Gab website offline after GoDaddy pulls support

[midian182]

What just happened? Gab, the alternative social network that’s gained controversy as a home for the far right, is offline after domain name provider GoDaddy gave it 24 hours to find another service. The move comes after several other companies distanced themselves from the platform

Gab, which positions itself an alternative to the likes of Twitter and Facebook by focusing on free speech and less censorship, found itself in the spotlight over the weekend following the shooting at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue on Saturday.

Alleged shooter Robert Bowers was an active poster on Gab, where he often wrote about anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and white supremacist views. The company deleted his posts following the shooting, adding that it “disavowed any and all violence."

GoDaddy says it dumped Gab because the site violated its terms of service. “In response to complaints received over the weekend, GoDaddy investigated and discovered numerous instances of content on the site that both promotes and encourages violence against people,” it said, in a statement.

GoDaddy wasn’t the only firm to ban Gab over the weekend. PayPal, Medium, Stripe, and cloud host Joynet all did the same thing in the wake of the tragedy.

Accessing Gab’s website now brings up a message that claims it is under attack. “We have been systematically no-platformed by App Stores, multiple hosting providers, and several payment processors,” it states.

“We have been smeared by the mainstream media for defending free expression and individual liberty for all people and for working with law enforcement to ensure that justice is served for the horrible atrocity committed in Pittsburgh. Gab will continue to fight for the fundamental human right to speak freely.”

Gab says it is working around the clock to get the site back online using a new provider but predicts that it will be inaccessible for a period of time. After everything that’s happened, it’s hard to imagine any companies would want to be associated with it.

Last year, GoDaddy announced it would no longer allow neo-Nazi website The Daily Stormer to use its services. The move came after an article was published disparaging Heather Heyer, the 32-year-old woman who was killed when a white supremacist drove into a crowd of people protesting against the white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/77140-gab-website-offline-after-godaddy-pulls-support.html

 

[Squid Surprise]

Hard to shed any tears for this site... It's one thing to "promote free speech" and another to simply become a haven for racists...

The internet is already a haven for free speech - there is no need for sites who specialize in hatred and violence. You can post on Reddit or any other forum site - and face the righteous criticism of your views if they're id1otic!

Good riddance Gab!

 

[kombu]

Hard to shed any tears for this site... It's one thing to "promote free speech" and another to simply become a haven for racists...

The internet is already a haven for free speech - there is no need for sites who specialize in hatred and violence. You can post on Reddit or any other forum site - and face the righteous criticism of your views if they're *****ic!

Good riddance Gab!

These groups started dwindling on major platforms due to increasing purges AND because they had a place to go to. But I guess now that they don't have a place of their own, they will just change their beliefs or just throw their hands up. IS THAT WHAT YOU BELIEVE?

 

[Nero7]

...and Facebook/Twitter will be next right?

 

[Uncle Al]

Far too often we attack the vehicle's for free speech rather than address those that would abuse the privilege, but sadly it is the expectation of closing such sites that gives people the misguided impression that the problem will go away. It all starts at home and how we raise our kids ......

 

[BiceBolje]

...and Facebook/Twitter will be next right?

Youtube is harbor for far-right. I can't believe what I've read there, and Youtube is targeting those videos to me, and all that SJW cringe crap it's amazing...

 

[Puiu]

...and Facebook/Twitter will be next right?

Youtube is harbor for far-right. I can't believe what I've read there, and Youtube is targeting those videos to me, and all that SJW cringe crap it's amazing...

Maybe youtube is giving you this kind of content because that's what you've been looking online for (a lot). I don't search for this kind of content and I do not get it in any of my feeds.

 

[stewi0001]

As a local Pittsburgher, all I can ask is please do not allow hatred to consume you. Please love one another and forgive those that offend you. You do not have to agree with everyone, just do not allow anger and hate to control you.

 

[TomSEA]

"Gab will continue to fight for the fundamental human right to speak freely."

They obviously don't understand the difference between free speech and inflammatory hate speech.

 

[wiyosaya]

The internet is already a haven for free speech - there is no need for sites who specialize in hatred and violence.

