Facebook removes 'Should Obama be killed?' poll
All human life is to be seen on Facebook. Which, for some, is not necessarily a good thing.
Facebook has removed a poll asking "Should Obama be killed?" But not before at least 730 people took part in the poll. The poll offered four potential answers to the question: "Yes", "No", "Maybe," and "If he cuts my health care."
The Plum Line, a Washington Post site, reports that the Secret Service has begun an investigation into who might have been behind such an imaginative exercise. It appears that a blog called the Political Carnival first noticed the poll and alerted the Secret Service over the weekend.
(Credit:
The Huffington Post)
Facebook is increasingly becoming a popular forum for all kinds of hateful speech--from Holocaust Denial Groups to anti-Muslim organizations. Groups purporting to hate specific individuals have also found a home on Facebook, and the company has not found it easy to keep up with the amount of policing that is required to cover more than 300 million members.
However, this poll will represent for many an entirely new dimension in human dementia. It will be interesting to see how quickly the source is located and who that source might turn out to be.
Facebook's Barry Schnitt told me in an e-mail that while the site doesn't comment on actions against individual users, "penalties for posting content in violation of our policies range from warnings to temporarily or permanently disabling accounts." He also confirmed that the site is working with the Secret Service but couldn't provide any details of their investigation.
As to the source of the poll, he said: "The third-party application that enabled an individual user to create the offensive poll was brought to our attention this morning (Monday). It was immediately suspended while the inappropriate content could be removed by the developer and until such time as the developer institutes better procedures to monitor their user-generated content."
Chris Matyszczyk is an award-winning creative director who advises major corporations on content creation and marketing. He brings an irreverent, sarcastic, and sometimes ironic voice to the tech world. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. 
Just something a middle school or high schooler would do.. childish, and definitely in bad taste.
But not really a credible threat to the President.
As it should be. The 1st Amendment protects this. What it doesn't protect are threats against someones life whether it's the president or someone working at McDonald's.
I am not saying it is right in either case, but the Internet is a hotbed for this type of activity.
Facebook has a policy that no content should be attacking a person or group and usually has a "report" button to report offensive comments. I've seen Facebook crack down on Role Players using super hero names for rile playing in the forums, but when a political figure is attacked they usually ignore it until there is a large outrage about it. Like if it makes the news media, then and only then does Facebook do something about it.
Too much Sean Hannity, not good for your Sanity.
Yet at the same time after Pearl Harbor the USA put Japanese-Americans into detainment camps and many of them died in captivity because they were poorly run.
The USSR put people into labor camps and many died under harsh conditions.
But people turn a blind eye to anything else, esp if Communism murdered 100 million people. http://www.amazon.com/Black-Book-Communism-Crimes-Repression/dp/0674076087
Let us hope that the USA neither becomes National Socialist or Communist, and doesn't have labor camps, concentration camps, detainment camps, or anything else of that nature. Never again should we do that!
@barsaw
I agree not a threat, but very inappropriate.
I usually don't answer any political polls, but I would have answered no to that poll, no President deserves to be killed, in the USA we impeach a president not kill them. If you have evidence that Obama did something wrong, you start up an impeachment trial. That is the way we do things in a Democratic Republic like the USA. I'll tell the conservatives the same thing I told the liberals about Bush, there is not enough proof or evidence to impeach the President. If you can come up with proof and evidence that a court can believe then start the impeachment trials, if not then you got nothing on the President. You can disagree with the President, you can call him stupid if you want or some other non-racist name, but you cannot make personal threats on the President as the secret service will get you for that.
Looks like your tin foil hat may be in need of adjustment.
There are a lot of things you can say about the President or any public figure. You can say they should lose their job or be kicked out of you can call them names (can't call them a liar tho - that will get you in trouble *snip* ;) ) but you can't threaten to kill them - I thought most people knew that but I guess not.
Will the SS do anything to the person? Probably not but they still have to investigate...
