A center at Stanford University for the study of misinformation and disinformation – let's just call it all propaganda so that we actually know what
(Image by Gridview-imagefull, FDACS) we are talking about – has had to shut down because of the legal fees it has incurred.
Stanford has issued a statement that the center will continue, but the center will not investigate propaganda any longer.
Legal fees have been an instrument of propaganda for some time now. The idea at work is that propaganda enthusiasts file lawsuits against their targets and force the targets to incur attorney's fees, whether the lawsuits have merit or not. They usually don't have merit, according to the American Bar Association (may be behind a paywall) which examined these Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation or SLAPP lawsuits.
31 States and the District of Columbia reportedly have passed legislation, called Anti-SLAPP laws, which are designed to counter these lawsuits. State Courts do not seem to encounter any problems applying Anti-SLAPP laws, but Federal Judges argue whether or not they should apply the laws in Federal Court; some judges do, some don't. That stands to reason, what with so many people appointed to the Federal bench during the American Apocalypse between January 20, 2017 and January 19, 2021.
SLAPP lawsuits, Federal judges refusing to enforce State Anti-SLAPP laws, and fees charged by lawyers are turned into weapons of destruction. Not even Vladimir Putin and the KGB could have planned that better.
Hmmm. There's a thought worth thinking about.
Please read the disclaimer. ©2024 Dennis J. Wall. All rights reserved.
Comments