...and Facebook/Twitter will be next right?

Those that appear on these venues think that the 1st Amendment means that they can say anything they want without consequences. However, SCOTUS has ruled that 1st Amendment protection does not apply to speech that incites violence. These groups have to live with the Constitution and SCOTUS rulings on it whether they like it or not. SCOTUS said that incitement of violence is not required for the free exchange of ideas.

Far too often we attack the vehicle's for free speech rather than address those that would abuse the privilege, but sadly it is the expectation of closing such sites that gives people the misguided impression that the problem will go away.

In addition to that I said above, I would be surprised if a majority of the people think that such entities will go away just because their site was shut down.

"Gab will continue to fight for the fundamental human right to speak freely."

They obviously don't understand the difference between free speech and inflammatory hate speech.

They certainly do not and should review SCOTUS decisions on what constitutes free speech protected under the 1st Amendment.

As a local Pittsburgher, all I can ask is please do not allow hatred to consume you. Please love one another and forgive those that offend you. You do not have to agree with everyone, just do not allow anger and hate to control you.

I am not a resident of Pittsburgh, but I am right there with you!

 

[Shegunna_Blow]

Thankfully this is possible due to not having net neutrality law!

 

[Squid Surprise]

These groups started dwindling on major platforms due to increasing purges AND because they had a place to go to. But I guess now that they don't have a place of their own, they will just change their beliefs or just throw their hands up. IS THAT WHAT YOU BELIEVE?

No, I don't.... but when you give people a platform to spout hatred and violence, you give tacit permission to those who practice it.

Kind of like the warez release group that says "if you like the game, buy it"... this doesn't legally absolve them of the crime of piracy, nor should providing a haven for racists absolve you of racism.

While the shooter himself would probably have found himself behind bars eventually regardless, by allowing him a place to find "like minded people", he may well have rationalized that his opinions were not crazy...

Nothing makes someone think they're normal more than having other people share their opinions... with the amount of people online these days, however, this simply isn't the case. Just because 10,000 other people also think Jews should be exterminated does NOT make it right!

 

[wiyosaya]

As a local Pittsburgher, all I can ask is please do not allow hatred to consume you. Please love one another and forgive those that offend you. You do not have to agree with everyone, just do not allow anger and hate to control you.

I really hate to point this out, but this seems like an appropriate context though others many not agree with me.

That said, here's an article I saw today. The title is

Chimpanzees react faster to cooperate than make selfish choices

https://phys.org/news/2018-10-chimpanzees-react-faster-cooperate-selfish.html

 

[stewi0001]

I really hate to point this out, but this seems like an appropriate context though others many not agree with me.

That said, here's an article I saw today. The title is https://phys.org/news/2018-10-chimpanzees-react-faster-cooperate-selfish.html

There are ton examples in nature.

 

[kombu]

Thankfully this is possible due to not having net neutrality law!

Ha Ha
Super funny, bro. Actually Net Neutrality wouldn't have protected Gab from what happened. That's why I'm against Net Neutrality. So, good point.

 

[axiomatic13]

Bye Felisha!

 

[NeghVar]

Anyone who supports an "indiscriminate" free speech social network is left with the underbelly of society because all the other places create their own definition of free speech instead of what the SCOTUS has defined as free speech on multiple occasions. Most recently Matal v. Tam.

 

[drjekelmrhyde]

People seem like they have no what free speech even means. Private companies can refuse service, hell the GOP wanted it with the bakers religious freedom to make no gay cakes. Private entities like GoDaddy have every right to boot you if you violate their TOS.

 

[wiyosaya]

People seem like they have no what free speech even means. Private companies can refuse service, hell the GOP wanted it with the bakers religious freedom to make no gay cakes. Private entities like GoDaddy have every right to boot you if you violate their TOS.

Oh the ironies of life!

 

[MilwaukeeMike]

People seem like they have no what free speech even means. Private companies can refuse service, hell the GOP wanted it with the bakers religious freedom to make no gay cakes. Private entities like GoDaddy have every right to boot you if you violate their TOS.

