Scottish Police: we are watching you online and will investigate any "offensive comments"

[Nye Bevan]

Police in Scotland have announced that they intend to investigate “offensive comments” made on Twitter and other social media, prompting a huge backlash, with one columnist describing the move as a “terrifying” lurch towards George Orwell’s thought police.

The controversy began when outspoken British TV host Katie Hopkins made a couple of jokes about an Ebola victim who arrived in Scotland being sent to a hospital in London.

“Sending us Ebola bombs in the form of sweaty Glaswegians just isn’t cricket,” Hopkins wrote. In a second tweet, she stated, “Glaswegian ebola patient moved to London’s Royal Free Hospital. Not so independent when it matters most are we jocksville?”

Though the jokes were obviously tasteless, thousands of people signed an online petition demanding Hopkins be arrested for inciting “racial hatred”. A second petition, signed by a further 25,000 people, called for Hopkins to be charged for her “racist tweets”. Hopkins’ detractors claimed that the tweets were “racist,” apparently inventing a new race of people (Scots) in the process.

http://www.infowars.com/terrifying-scottish-police-to-investigate-offensive-comments/

I love having a First Amendment.

[oldandhappy]

1. OK Here I am.

[PowerToThePeople]

2. @policescotland

Sir William Wallace was a traitor.

-3rd way Scot

[Phlem]

3. the same type of thinking in Scotland Police?

say it isn't so.

[Initech]

4. You don't think the police, FBI, and NSA aren't doing the same thing here?

[Nye Bevan]

6. People here get investigated for making online death threats against the President,

not for making rude remarks about (for example) Southerners or Christians.

[Monk06]

5. I'm not saying .....

[msongs]

7. sharia law comes to scotland. way to go nt

[Chellee]

8. No true Scotsman would spy on people.

Well, everyone was thinking it. Somebody had to say it.

[Bluenorthwest]

9. Not to knock your Infowars and all, but there are sources writing about this story that offer not

only more detail and background but also quite a bit more credibility. This piece seems to suggest this is a police announcement of a new policy when in reality over 20,000 people have been investigated in Britain over the last three years over internet comments.

[Nye Bevan]

10. I believe that this is the first time the police have officially tweeted

that they are watching the internet for rude comments and will investigate such remarks. But you are of course welcome to post any links that add color to this story.