Hush-up Truth Teller

So it seems President Obama has found the perfect way to control even those outside the MSM-create a new, as yet undefined post called White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (Watchdog of the Smartmouth Bloggers Czar for short) and then appoint a clearly Free Speech Hating person to run it, like Cass Sunstein. Scary enough? Well, try this on my freedom loving friend:

"Although obscure," reported the Wall Street Journal, "the post wields outsize power. It oversees regulations throughout the government, from the Environmental Protection Agency to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Obama aides have said the job will be crucial as the new administration overhauls financial-services regulations, attempts to pass universal health care and tries to forge a new approach to controlling emissions of greenhouse gases."

I didn't realize the President had the authority to appoint a new King.

Sunstein also believes that - whether you're a blogger, The New York Times or a Web hosting service - you should be held responsible even for what your commenters say. Currently you're immune under section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. "Reasonable people," he says, "might object that this is not the right rule," though he admits that imposing liability for commenters on service providers would be "a considerable burden."
But who cares about a burden when insults are being bandied about? "A 'chilling effect' on those who would spread destructive falsehoods can be an excellent idea," he says. "As wehave seen," Sunstein writes, having shown us no such thing, "falsehoods can undermine democracy itself." What Sunstein means by that sentence is pretty clear: He doesn't like so-called false rumors about his longtime University of Chicago friend and colleague, Barack Obama.
He alludes on page 3 (and on page 13, and 14, and 45, and 54 - the book is only 87 pages) to the supposedly insidious lie that "Barack Obama pals around with terrorists." Since Sunstein intends to impose his Big Chill on such talk, I'd better get this in while I can. The "rumor," i.e., "fact," about the palsy-walsiness of Obama and unrepentant terrorist Bill Ayers (Ayers referred to Obama as a "family friend" in a memoir) did not "undermine democracy," i.e., prevent Obama's election. The facts got out, voters weighed them and ruled that they weren't disqualifying.

So not only we will have a new King with unbelievable power, but he won't like conservatives with opinions. No doubt these rules, regulations, and lawsuits won't apply to the liberal glad rags and their commentors. (Oh, you definately must click that link!)

(H/T-post inspired here: http://astuteblogger.blogspot.com/2009/07/plans-of-cass-suntein.html )