More on H.R. 1955

The Thoughtcrime bill that passed overwhelmingly in the House is going through committee in the Senate. The Senate bill is S. 1959.

Dahlia Lithwick writing in Slate points out “Harman’s “thought crimes” bill […] does no more than explore whether those thought crimes are a problem.” She follows that up with some snark on the ineffectiveness of Democrats in Congress.

I am profoundly grateful that instead of criminalizing protected speech outright, Democrats merely form a commission that will do a study, which will in turn christen a Drive-Thru Center for Excellence, where they will someday consider criminalizing protected free speech.

I’m happy to see more media coverage for this. At best it’s a waste of time and money, at worst it’s a lever for rolling back protected speech. I’d much rather see Congress increase their oversight of the government agencies already studying these kinds of issues.