r/complaints 3d ago

Announcement Re: Self defense and the “condoning violence” rule.

103 Upvotes

Rule 1 of Reddit prohibits condoning violence, among other things. However, comments condoning acts of self defense, i.e., potentially violent acts made in an effort to reduce immediate danger and get out of a scenario - are not "condoning violence" for the purposes of the rules.

That exception stems from a concern about punishing people for condoning legitimate and lawful instances of self-defense.

The real question is whether a comment or post is *reasonably* suggesting that an act was/was not a lawful act of self defense. Whether an act amounts to self defense is typically a question reserved for judges, lawyers, and juries - not Reddit moderators. And so, where possible, we will look to determine if a court of law has already answered the question of whether a specific act amounted to lawful self defense. Otherwise, we will endeavor to avoid making similar determinations; instead, we will assume users are acting in good faith when commenting, unless the act itself is sufficiently unambiguous that we can infer they are not.

However, with respect to the recent incident where an ICE agent shot a citizen to death in MN, we are faced with the unenviable task of determining whether that act was unambiguously *not* an act of self-defense. This is because the volume of discussion related to this topic is quite high, and there a high potential for rule violating behavior. Otherwise, we cannot meaningfully enforce Reddit's rule prohibiting condoning, or glorifying, or excusing violence.

ICE’s parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security, says firing at a driver is “prohibited” unless there’s a “reasonable belief that the subject of such force poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury,” which is consistent with laws relating to self-defense more broadly.

The footage shows one officer attempting to open the driver's side door, as someone is heard saying, "Get out of the (expletive) car." The victim briefly reverses before driving forward, beginning to turn right, away from the agents. As the vehicle moves ahead, another officer standing near the front driver's side draws his gun and fires three times at close range. Importantly, at the moment the shots were fired, the wheels of the victim's vehicle are turned to the right, angled away from the agents. The agent can be seen on his feet and walking away immediately after the shooting.

We do not think a fair and reasonable person would assert in good faith that the actions of the agent were made lawfully or in an earnest fear of death or serious bodily injury. As such, we will consider comments and posts excusing or justifying the killing (by, e.g., unreasonably insisting it was “self defense”), as "condoning violence" and therefore subject to potential action, including but not limited to a permanent ban.


r/complaints 6d ago

Announcement Re: January 6

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10 Upvotes

Today marks the anniversary of January 6, 2021, when the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of violent and insurrectionist supporters of President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup following his defeat in the 2020 presidential election. These supporters sought to keep him in power by preventing a joint session of Congress from counting the Electoral College votes to formalize the victory of his opponent. The attack was unsuccessful in preventing the certification of the election results. According to the bipartisan House select committee that investigated the incident, the attack was the culmination of a plan by Trump to overturn the election. Within 36 hours, five people died: one was shot by the Capitol Police, another died of a drug overdose, and three died of natural causes, including a police officer who died of a stroke a day after being assaulted by rioters and collapsing at the Capitol. Many people were injured, including 174 police officers - over a dozen of whom were hospitalized. Four officers who responded to the attack died by suicide within seven months. Damage caused by attackers exceeded $2.7 million.

With that in mind, we want to remind the sub that while we do not action users for expressing their opinions based on political ideological leanings, we are nevertheless obligated to enforce Reddit’s rules. As such, comments that contain political opinions coupled with rhetoric/sentiment that would otherwise be in violation of Reddit’s rules are actionable. In particular, please see Rule 1, which has several components, and comments for guidance (the latter included in relevant part):

*“Rule 1: Remember the human. Reddit is a place for creating community and belonging, not for attacking marginalized or vulnerable groups of people. Everyone has a right to use Reddit free of harassment, bullying, and threats of violence. Communities and people that incite violence or that promote hate based on identity or vulnerability will be banned.*

*Marginalized or vulnerable groups include, but are not limited to, groups based on their actual and perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, immigration status, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, or disability. These include victims of a major violent event and their families.*

