Is this freedom of speech?

Local, Virginia 1 Minute

The creator of a video game about the Virginia Tech shootings thinks so:

A man from Australia has created an online video game based on last month’s Virginia Tech shootings, and he says he will pull the game from the Internet for $2,000.

[…]

The paper quotes [game creator Ryan] Lambourn as saying: “It’s staying up. It’s freedom of speech, man. Someone is offended by something all the time. It doesn’t matter what it is.”

More on the story here, including some footage of the game.

We see profiteering from tragedy all the time. Isn’t there some way to silence this guy, perhaps in the terms of service for his hosting company?

Published

6 thoughts on “Is this freedom of speech?”

  2. MB’s answer is right on the money: specifically, the $2,000 of money. Clearly he’s not expecting to make any substantial amount of money from revenue or he’d be putting a higher sales value on his “principled” stand. There’s no real market for his tragedy-profiteering outside of extorting money from those who would wish to see the game never published in the first place, and I have no doubt that it wouldn’t find any market whatsoever without the free publicity being generated by news media publications the Australian Daily Telegraph and the Virginian-Pilot.

  3. and I have no doubt that it wouldn’t find any market whatsoever without the free publicity being generated by news media publications the Australian Daily Telegraph and the Virginian-Pilot.

    Very good point. And perhaps I should not have even posted this, since all it does is help him.

  4. No, I think we need some periodic reminders of just how much civilization has crumbled, at least among certain people.
    Speaking of the unspeakable, I read somewhere that Fred Phelps and his Westboro Church of God were planning to protest at the funeral of Jerry Falwell, since Falwell remained friends with Mel White.
    Getting dizzy just trying to figure out what to think of that one.

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