Gab users are revolting. They are also protesting the founders actions after he handed evidence of criminal activity over to the FBI.
The world of American politics has been unusually busy. First, there was the raid by FBI agents at Trump’s home, Mar-a-Lago. Then, there was the massive rotating list of excuses including how the boxes were planted by the FBI, the boxes were there, but they were declassified, the boxes should never have been classified in the first place, it was in response to dropping ratings of the January 6th hearings, I ran out of gas, I got a flat tire, I didn’t have change for cab fare, I lost my tux at the cleaners, I locked my keys in the car, an old friend came in from out of town, someone stole my car, there was an earthquake, a terrible flood, locusts, IT WASN’T MY FAULT, I SWEAR TO GOD!
Another aspect is that Trump supporters were basically spill the blood of those who don’t pass the Trump loyalist purity tests. Some were even screaming to bring on another civil war they were so blood thirsty to kill fellow American’s. In fact, some were wanting to murder FBI field agents. Now, openly calling for something like that is incredibly stupid. Not only does make you look like a vile disgrace of a human being, but it is also illegal for reasons that should be blindingly obvious. As of now, there’s already been at least one attempt on the lives of members of the FBI which ended with the gunman being killed. From NBC:
A man identified by two law enforcement sources as Ricky Shiffer, who died in a confrontation with police after he fired a nail gun at a Cincinnati FBI building, appeared to post online in recent days about his desire to kill FBI agents shortly after former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence was searched.
Two law enforcement officials confirmed Shiffer’s name. Shiffer was at the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, according to three people aiding law enforcement who saw him in photos taken from the day of the attack; however, it’s unclear whether he went inside the building. Shiffer frequently posted about his attendance at the Capitol on social media.
On Truth Social, a social media platform founded by Trump’s media company, Trump Media & Technology Group, Shiffer appeared to have posted a message detailing his failed attempt to gain entry to the FBI building.
“Well, I thought I had a way through bullet proof glass, and I didn’t. If you don’t hear from me, it is true I tried attacking the F.B.I., and it’ll mean either I was taken off the internet, the F.B.I. got me, or they sent the regular cops while,” the account @RickyWShifferJr wrote at 9:29 a.m. ET, shortly after police allege the shooting occurred.
This, of course, isn’t a one-off incident in terms of those calling for such barbaric violence. There were plenty of others making similarly crazy calls. Luckily, there haven’t been that many that was actually dumb enough to actually follow through with action. Still, it is terrifying to see the cult like activities taking place over notorious con artist, Donald Trump. Of course, most of these stories wound up falling outside of the areas we tend to cover here on Freezenet – until today that is.
right wind echo chamber, Gab, has made headlines in a rather… interesting… way. Apparently, some users have been making those calls to kill FBI agents in response to the Trump raid. Gab founder, Andrew Torba, has handed information about a user threatening to murder FBI agents over to the FBI. The information included chat logs and an IP address. Investigators used that information to track down and arrest the suspect. Other Gab users are viewing this hand over of information as a betrayal. From The Daily Dot:
Gab users are apoplectic. They feel betrayed by the far-right platform and its founder Andrew Torba, who often touts his commitment to “free speech,” and has no qualms with Gab being a haven for racists and other extremists.
According to the arrest affidavit, upon request, Gab gave the FBI records including a user’s email, IP addresses, and chat logs. The FBI then used this information to identify Adam Bies of Mercer, Pennsylvania.
Bies is allegedly among the many people who took to social media to agitate against the FBI over its search of former President Donald Trump’s residence in Florida last week. The complaint asserts that he posted numerous threats against the FBI such as, “My only goal is to kill more of them before I drop,” and “If you work for the FBI then you deserve to die.”
It’s not known whether Bies has issued a plea in the case.
News of Gab cooperating with the feds launched a volley of angry posts on the platform. People likened Torba to Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus, and accused Gab of betraying its users and commitment to free speech.
Many take particular issue with Torba cooperating with the feds without a subpoena. According to the arrest affidavit, Gab handed over the chat logs and other identifying information upon request that led to Bies’ arrest
Gab users insist that Torba should’ve withheld the records. “There’s no charitable way to say this: Andrew Torba voluntarily helped the feds snatch up one of his users when he could’ve just said no,” asserts a copypasta circulating on the platform.
So, it seems that rampant racism and extremism is fine for the founder, but those same users threatening to murder federal agents was apparently a bridge too far. Unsurprisingly, the murderous mob are furious that such death threats actually have consequences. Who would’ve thought? Of course, running a website is almost always going to be a different ballgame when you are the one doing it. When the FBI is asking for information about such criminal activity, it’s usually best to cooperate because authorities otherwise have ways of making your life quite miserable. Really, Torba, in this case, made the obvious move in that situation.
Meanwhile, many sane American’s are pretty much grabbing the bucket of popcorn and watching the show in all of this. For many, the raid brought on a collective “well it’s about time you did something!” After years of unchecked criminal activity, it’s starting to look like authorities are taking these crimes seriously. What will be interesting to see is how many other perceived safe havens for violence turn out to be, well, not so much. Apparently, Gab isn’t necessarily the best place to plot to murder authorities at least. So, there’s going to be some face eating leopards turning in on each other for a while. Everyone is watching to see how far things go in all of this.
Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Facebook.