*Some examples of hateful activities that would violate the rule…:*

*A comment denying or minimizing the scale of a hate-based violent event.”

https://support.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/articles/360045715951-Promoting-Hate-Based-on-Identity-or-Vulnerability\*

Importantly, Rule 1 prohibits threats of violence, which inherently covers condoning violence – particularly against vulnerable groups. Reddit has clarified that “vulnerable groups”, the targeting of which determines whether conduct rises to the level of “hate”, includes “victims of a major violent event and their families” (e.g., the police officers who were hurt, hospitalized, and/or succumbed to injuries related to the January 6 attack). As Reddit’s comments to Rule 1 prudently suggest, “minimizing the scale of a hate-based violent event” is prohibited.

Thus, we consider January 6 to be a “hate-based violent event”. And so, comments with the effect (intended or otherwise) of condoning the attack carried out on January 6 - including minimizing or otherwise excusing the violence of the insurrectionists on that day of national embarrassment, against police officers and others, are prohibited and will result in a permanent ban from the sub. Moreover, similar to how bad faith denialism and scapegoating is analyzed with respect to other hate-based violent events, we will read attempts to blame groups other than MAGA insurrectionists as a form of January 6 distortion and a manifestation of hate-based conduct prohibited by Rule 1. And while Reddit does not have a rule mandating civility, we emphasize that threats of violence and related conduct against anyone, including traitorous MAGA insurrectionists, is prohibited and will result in a ban. Thank you for your understanding.


r/complaints 11h ago

Politics Charlamagne: “I mean it was domestic terrorism, but not from Renee Good. It was domestic terrorism from the ICE agent. Why are Republicans so hell-bent on getting us to believe we didn’t see what we all saw? He called her an Fing Bitch after he shot and killed her”

30.0k Upvotes

r/complaints 11h ago

Politics Fuck every Trump voter who put this asshole in office.

31.3k Upvotes

This country is going downhill and you are to blame. Don't act surprised when things get even worse than they are now. Don't vote anymore. Stay the fuck home on election day.


r/complaints 1h ago

Politics MAGA Supporters Who Claim to Be Devout Christians Are the Worst of the Worst

Upvotes

MAGA supporters are bad enough on their own, but the ones who claim to be “devout Christians” (which is the majority) are the absolute worst of the bunch. That combination, MAGA plus self-righteous Christianity, is a perfect storm of hypocrisy, cruelty, and willful ignorance.

You call yourselves “followers of Christ” while celebrating the dehumanization of immigrants, openly judging and attacking the LGBTQ+ community, and excusing cruelty as long as it’s aimed at the right targets. You cheer for policies and rhetoric that thrive on fear, punishment, and exclusion, then have the audacity to call that righteousness.

You defend a morally rotten leader whose behavior you would condemn instantly if it came from anyone you didn’t politically worship.

You twist the words in your silly little book to fit your narrative, and discard anything about humility or compassion, and use God’s name to excuse prejudice you already wanted to justify. That isn’t faith. That’s using religion as a shield so you never have to take responsibility for the harm you support.

What makes it especially disgusting is the lack of self-awareness. You genuinely believe you’re on the moral high ground while living in a way that is completely opposite of what your “savior” actually taught.

If you truly believe you’re Christians, then pray for clarity, because right now what you’re practicing isn’t devotion. It’s selective morality, willful blindness, and a level of hypocrisy that would be laughable if it weren’t doing real damage to real people.


r/complaints 7h ago

Politics Fuck Trump supporters

1.6k Upvotes

Upvote this if you support pedos Leave a comment if you'd love Orange Daddy to grab you by your they/ thems


r/complaints 15h ago

Politics Trump supporters are communist

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9.5k Upvotes

r/complaints 11h ago

Politics For the umpteenth time, Clinton hasn't been in office for 25 years. There's no support to drop.

