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Just like the other demi-gods of Silicon Valley, Mark Zuckerberg doesn't know all that much about the lives of real people.

Now his social network wants to become an arbiter of acceptable behaviour in our brave new digital age.

Today, Facebook revealed plans to censor hate speech, racism and extremism across Europe, claiming that "hate speech has no place in our society - not even on the Internet".

Supporters hope the Online Civil Courage Initiative will "purge Europe of all xenophobic rhetoric" - and presumably make sure we do nothing but coo at cat memes, share inspirational quotes and discuss the colour of a dress.

But many critics fear Facebook is under government pressure to censor discussion of the migrant crisis currently gripping Europe and Germany.

If Zuckerberg wants to make sure we can't see ISIS videos showing people being burned alive or beheaded, then there's no question that the initiative is a good one.

But if the result is that Europeans can't discuss the very real - and sometimes scary - changes taking place on the continent, then the plans are simply unacceptable.

Clearly, we should all be interested in creating a society without hate and xenophobia.

Yet silencing people will only send negative sentiments into the underground, where they will fester and rot into an even more disgusting form.

(Image: Getty)

Facebook is already have a sterilising effect on public discourse as people tend to only share content or sentiments which make them look good - behaviour known as "virtue signalling".

Here in Europe and the UK, we're increasingly told that some opinions are too vile for public consumption, and that the people spouting them should be silenced or even jailed.

The desire to shout "racist" at people with unappealing opinions is an ugly trait which gives the left a bad name.

Gordon Brown will forever be the emblem of this totalitarian urge after describing 71-year-old Gillian Duffy as a "bigot" for daring to challenge him on immigration issues.

(Image: Chris Neill/Daily Mirror)

Duffy didn't call upon the denizens of Rochdale to take up their pitchforks and run recently arrived Poles out of town. All she did was question the policy of a Prime Minister.

An influx of job-seeking foreigners will probably have very little impact on those living in Highgate or Hampstead - homes of the left-leaning liberal elite

But for the people stuck outside this cosy wealth bubble it can have very real consequences - some positive, others negative.

If you can't talk about it, the only option is to leave angry communities to simmer away in resentful fury which will eventually boil over into real violence.

On the other hand, allowing racists to flash their dirty laundry on social media can help to expose their vile opinions to ridicule.

Remember Nick Griffin? No?

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Well, he was the leader of the British National Party who effectively scuppered his career during one disastrous appearance on Question Time.

Despite having almost 30,000 followers on Twitter, he wasn't able to muster social media to spread his vile message.

He allowed himself to be exposed to public scrutiny and ruined his party's electoral chances forever.

(Image: Getty)

At this stage in history, us Europeans need an open forum more than ever.

There are millions of migrants moving across Europe, wars igniting on our borders and terrorists carrying out vile atrocities on the streets of cities considered to be centres of the free world.

This is not a time to be silenced.