Businesses need popular approval in order to grow and thrive. Often, in order to secure this approval, they will attempt to silence critics by force of law.
Exhibit A: Horizon Realty Group, which is currently in a legal dispute with a former tenant over a Twitter message she posted. To quote, “Who said sleeping in a moldy apartment is bad for you? Horizon Realty thinks it’s ok.”
Horizon Group is seeking–get this–$50,000 for damages to their reputation. The defendant, Amanda Bonnen, has support from other bloggers. A few suggested setting up a legal defense fund and many re-posted her original comment.
I suppose that some honest, legitimate businesses have been slandered by ungrateful customers. Do you think they have a right to restitution?
I think not. I think that, as Mises pointed out, the consumer is king; the burden is on the capitalist to serve the whims of the consumer. If the consumer is displeased with the entrepreneur’s services, the entrepreneur had better straighten up of face the economic consequences.
I’d like to see Horizon lose thousands of dollars in litigation, and be made a laughing stock on the World Wide Web. And I wish the same for every business that relies on the iron hand of the State to smash their adversaries.