There are a lot of things you can say about the President or any public figure. You can say they should lose their job or be kicked out of you can call them names (can't call them a liar tho - that will get you in trouble *snip* ;) )
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You sure can call him a liar, I called bushit a liar for years (in fact I still call bushit a liar, but that's beside the point). I didn't interrupt him during speeches in the chamber of the House, though. That's why retardicans fail - they can't comprehend decent words like "civility" because they replaced them with hate words like "muslim" and "turrism".
Criticsm of policies, debate on issues are good for a democracy, but this vitriol is pure hatred that paints the president as a movie antagonist. Plus there are too many stupid people out there that quote Jefferson's "The tree of democracy must be watered from time to time" quote, not realizing that it means the sacrifice of individuals, not anarchy.
As an example, You have Glen Beck pointing to Article 1 Sect. 9 of the Constitution, which does not allow for the immediate ban of slavery (but for the government to tax new slaves) as some fee our founding fathers charged new citizens during his anti-immigration tirade.
No one should kill him, any more than they should kill any President. But make no mistake, this President will finish what many believe President Bush began! The financial ruin of America.
America is dead! Not the country, the ideal. It is now open season on the rich the successful and the Businessman. Not that many of them are blameless in the current situation. The unbridled greed and avarice was monumental. Obama will be a one term President unless the media elect him for a second term. God help America, the President can't.
As for Beck, you clearly don't listen to Beck, or you wouldn't be accusing him of being anti-immigration. Reading something that was taken from Huffington post or Moveon.org doesn't count I'm afraid. You are also probably one of those people who believed that Rush wants segregated schools.
Got any credible sources for that not counting anything on FAUX News?
CNN/Times and Gallup say Obama's numbers are holding steady.
... I am saying please save the hypocrisy for the less informed; if anything Bush received more vitriol than Obama.
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Bush *deserved* more vitriol than Obama. Obama hasn't even been given a chance, retardicans have been calling for his impeachment since he was elected (notice that was 2 months *BEFORE* he took office!).
Remember Bush's dismal numbers and the current 26% GOP self identification? About 10% of that number are the trailer trash that scream at rally and carry guns and racists signs.
They are going down because they want us out of Iraq, a public option, if not outright single payer and would love to see Bush and Cheney stand trial for their numerous crimes against humanity and the constitution.
People are getting down on Obama because he is not going far enough. The polls bear this out.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2009/09/24/democrats_seek_cuts_in_medicare_advantage/
http://articles.latimes.com/2009/jun/14/nation/na-obama-radio14
Obama himself said he wants to make $313 billion in Medicare cuts in a radio address.
Last medicare cut was by Bush who made Medicare Part D and created the Doughnut Hole, before that Clinton cut medicare. Senior citizens have been complaining about it ever since Clinton and then Bush made cuts and don't want any more cuts as it is sending them into medical debt and causing them to lose their houses.
So the cuts in health care are factual, unless Obama and the Democrats change their minds and do not do it.
My grandmother died in a hospital because medicare was cut by Clinton and she couldn't afford the operation to save her life and it wasn't covered by medicare anymore.
I have family members on medicare that lost their houses due to medical bills due to Bush's medicare cuts, some got so sick they ended up in a nursing home and lost all of their property because medicare wouldn't cover surgeries they needed to get better due to budget cuts.
If the government cannot run medicare right, then how will they run universal health care? Medicare is socialized medicine and the public option.
Why does the government treat senior citizens, the disabled, and people on welfare differently than members of congress or federal employees on the same system but different benefits and coverage? Why can't it be equal health care for all?
Prove to me that even if medicare is cut, the money and coverage will be back in a universal health care. When the government cuts a social program they usually don't put the benefits, coverage, and money back in ever. Cite me the universal health care bill that says it will fund and cover medicare and increase the benefits, coverage, and prescription plan should lose the doughnut hole.
Now tell me how they plan to fund it without increasing taxes or cutting more programs.
Anyone who expresses an opinion that is different to yours is naturally right wing and dangerous. America became great because everyone could have his say. You might not agree with his opinion, but you defended his right to an opinion. In this case you are calling for his opinion to be 'canned' and labeled as dangerous.
