Jim Wright served more than two decades in the Navy. Now he’s fighting Facebook for his right to free speech. The retired Navy officer was banned from Facebook earlier this week for using the term Nazi to refer to people who are, in fact, Nazis.
In his blog, Stonekettle Nation, Wright explained that he was banned from the social media site after one of his status updates was flagged as spam by multiple people. The post, he said, was reported as spam because it didn’t actually violate any of Facebook’s terms and conditions.
It was written in response to some Nazis being upset about Wright calling them Nazis on Twitter.
Despite the fact that Wright’s post was neither spam nor a violation of Facebook policies, he was banned from logging on to the site for 24 hours.
Wright has been outspoken against President-Elect Donald Trump and the rise of fascism in America, and he’s not alone. Facebook may have given Wright the boot, but his anti-Nazi post has been spreading like wildfire across the site as other users share it.
A Nazi By Any Other Name…
Let’s take a look at Merriam-Webster’s definition of Nazi:
“1. a member of a German fascist party controlling Germany from 1933 to 1945 under Adolf Hitler
2. often not capitalized- a: one who espouses the beliefs and policies of the German Nazis: fascist b: one who is likened to a German Nazi: a harshly domineering, dictatorial, or intolerant person”
President-elect Donald Trump has said that he wants to institute a Muslim registry, like the one the Nazis had for the Jews under Hitler:
“Oh I would certainly implement that. Absolutely.”
Vice President-Elect Mike Pence’s views on homosexuality mirror those of the Nazi Party to a terrifying degree.
“…Societal collapse was always brought about following an advent of the deterioration of marriage and family.”
Let’s not forget about Trump’s new chief strategist and senior counselor, Steve Bannon, who headed notorious “alt-right” (read: fascist) Breitbart News Network.
Just a couple of the articles and op-ed columns Breitbart has published include “Geert Wilders: Let’s Lock the Door on Islam,” from , and “Bill Kristol: Republican Spoiler, Renegade Jew.” among others. And this:
We are updating the Race Murder In Virginia as details emerge here… http://t.co/bzVCnfn7M5 pic.twitter.com/sp83UfgETV
— 'Sources Say' is Greek for 'Fake News' (@NolteNC) August 26, 2015
Perhaps Facebook will let Wright log back in if he agrees to call the Nazis by a more attractive euphemism. Fascist scum? Racist troglodytes? What works for you, Facebook?
The Post That Got Wright Banned
Here’s the full text of Wright’s supposedly offending post.
“I don’t envy Mike Godwin, his law is getting a hell of a workout
I’ve got hundreds of angry messages here telling me to stop calling Trump supporters fascists. And I would, except for the part where I keep running into ACTUAL FUCKING NAZIS.
This guy for example. He’s upset at my “brand of profanity” (I used the term “ball-gargling” in reference to Sean Hannity. My apologies, but as a retired military officer and professional writer when I see somebody gargling balls I’m required by law to use the technical term. I digress), but sees nothing profane about naming himself after an infamous French collaborator and member of the Waffen SS. Not to mention his ‘heroes’ are literally a list of fascists, fascist murderers who became the actual Nazi party, and white supremacists.
And then there’s ‘Jewry.’ Just right there, in a sentence, like you know that’s something people who aren’t Nazis do.
So again, you don’t want to be called a Nazi?
Then stop hanging out with actual Nazis. Just stop it. Stop it. Stop it.
Stop hanging out with Nazis. Don’t be polite to Nazis. Don’t think that the First Amendment means you have to be respectful of Nazis. Don’t pretend Nazis have a valid point of view. They’re Nazis.
Stop standing next to Nazis.
Stop acting like Nazis.
Stop cheering Nazis.
Stop voting for the people Nazis vote for.
They’re fucking NAZIS. You don’t have to be polite to them. It’s okay to hate them. They’re fucking NAZIS.
And for the love of Dread Cthulhu, stop using the word ‘Jewry.'”
A Disturbing Trend For The Future
A Facebook ban might not seem like big news. But the reality is, the site is kicking users off for being critical of the government, and that’s fucking terrifying.
Folks, me getting banned from Facebook isn't the real issue
The real issue is that fascists are now going openly in the US
— Stonekettle (@Stonekettle) November 23, 2016
If you have sex with a goat, you're not an "alt farmer," you're a goat fucker
If you raise your hand and shout Sieg Heil you're a Nazi
— Stonekettle (@Stonekettle) November 22, 2016
Wright explains:
“I’d like to say that this won’t silence me, or keep me from posting to the community I’ve created on Facebook.
He went on to address his history, and the situation journalists like him may face in the future:
Those who know me, know that I am a veteran who fought under the flag of the United States of America for more than 20 years, can probably guess which way I’ll go.
Given America’s new acceptance of fascism, I suspect platforms like Facebook and Twitter will either have to become more accommodating of actual fascist ideology and less tolerant of people like me, or risk going to the wall themselves – especially given that our new president has made it very clear that he intends to directly control how the media, including social media, reports on his administration.
I guess we’ll find out.”
In case there’s any confusion about what this could mean, here’s one of the 14 defining characteristics of fascism:
“Controlled Mass Media – Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.”
Watch this video to watch “actual fucking Nazis” celebrating Trump’s win:
Featured Image: Screenshot Via Facebook.