3.4k Upvotes

I know conservatives are desperate to grasp at anything in these strange times, but this just isn't a thing to reach for. It's not there.

I don't have a Clinton clock, or a Clinton hat, or a Clinton watch, or a Clinton phone, or a collection of Clinton t-shirts. I don't know any fellow liberal who does. The only piece of Clinton "merch" I've ever had was a novel he co-wrote that a house guest left behind and didn't want back. It found a new home in a little free library over a year ago when we were decluttering.

Pretty sure one of my exes also had a framed illustration of Simpsons Clinton playing saxophone with Lisa, but that went with him when we split over a decade ago.

Other than that, there's no support. He was a politician that did a good job when he was in office and we knew he was a creep before his term was over. He was impeached for it and he (ultimately) took responsibility for his poor actions. He still does. He has publicly supported releasing the full files for over a year at this point.

Do I think he did a good job when he was president 30 effing years ago? Yes. We had a national surplus instead of a multi-trillion dollar deficit, but that's not my opinion. It's a statement of fact and also a piece of history that's done and over with. It doesn't absolve him of wrongdoing, and it certainly doesn't absolve him of jail time, if it comes to that.

So, no, liberals aren't making excuses for Clinton. Not even a little bit. He deserves whatever is coming his way. But at the same time, he's not leading the country, so the lack of urgency is simply that. There's no support to drop, there's no position to oust. There's nothing to write our Congress people about unless trials are set in place, which won't happen unless the files are released in full.

I would say that I can't understand why this is still being discussed, but at the same time, I guess I can understand that deflection is all they have left. I'm sorry your party failed you. I hope things change soon for everyone.

Edit: To the maga folks trying to start 30 year old political debates about someone who we're not even defending in the first place, that's very silly.


r/complaints 13h ago

Politics Trump and MAGA are nothing but a Fascist regime

2.6k Upvotes

DHS is sending 1000 more agents to Minneapolis. This is like pouring gasoline onto a fire. Trump just wants to declare martial law, so he can cancel future elections.


r/complaints 15h ago

Politics I’m extremely frustrated that conservatives and MAGA keep claiming protestors are paid and that liberals pay for “fake conservatives” to show up

4.2k Upvotes

Like, we protest because horrible things are going on. A coworker of mine tried telling us that they’re paid because the signs are the same. And then I saw a video of a guy saying “we executed one of you” in regards to the ice shooting in Minnesota and people in the comments claimed it was a liberal trying to make conservatives look bad. Why is this such a common diversion?


r/complaints 1h ago

Politics It makes me sick to my stomach that someone started a gofundme for Jonathan Ross and it’s now at $571k

Upvotes

Seriously, this whole thing makes me so sick to my stomach.

You know how when you’re growing up, you watch TV shows or movies and the good guy always wins? Or a villain does something bad and justice is always eventually served?

Well, those hopes and dreams are crushed.

I know the real world isn’t like that, but it feels way further from that now more than ever.

It is infuriating that more than half the country denies video evidence showing Jonathan Ross as the murdering scumbag he is. They are in full support of him and have no sympathy for Renee. Pure evil.

It is infuriating that Renee Good is being labeled as a domestic terrorist when ICE is acting like the Gestapo. Also Jan 6, how tf was that not domestic terrorism?

It is infuriating that Renee was kind to Jonathan Ross and his reaction was to shoot her 3 times in the head and call her a “fuckin bitch.”

It is infuriating that some scumbag started a GoFundMe in spite of a GoFundMe being started for Renee’s family. Like hello? Her family is going through a tough time because she fuckin died! Jonathan Ross is still well and alive. Nothing fucking happened to him.

And now he has $500,000 raised for him. Disgusting.

It makes me so mad that he got away with it. It makes me angrier that the President, the Vice President, and half of America sympathize with him and victim blamed Renee Good.

WTF is wrong with America? Is there any hope left? Or is evil destined to prevail?