What is dangerous is your calling his opinion dangerous, (and intolerant.) Joe the plumber was pilloried in the media for having the temerity to ask 'god' a serious and challenging question. The question was forgotten as the media examined every aspect of Joe's life, and tried to show him in a terrible light. That is not democracy. That is harassment, as it was with Sarah Paline. Where was the examination during the campaign of the man who is now President?
A man who attended a Church for 20 years where a racist black preacher preached his hate and no one questions this? A man who launched his bid for President in the home of a convicted bomber who planted bombs in the Pentagon. And this President says it was only incidental contact(?????)
I submit that if it had been John McCain attending this guys home we would never have heard the end of it. But when one person questions the President over a policy issue former (Democratic) President Clinton comes out and plays the race card. yep, That's democracy all right. God help you all, especially you democrats.
Oh, and Obama took troops out of a relatively safe Iraq and put them into Afghanistan - I'm really not sure what you're after here... (I know a number of military members and every single one of them would rather be in Iraq than Afghanistan...)
Which are both legal, regardless of where you stand on the issues.
This is far from that.
I know some people don't want to believe it, but this is totally about Obama being black. I'm not saying political opposition to Obama is based on his race - obviously that has a lot to do with his policies. But these unprecendented (at least in my lifetime) veiled and not so veiled references to assassination and armed revolution, the birth certificate issue, the "secret muslim" issue, etc. I believe *are* almost completely due to his race. To me this says that these people don't just disagree with Obama's policies - they don't believe that Obama is the legitimate leader of the country at all. Considering Obama won the election with a larger majority than anyone since Reagan's 1984 re-election, the most logical explanation is that these people believe that a black man can't possibly be the leader of a "white" nation.
Sometimes, as in this case, the simplest and most obvious explanation is the correct one.
One wonders to whom you refer... George Washington?
If you're talking about GW Bush, I would have to say, unequivocally, no, there was not.
For one thing, opponents of Bush's policies in promoting the Iraq war in response to the unprecedented 9/11 attacks were very aware of the consequences of looking unpatriotic in those troubled days. Those who remembered the Vietnam era protests were painfully aware that many of those protests *alienated* the majority and, quite possibly, helped give political cover to those who would prolong it, even as the situation continued to deteriorate and we moved farther away from our once-noble goals.
Oh really? Care to back that up? Yes, there were probably protesters comparing Bush/Cheney to Hitler, calling for Bush's impeachment, or demeaning Bush as an idiot, but please find me the examples of people calling for Bush's assassination either directly or indirectly. I'll be waiting, but I won't hold my breath. "
@lm_nyc--I am no GW fan, but you can't seriously believe that there would still be data on GW threats online, nine months after he left office. While we're at it, let's go find that second gunman on Kennedy. That's how silly conspiracies get started, a lot of conjecture and here say, but no actual data to back up one's statements. Think about it. Oh, and it is not all about race. There are always going to be certain ignorant idiots, but generalizing the issues through race diminishes the actual facts. There are a lot of people who have just been plain unhappy for a few decades now because of all the DC squabbling, lies, and double talk, plain and simple.
1) Go to Google
2) Type "kill bush"
3) View results
Look at the images, read the rants, play the video games. . .
I'm tired of being branded a racist for opposing Obama. I thought I had moved beyond that when I judged him by the content of his character. I find him to be severely lacking in that department, but color of skin has nothing to do with it.
Nobel Winner Apologizes for "Kill Bush" comment: http://bit.ly/nJuVd
John Kerry Jokes about Killing Bush on Maher: http://bit.ly/4n9QDX
Man Wanted to Kill Bush, Blow Up White House: http://bit.ly/1oJwL
Teen Threatens to kill Bush: http://bit.ly/JKL5y
College Student Found Guilty in Conspiracy to Kill Bush: http://bit.ly/helcf
Va. Man Sentenced to Life for Plot to Kill Bush: http://bit.ly/3e0Dqs
Bush and Cheney, "Kill them All", says CPAN caller: http://bit.ly/1ukJfy
Arrested Man Wanted to Kill Bush, says Girlfriend: http://bit.ly/14aklz
Death Threats against Bush at Protests Ignored: http://bit.ly/41JyEG
CNN: Web Video Game Aim Kill Bush characters: http://bit.ly/AQaAd
@lm_nyc: So tell me, is it because Bush is "white"?
