Free speech and online creeps

Jessica Valenti of The Guardian on Elonis v. United States: whether threats made on social media are protected by free speech.

No one is arguing that people can’t say hateful things or call people names; the emails I get calling me a “slut” and a “feminazi” are immoral, but they’re not (and shouldn’t be) illegal. Threats and the invasion of privacy, though, are different – even in the most public of places: your right to be a “creep” doesn’t trump everyone else’s right to a life free from violence and the fear of it.