People in the United States often takes pride in the fact in extreme free speech laws.
For instance, JD Vance can say :
“In Ohio, black people are stealing pets. They are taking cats and dogs. They are eating them!!”
He is lying. He knows he is lying. But because of lies, people are receiving death threats and bomb threats.
That’s considered legal speech in the US.
Many people will tell you “I don’t agree with what JD Vance said, but he has the right to lie. It’s free speech”
You have members of Congress who say “We have a real muslim problem in this country”
Many people will tell you “They have a right to say that. Free speech"
The same way, Elon Musk is allowed to call journalists “utter scum” and “traitors to this country” in tweets sent to millions of people.
Again, people will tell you “I don’t agree with what he said, but it’s free speech. He has the right to insult people”
Well, I have noticed Americans only accept free speech when it comes to punching down. Not when it comes to punching up.
For instance, if you say something such as: “Many of the most powerful figures on Wall Street are Jewish” they freak out. Notice I didn’t even write “Most Jews are rich" or "Jews are bad people”. Nope. I just wrote a sentence about the Jewish figures on Wall Street. That’s enough for many americans to freak out.
Elon Musk lives in West Lake Hills, Texas.
If you publish Elon Musk’s personal home address, americans say “Wow dude!!! This is SO WRONG”. Isn’t that protected under american free speech? It’s public information.
What exactly gives Elon Musk the right to call USAID employee “thieves”? What gives him the right to call a man pedophile? He can smear innocents in the name of free speech, but I’m not allowed to disclose the street where he lives?
Basically, americans are fine with extreme free speech as long as you punch down: Reporters, Muslims, Black people, Vulnerable migrants.
Worrying about “punching up” and “punching down” is a dumb concept. You arent highlighting examples that are bad because they’re punching down. Those examples are bad because they are completely false statements intended to misinform and enrage.