Web community won't tolerate pub slogans

Alexander Müller, member of the Zurich section of the Swiss People's Party (SVP), has commented in a fateful tweet on the trial against a Muslim who approves of violence against women with the words: "Maybe we need another Night of Broken Glass ... this time for Mosques". The SVP is in the process of banning Müller from the party and his employer has dismissed him. Good that the Internet community is so quick to condemn such statements, writes the liberal-conservative daily Neue Zürcher Zeitung: "Whereas in the past one tended to stick to the local pub and the regulars' table among like-minded people, nowadays you risk becoming a sort of monster when you express your views on the Web. The social media have upped social control. Certainly, you can always hide on the Web, mislead people and inflict serious harm on others anonymously. But once suspicion has been confirmed beyond a doubt and the authors of libellous or racist messages are uncovered, there is no room for excuses. The consequences are often serious because the Twitter community knows no mercy. As modern and open as it likes to present itself, it is extremely archaic when it comes to punishing those who misbehave. In this way some users come their senses on their own, that is without state intervention. And that is a good thing."

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