As distasteful as it is, it's protected by the constitution.
Had the person that generated the poll said he was going to blow Obama's head off with a deer rifle, that would be considered a threat, and could be prosecuted.
A couple of points: first, while the First Amendment guarantees *many* -- but not unlimited -- free speech rights -- in no way does it mandate that private commercial entities like Facebook are required to host any and all speech. They run a private concern and everyone who gets an account through them signs a binding legal contract that precludes a number of behaviors.
Second, as someone who was alive and paying attention when John Kennedy was gunned down, I never, ever want to see this nation go through a period like that again, with one national leader targeted after another. John Kennedy. Martin Luther King. Malcom X. Robert Kennedy. George Wallace gunned down and put in a wheel chair. Larry Flynt gunned down, also ending up in a wheelchair, when he threatened an expose of his theory of the Kennedy assassination. Pope John Paul II gravely wounded. Ronald Reagan shot and nearly killed.
This nation does not need to return to that kind of murderous mentality.
"Second, as someone who was alive and paying attention when John Kennedy was gunned down, I never, ever want to see this nation go through a period like that again, with one national leader targeted after another. John Kennedy. Martin Luther King. Malcom X. Robert Kennedy. George Wallace gunned down and put in a wheel chair."
I mostly agree with this, with the possible exception of George Wallace. That racist pig *needed* shooting, after the way he behaved. I'm in a wheelchair myself, so I can't say I feel very sorry for the guy's fate.
While I would not want to see any president shot, and I definitely don't approve of the fact that someone put this poll up, I do think it's protected speech. It's asking for an opinion. While the people who answered "Yes" to the poll might be watched more closely, there's probably not much that can be done against them legally. You're allowed to have an opinion in this country, even if it happens to be a *******, violent opinion. It's when you act on it that you can get into trouble.
There's stupid people in both wings, both left and right. Take this poll for what it is, just a stupid person being an idiot. After all, this is America.
A lot of hateful things were directed at Bush - but violent? I really don't recall any incidents, and definitely nothing approaching the frequency of incidents that we're seeing now.
Whereas in Bush's time the call was for Bush's impeachment, now the call is for assassination and armed revolution.
And regarding being "just a stupid person being an idiot" - context matters here. It's not just an isolated incident but part of a persistent pattern that began even before Obama was elected. And the biggest assassination/violence threats tend to come not from organizations but rather from "lone wolves" that more often then not in the modern age are leaving rants/diatribes online out in the open for everyone to see before taking violent actions.
What's the difference between that Facebook poll and this poll?
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/KJWB/
Quick search from Google:
Nobel Winner Apologizes for "Kill Bush" comment: http://bit.ly/nJuVd
John Kerry Threatens to Kill Bush on Maher: http://bit.ly/4n9QDX
Man Wanted to Kill Bush, Blow Up White House: http://bit.ly/1oJwL
Teen Threatens to kill Bush: http://bit.ly/JKL5y
College Student Found Guilty in Kill Bush Conspiracy: http://bit.ly/helcf
Va. Man Sentenced to Life for Plot to Kill Bush: http://bit.ly/3e0Dqs
Bush and Cheney, "Kill them All", says CPAN caller: http://bit.ly/1ukJfy
Arrested Man Wanted to Kill Bush, says Girlfriend: http://bit.ly/14aklz
Death Threats against Bush at Protests Ignored: http://bit.ly/41JyEG
CNN: Web Video Game Aim Kill Bush characters: http://bit.ly/AQaAd
@lm_nyc: "the biggest assassination/violence threats tend to come not from organizations but rather from 'lone wolves' that more often then not in the modern age are leaving rants/diatribes online out in the open for everyone to see before taking violent actions." Can you provide examples of that? I would think that credible threats would come from people that try to hide their identities and intentions. That is, after all, how terrorists were able to destroy the WTC and part of the Pentagon -- can't get much more credible than that.
