing your identity by logging into chat communities under pseudo names, you can toss whatever words you can type up around like water balloons. If you are really verbally skilled and a master of word attack, then cannonballs. Because of this alone, there has to be order. The hiding aspect of who you are is the perfect catalyst to let you exercise your communication muscles. In other words, you have the ability before you to offend beyond belief.

Moderating an internet community helps to ensure that the first amendment right is exercised freely but hate speech is not tolerated.

People have set the rules in the internet chat forum, not the designers. And it is because of the users that order and rules have to be established to insure a safe community for everyone in attendance.

Learn more about this author, Andi Bryant.
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