Re: Fraud and free speech

[Tim May <tcmay@got.net>]

At 9:06 AM -0700 6/10/97, Bill Frantz wrote:
>At 5:27 PM -0700 6/8/97, Tim May wrote:
>>(Oh, and it almost goes without saying that the same "lies" William and
>>others are so worried about in "commercial" speech happen all the time in
>>non-commerical speech. For every example of where commercial speech
>>involves lies or fraud, I can find similar or fully equivalent
>>non-commercial examples, ranging from lies like "I love you" to get a
>>partner into bed to deliberate misstatements to mislead an opponent. Why
>>should such "lies" be protected while putatively commercial speech is to be
>>subjected to an increasing number of limitations?)
>
>The only justification I can think of off hand is that a presumption of
>truth may make for more efficient markets.  On the other hand, it also has
>very bad effects when applied to political speech.

I was speaking of justifications in the Constitution.

There is of course a little phrase about "the power to regulate commerce,"
by which was meant (until this century) the power to set tariffs and a very
few other things related to commerce.

This century, though, this clause has been used to to what I think are
severely unconstitutional things, like place restrictions on certain items
(tobacco, alchohol, drugs). And advertising. And the airwaves. And so on. A
pernicious reach by Congress into the choices of vendors and consumers.

As for Bill's point that a mandate on truth would possibly make for more
efficient markets, I doubt it. Who determines truth? And a populace which
believes everything it is told must be true because the government requires
truth will necessarily lose critical thinking abilities.

--Tim May


There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws.
Only one response to the key grabbers is warranted: "Death to Tyrants!"
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Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
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