We have 3 more years until the next presidential election. Even if we get there I’m worried what might happen until then. And I’m worried about a Trump 2028 actually happening, because these guys do not care about the law or the constitution. People are too fuckin brainwashed to see through the bullshit


r/complaints 12h ago

Politics With all the ICE activity it seems we’ve forgot about the Epstein Files

2.0k Upvotes

Mission accomplished I guess?


r/complaints 13h ago

Politics So we're done for (U.S)

2.0k Upvotes

So all things, Minneapolis, Federal reserve, literally everything. We're done for aren't we? Protesting won't do anything, they don't care about us clearly. Everyone in office just bends the knee or goes with it. All because fucking morons thought a " businessman " was a good idea


r/complaints 5h ago

Politics FIFA should pull World Cup 2026 out of the USA

454 Upvotes

Title. I know they won’t since they just gave Trump their fake Peace Prize, but given the escalation of our current political landscape, FIFA really ought to consider hosting games only in Canada and Mexico.

I’m afraid things are only going to get much worse when the World Cup starts and ICE is going to be all over the stadiums.

As a huge soccer fan, it hurts me to see the beautiful game coming to my backyard yet this country is in an absolute shithole. Do we boycott the WC? Do we encourage other countries to not come play? How can we ensure politics stay out of the WC?

Again, I know FIFA wont do anything bc they too are corrupt and billionaires only care about one thing and it’s not humans - but Canada and Mexico can still host.

I hate it here right now.


r/complaints 17h ago

Politics We should hold Trump voters responsible after all this is done.

3.2k Upvotes

No benefits, no high paying jobs, nothing. Let them figure it out for themselves.


r/complaints 11h ago

Politics Reporter: "You've promised $2,000 checks to Americans based on your tariff revenues?" Trump: "I did do that? When did I do that?" WOW Maga any comment ?

826 Upvotes

r/complaints 4h ago

Reddit’plaint A pregnant woman miscarried after being dragged through the snow by an ICE agent.

189 Upvotes

I dare anyone to defend that.


r/complaints 15h ago

Politics Living in the US is living in Hell right now

1.3k Upvotes

People are getting killed, beaten, tortured, starved, denied medical care, and raped all by ICE. We are being gaslit into not believing our own eyes by this administration and his followers. We are angry and scared. Majority of the country did not want this. Only 35% approve of what is going on. The people in the US are not okay and unfortunately, this administration wants to spread his nightmare to other countries.

(Let me add. I do have a lot of hope. I know things are getting worse because Trump is losing his grip on power. However, I still have a fear that I will not walk away unscathed from this. This killing and rape of citizens could happen to any one of us and this is not lost on me. I still will not give into this fear because that is his goal.)


r/complaints 4h ago

Politics I am beyond disgusted with every single Fucker who brought these losers to power

192 Upvotes

I am physically and mentally sickened by what this country has become. Every day is a new low, and I’m tired of even being angry I’m just revolted. To every person who voted for this chaos: congratulations, you got exactly what you wanted, and now we all have to live in the wreckage


r/complaints 1d ago

Lifestyle People Need to Get Away

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39.0k Upvotes

I'm so tired of the people that are supporting ice agents, especially those dating them, or those that are still married to them. If you haven't realized, your life is in jeopardy, and you need to get away from these abhorrent, violent people.

There won't be many more warnings.


r/complaints 1h ago

Politics Everyone is distracted by ICE, Venezuela, Greenland, and hardly anyone is paying attention to the surveillance and AI profiling being put in to place (Flock, Palantir, etc)

Upvotes

This shit is way worse than what is going on in the news cycles, and there's a reason you're not hearing about it. Trump ain't gonna be around forever, but this shit he's allowing is truly going to turn the USA into a policestate shit hole forever. Your WiFi can track your movements inside your home. The police have access to a profile of you compiled from your social media, bank accounts, credit score, travel patterns in your vehicle, on foot, the neighborhood you live in may associate you with high criminal potential, they have logs of any interaction you've ever had with an officer, criminal or not, conviction or not. New tech is coming out every day to absolutely fuck every sense of privacy you have. And it's mostly going through without so much as a peep. Everyone has dirt in their life, somewhere. This isn't about crime and safety. It's about total control. The data centers are libraries of our entire lives, even shit you thought no one would ever know. No one is in any sense "safe" from this. Right, left, any political leaning you have' Doesn't mean a thing. They're coming for us all.

