Debate Among US Officials Over Whether to Kill People Over Twitter Accounts

If there was ever any doubt that the US doesn’t have a good handle on who the ISIS leadership is, it should be exemplified by the new reports of US officials openly talking about, in their effort to “destroy ISIS,” assassinating people whose Twitter accounts are seen as too pro-ISIS.

There appears, at the very least, to be some debate among counter-terror officials on the matter, though none seem to be questioning whether or not it’s appropriate to assassinate people on the basis of speech, and are simply arguing over whether or not it’s worthwhile.

The opponents see it as “wasting time” on “low level guys,” and believe the US should spend more time trying to assassinate actual ISIS leaders, instead of just killing Tweeters and declaring them “propagandists.”

One unnamed US official in favor of killing Tweeters, who ominously started his argument by declaring “we are the angel of death” like he’s some comic book villain, argued that since the ISIS war is a “propaganda war” and a “war of ideas” it’s entirely appropriate to kill people who are forwarding ideas they object to, saying he sees no reason to limit the killing to “military leaders.”

Lt. Gen. Michael Barbero was also a proponent of assassinating people on social media, saying ISIS has a “huge competitive advantage” on Twitter and that with little intelligence on the actual leadership of ISIS, you “attack what you can,” which means people on Twitter.

Another official, perhaps even more ominously than “angel of death” guy, talked up the killing of US-born cleric Anwar Awlaki as an example of the US assassinating people for speech, declaring “shoot your mouth off all you want. Eventually we are going to kill you.”

22 thoughts on “Debate Among US Officials Over Whether to Kill People Over Twitter Accounts”

  1. I don't even know how to comment on this pathetic idiocy. Basically US policy is becoming kill someone, anyone, let's kill already. On the streets of America and everywhere else.

  2. Any anti-US rhetoric can be seen as aligned with ISIS. Any criticism of our foreign policy can be seen as pro-ISIS propaganda by our national security apparatus. It could come to the point where people fear for their lives if they 'shoot their mouth off' on social media or anywhere, if their viewpoint conflicts with the USs hegemonic agenda._

    1. Exactly.

      The Aspen Institute's budget is cresting 100 mill.

      The Aspen Institute is tool of Washington DC that spreads the doctrines of endless war and crony capitalism. The anti-union Koch brothers and Obama's "best friends," the billionaire Crowns –formerly Krinsky—owners of General Dynamics, Aspen Skiing and JP Morgan CHase—both equally donate millions to the Institute and hang out with each other at a fancy Aspen saloon named after a whore.

      Where does it end? Well, history points to political revolution… but fair warning: Don't say that too loud. I did.

      The freedom of speech battle with the Aspen Institute went to the CO Supreme Court. I won.
      The next "gunfight" over our first amendment has been moved from 2013 to October 2016 with Aspen Skiing. I expect to win. http://www.leemulcahy.com

  3. That's the main idea, to identify people that are not nor supporting USG policies as whatever the can name it calling it the enemy of the state or ISIS supporter and etc. meanwhile the true ISIS supporters as Saudis-Wahhabis the Turkish Erdogan regimes are safe to continue their support for barbarism.

  4. These same vile scum accuse Islamic fighters of barbarity and evil. I am no supporter of ISIS, and I even suspect they were created by the those vile scum to stir up Islamophobia, but if real, ISIS's barbarity pales in comparison to the barbarity of the US and its minions, but of course, in a more sophisticated manner, because lobbing of heads is so 18th century. Now it is mowing down dozens of people from atop a gunship, which is so much more 'cool.'

  5. How can we suppress speech? I know! Let's kill people who say things we don't like. That should do it. Pretty soon everyone will love us, or at least say that they do.

  6. Now we know why the NSA wants to monitor and store everyone's internet activity. So they can hand over the info to the Pentagon psychopaths. Next thing you know we'll see drone attacks on Americans at home for daring to criticize israel.

  7. It is only a matter of time before anyone who criticizes the Israeli-centric U.S. foreign policy, in any country, will be a target of drone assassinations.

  8. Oh my I think I will watch what I post on Twitter. I once feared the Mossad since I am opposed to bibi and most of the rest of the Likud party. Now I have to fear my government. One thing good is how badly the USA government functions. They could decide to kill you and then drop a 1000 lbs bomb on a place you once lived. The only sure data in the government is the IRA.

  9. In a nation founded on a Constitution that requires due process, such considerations are immediately and so irrevocably out of bounds as to be treason.

  10. So let’s just go ahead and admit we are living in a zionist controlled fascist country and the citizenry has been completely denuded of any constitutional rights. The purpose of the first amendment was not to protect speech the government or their puppeteers approved of, it was to protect our rights to criticize the government and anyone else and support whatever idea we believe in., especially if they were unpopular.
    I don’t give a crap about ISIS , I think the truth be known they are obviously fighting for the interests of the zionists in the middle east and are nothing more than mercenaries pretending to be islamofascists. Am I going to be killed for saying that Gen.Barbero ? Is that actually what you want to do, is kill people in order to hide, the TRUTH? Where does this kind of thinking stop?

    You need to be tried for and convicted of treason against the united States, because you are a traitor for even suggesting such an idea that is so contrary to our principals and our most treasured values.You sure as hell have no business being a general in the US military.

  11. N?kdy lidé nev?dí, kdy cestovní ruch je nejjist?jší ?ešení, aby nám stát zdrav?jší. Mám nápad pro ty z vás, kte?í mohou být znud?ný s ?inností každodenního života, který je tím, že ?te ?lánky týkající se informací, cestovní, který jsem napsal a názvem nebo možná, pokud máte více si m?žete také poslechnout po p?edm?ty další atrakce, které jsem nazvané Doufám, že to, co jsem dát prost?ednictvím t?chto p?ipomínek m?že dát kladnou hodnotu a stojí za to na vás všechno.

    1. So far as I can tell, none of your comments have been deleted, at least recently. That said, this site is antiwar.com, not freedomandlibertyforleemulcahy.com

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