Oh the ironies of life!

Well - if you remember correctly a lot of people got very upset at that bakery for refusing to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. They were called homophobes and were boycotted etc. The general opinion was that they were in the wrong.
Now that we agree with the company's choice we're all in favor of a private company exercising their right to refuse service to whoever they want.

It's a good example of a double standard.

And there is no irony - where in the story does it say some GOP senator stood up for Gab and called out GoDaddy for doing something wrong? It didn't happen. Ask any of them and they'll tell you that private business should be allowed to sell to whoever they want. They believe in individual rights.

 

[Squid Surprise]

Well - if you remember correctly a lot of people got very upset at that bakery for refusing to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. They were called homophobes and were boycotted etc. The general opinion was that they were in the wrong.
Now that we agree with the company's choice we're all in favor of a private company exercising their right to refuse service to whoever they want.

It's a good example of a double standard.

And there is no irony - where in the story does it say some GOP senator stood up for Gab and called out GoDaddy for doing something wrong? It didn't happen. Ask any of them and they'll tell you that private business should be allowed to sell to whoever they want. They believe in individual rights.

The flaw here is that it is illegal to discriminate against someone because of their sexual preferences (or race, religion, sex, etc)... so denying someone a cake at a bakery because they are gay (or female, black, Jewish, etc) is illegal - which supersedes the company's policy.

On the other hand, there is no law saying, "if someone wants to promote hate and violence, you must let them". So saying that your own policy forbids doing that is NOT a double standard in any way.

 

[JamesSWD]

Hard to shed any tears for this site... It's one thing to "promote free speech" and another to simply become a haven for racists...

The internet is already a haven for free speech - there is no need for sites who specialize in hatred and violence. You can post on Reddit or any other forum site - and face the righteous criticism of your views if they're id1otic!

Good riddance Gab!

Gab wasn't a far-right website for racists, like you believe. It simply promoted free speech in the face of the constant censorship & bannings by Facebook and Twitter who are heavily biased left. Everyone knows this and both FB & Twitter have admitted this in the past couple months.

Free speech doesn't equal hateful racist speech. That's just simple minded ignorance from NPC's who can't think for themselves and are dependent on the lies their Dem & MSM masters tell them to believe.

 

[Squid Surprise]

Gab wasn't a far-right website for racists, like you believe. It simply promoted free speech in the face of the constant censorship & bannings by Facebook and Twitter who are heavily biased left. Everyone knows this and both FB & Twitter have admitted this in the past couple months.

Free speech doesn't equal hateful racist speech. That's just simple minded ignorance from NPC's who can't think for themselves and are dependent on the lies their Dem & MSM masters tell them to believe.

You might want to keep reading the comments.... anyways, regardless of wether you purport to promote free speech or cater to racists, once you become a haven for racists, you have a choice. Do nothing, or do something.
As has been posted on this thread already, freedom of speech does NOT give you the right to preach violence or hatred. And as the host of these posts, Gab has the obligation of moderating - they chose not to, so their provider pulled the plug.

 

[JamesSWD]

"Gab will continue to fight for the fundamental human right to speak freely."

They obviously don't understand the difference between free speech and inflammatory hate speech.

It's you who doesn't understand. You either have free speech or you don't. It's black & white There is no gray area. Also, so-called 'hate speech' is not a crime, as it falls under the umbrella of the 1A.

 

[Squid Surprise]

It's you who doesn't understand. You either have free speech or you don't. It's black & white There is no gray area. Also, so-called 'hate speech' is not a crime, as it falls under the umbrella of the 1A.

No, it isn’t.... which is why people get so angry over common sense decisions like this. While you have the “freedom” to say whatever you want under the pure definition of “freedom of speech”, the real world doesn’t work that way - and the laws of each nation reflect this - including the US, where the alleged gunman resides.
The US constitution does NOT declare this pure freedom of speech. That would be anarchy.... there are rules... your freedom ends when it infringes on someone else. When it comes to words, this means you cannot say anything that promotes violence or hatred against another person or group of people.