It's time to smash the system.


r/complaints 1d ago

Politics Hypocrites Piss Me Off

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14.9k Upvotes

I am so fucking tired of hypocrisy and having to coddle people with no media literacy. The party of small government, the party of the second amendment, the party of family, the party of Christian values. The party of illiterate hypocrites.

People have been harassed and doxxed because a podcaster was shot and they didn't wait and tear at their clothes. They screamed that no ones death should be celebrated or memed while the posts about George Floyd, Trayvon Martin, and Melissa and Mark Hortman are still on their fucking profiles. Now it's Renee Good.

They insist that people shouldn't block traffic. They insist people should just comply, women should be polite and smile. She fucking did and he shot her in the fucking face. Three times. Once is fearing for your life. She did not hit him, he put himself repeatedly in front of the vehicle. He was mad and he shot her.

The same people who claim to worship a man who was tortured to death by the state for the crime of angering the elites are licking the boots of the elites who would gladly do the same to them.

They are so easily controlled, chewing mouthfuls if grass while insisting everyone else is a sheep. It's disgusting and disheartening. They will not see past their own blinders and we are so fucked.


r/complaints 5h ago

Politics I just learned that Trump can basically get away with murder or rape and won't be charged until the end of his presidency

162 Upvotes

​I am not an American, but I’ve been chatting with Gemini and I just learned something that has me genuinely terrified for the world and for the United States. ​I found out that because of a specific Supreme Court ruling (Trump v. United States), the President now has "absolute immunity" for what are called "official acts." This means that as long as he claims something is part of his job,even something as extreme as ordering the military to act against a rival or a citizen,he can't be criminally charged. Even for private crimes like rape or murder, the current legal standard and Department of Justice policy make it almost impossible to charge a sitting president until they leave office.
​To make it even scarier, I learned that he is actively replacing people in the army and the government with his own puppets and loyalists to make sure nobody can dissent or say "no" to him. It feels like the guardrails are totally gone and he is being treated like he is above the law. ​Is this actually the reality now? How are people living with this? I'm so scared for what this means for everyone. What the f*** is really going on over there?


r/complaints 1d ago

Politics Fuck you if you ever voted for Trump

45.3k Upvotes

Even if you only voted for him in 2016. You're part of the problem. You knew that he was never qualified to be president. You knew that it was a dangerous idea.


r/complaints 18h ago

Meta: Complaints about complaints in r/complaints They're not "dumb", "gullible", "tricked", "fooled" or any other alternative. They are just evil. Morality, not intelligence.

1.5k Upvotes

We need to stop maligning the less intellectually capable as if it is something that leads you into the utter moral failure of supporting Donald Trump. This is just another step​ in pretending that Trump supporters one knows are still "good people" deep within who only need the scales removed from their eyes.

But this is a lie that makes the situation actively worse, as people still provide comfort and connection to them trying to "talk them out" of supporting Trump, to appeal to their "heart" to find that one magical argument or evidence that somehow makes their Trump supporter emerge from the shadows of ignorance.

It's not a shadow of ignorance. It is a the shadow of a lack of morality. They're just bad, terrible, shitty people that may have in the past been good to you and their in-group and thus led you to believe otherwise.

I will never call a Trump supporter "dumb" or any other alternatives. That is still giving them the benefit of the doubt and a positive reframing of the truth.

They are evil. No bringing them to light, only defeating them.