Look what happened to JFK. Shot dead.
You are foolish and naive to not believe that this is a credible threat.
I agree. The Secret Service doesn't take things like this lightly whether it's a joke or not and someone's going to find out the hard way.
Oh my word, we are not getting into conspiracy theories here. the theories behind JFK and Oswald being connected to mobsters or the russians or whoever are of a different league. However, it is pretty evident that Lee Harvey didn't just see a poster and go, "i think i will buy a gun."
@People saying that this is 1st amendment. Saying they want to kill something is protected by the first amendment. It can be investigated, but can't be shut down. People are free to do as they wish with their own forums and their own pages. However, Facebook is a different case. Facebook is a private company that you agree to their terms with. They can delete quiz's, profiles, whatever they want. If you don't like what they are doing, take your networking elsewhere.
dude, it is a poll, a gimmicky one at that. even if someone did make one about my mom, i would say what the crap but that would be about it. Grow up. really
Hate speech spewed toward Obama is ironically because he is a GOOD man trying to UNDO the damage and deficits of the previous administration, trying to make the world a better place... and these same selfish twits that supported the Bush administration's horrible policies (I don't care who dies so long as U.S.A. is safe and gets our oil) are the ones again acting selfishly (I don't care who dies in a gutter without health care so long as I am unaffected) are calling for violence against him.
And of course most of them lack the intelligence to properly consider the consequences of their actions and have the religious zeal behind them that they will 'make the sacrifice' and be a martyr to their cause, taking down Obama as their "holy mission" or some such nonsense.
Now, how then is anti-Bush commentary AT ALL like anti-Obama commentary? Anti-Bush commentary is "stop being evil" and anti-Obama commentary is "don't take my stuff".
Oops, there goes any credibility you thought you had. The grown ups are talking now, why don't you play with your toys in your room until we call you out for dinner.
Really? Have you not been watching the news for the past 18 months? "Enlighten us on how it's diseased." Look at the unemployment rate. Look at the unprecedented government spending that has caused no improvement in the situation. Look at banking, stock market, loans, small business. Things are happening right now all across the business and political sectors that have NEVER happened before, and all within a year of each other! I'm with The_happy_switcher, but I'm not waiting until retirement. I'm abandoning ship, I'm not the captain.
No matter where you go you're going to go through cycles of good and bad times. If you're going to move every time that times are hard well then you're going to be packing your bags quite often.
I guess you really don't hate it that much or you'd, ironically enough, put your money where your mouth is...
So, yeah, it's only smoke... don't worry about it. Right? Call me when the house burns down...
That would mean Biden is President and Pelosi is Vice-President.
Let's keep Obama safe - The lesser of three evils
If Obama were to be assassinated the country would be thrown into utter chaos, perhaps even an all-out race war.
I picture the FBI crashing through a few doors on this one.
Scary vibes going on in this country and a lot of racist goons are to blame.
Dude, seriously...
Voting is a waste of time. The republican and democratic parties form a duopoly. Both parties are corrupt and will stay that way as long as the current system remains intact. Obama is no better than Bush. How many of Bush's policies has he reversed? You got it, ZERO!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zrsl8o4ZPo
- by Otto Holland September 28, 2009 1:40 PM PDT
- Get that all like a cattle round and place them in federal prison for a very long time. The only problem is that these worthless people are already on welfare and sending to prison will give them a free pass to the nightly games. They should be sent to Iraq or Afghanistan to find IED's with their bare hands; that would teach a good lesson.
- Like this Reply to this comment
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- by n3td3v September 28, 2009 2:15 PM PDT
- An eye for an eye strategy was never the solver to any of the world's problems.
- Like this
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