this is bad on several levels. if the brits still think they rule the world now after all these years, how long will the empire keep acting like they do;

The British government has begun aggressively extending its censorship regime beyond its borders, invoking the sweeping powers granted by the Online Safety Act 2023 to demand compliance from foreign-based platforms. Pro-free speech websites like Gab and Kiwi Farms are among the first targets in this international campaign to enforce the UK’s standards of “online safety” — a term critics argue is being used as a smokescreen for state-sanctioned thought control.

Gab, a US-based platform known for its staunch defense of First Amendment protections, has refused to capitulate. The UK’s Office of Communications (Ofcom) is threatening the company with crushing penalties—up to £18M ($23.3M) or 10% of global revenue — for failing to submit to British censorship demands. Gab, in turn, is reporting the UK government to the United States Trade Representative and the Department of Justice, calling for retaliation and the imposition of trade tariffs.

Gab CEO Andrew Torba and his team did not mince words in their response. “We will not pay one cent,” their statement declared, emphasizing that Gab will not yield to what it describes as “tyrannical demands” from a foreign government.

The platform asserts that the UK’s attempt to dictate speech policies to an American company constitutes a dangerous precedent — one where governments believe they can impose their domestic laws globally, chilling free expression in the process. .........more........