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This piece was mostly written on 11 September 2017.
Also, excuse me for being a total prick, but I really need to open this with a very simple question: As of 2017, does anybody still believe that ‘Free Speech’ actually exists anymore? Think about that for a few moments before you actually answer… (Hint: If you’ve ever agreed with, or worse yet, ever personally uttered terms such as ‘hate speech’, ‘blasphemy’, or ‘safe-space’, you’ve already answered the question). Now, for those of you who haven’t already flounced off, saying that I’m a complete asshole of one or more of the dreaded ‘ist’ varieties, I’ll discuss things a little further.
Apart from the most obvious, there are a few particular inspirations for this piece, which I’d like to point out, including several well-known quotes. The first of these is attributed to Benjamin Franklin in 1755: “Those, who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”
The second was attributed to Mark Twain: “The purest form of satire is to mock another man’s god.”
The third was by Evelyn Beatrice Hall in her 1906 book The Friends of Voltaire, and erroneously attributed to Voltaire, himself: "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
…And to Godwin this whole thing, the fourth quote comes from Adolf Hitler, taken directly out of his 1925 book Mein Kampf (yes, I HAVE read it), where he stated (in part): “…All this was inspired by the principle—which is quite true within itself—that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie…”
A variation of this quote was later used by Goebbels, and then refined still further by the western media, but still (now falsely) attributed to Goebbels: "Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it."
A fifth (and final) quote comes from a 2002 statement from US Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski, with regards to Silviera v Lockyer, where he stated (in part): “…All too many of the other great tragedies of history, Stalin's atrocities, the killing fields of Cambodia, the Holocaust, to name but a few, were perpetrated by armed troops against unarmed populations…”
I have also referenced the old (and now clichéd) metaphor about the ‘boiling frog’, where it is asserted that a frog dropped into boiling water will quickly jump out, but a frog placed into tepid water that is gradually heated will not sense the growing peril, and will boil to death. This was, of course, proven false as early as the 18th Century, yet many people continue to believe it to this day, and its use still so popular, that it’s a go-to cliché for warnings about slippery slopes or ‘creeping normality’, such as the old parable about: “First they came for… Then they came for… etc.”
Likewise, the biggest and most overarching inspiration for this particular piece is Nat Hentoff’s 1992 book: Free Speech for Me--But Not for Thee: How the American Left and Right Relentlessly Censor Each Other.
Lastly, I have dredged up the old idea that Freedom of Speech doesn’t apply to speech which is both dangerous and false, as was first laid out in Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.’s opinion in the 1919 United States Supreme Court case Schenck v. United States, where Holmes stated (in part): “The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man falsely shouting fire in a theater and causing a panic...”
Free Speech advocates of the time (and many since), have vehemently disagreed with this, saying (among other things), that it could be argued that Schenck was actually screaming that there weren’t enough fire exits in the theatre in question.
A final inspiration comes from the first two amendments to the United States Constitution, (First being Freedom of Speech, Expression, Religion, Assembly and Press, and the Second being the right to bear arms), and the slogan, which is popular amongst many gun owners: "The Second protects the First."
Also, excuse me for being a total prick, but I really need to open this with a very simple question: As of 2017, does anybody still believe that ‘Free Speech’ actually exists anymore? Think about that for a few moments before you actually answer… (Hint: If you’ve ever agreed with, or worse yet, ever personally uttered terms such as ‘hate speech’, ‘blasphemy’, or ‘safe-space’, you’ve already answered the question). Now, for those of you who haven’t already flounced off, saying that I’m a complete asshole of one or more of the dreaded ‘ist’ varieties, I’ll discuss things a little further.
Apart from the most obvious, there are a few particular inspirations for this piece, which I’d like to point out, including several well-known quotes. The first of these is attributed to Benjamin Franklin in 1755: “Those, who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.”
The second was attributed to Mark Twain: “The purest form of satire is to mock another man’s god.”
The third was by Evelyn Beatrice Hall in her 1906 book The Friends of Voltaire, and erroneously attributed to Voltaire, himself: "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
…And to Godwin this whole thing, the fourth quote comes from Adolf Hitler, taken directly out of his 1925 book Mein Kampf (yes, I HAVE read it), where he stated (in part): “…All this was inspired by the principle—which is quite true within itself—that in the big lie there is always a certain force of credibility; because the broad masses of a nation are always more easily corrupted in the deeper strata of their emotional nature than consciously or voluntarily; and thus in the primitive simplicity of their minds they more readily fall victims to the big lie than the small lie…”
A variation of this quote was later used by Goebbels, and then refined still further by the western media, but still (now falsely) attributed to Goebbels: "Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it."
A fifth (and final) quote comes from a 2002 statement from US Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski, with regards to Silviera v Lockyer, where he stated (in part): “…All too many of the other great tragedies of history, Stalin's atrocities, the killing fields of Cambodia, the Holocaust, to name but a few, were perpetrated by armed troops against unarmed populations…”
I have also referenced the old (and now clichéd) metaphor about the ‘boiling frog’, where it is asserted that a frog dropped into boiling water will quickly jump out, but a frog placed into tepid water that is gradually heated will not sense the growing peril, and will boil to death. This was, of course, proven false as early as the 18th Century, yet many people continue to believe it to this day, and its use still so popular, that it’s a go-to cliché for warnings about slippery slopes or ‘creeping normality’, such as the old parable about: “First they came for… Then they came for… etc.”
Likewise, the biggest and most overarching inspiration for this particular piece is Nat Hentoff’s 1992 book: Free Speech for Me--But Not for Thee: How the American Left and Right Relentlessly Censor Each Other.
Lastly, I have dredged up the old idea that Freedom of Speech doesn’t apply to speech which is both dangerous and false, as was first laid out in Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.’s opinion in the 1919 United States Supreme Court case Schenck v. United States, where Holmes stated (in part): “The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man falsely shouting fire in a theater and causing a panic...”
Free Speech advocates of the time (and many since), have vehemently disagreed with this, saying (among other things), that it could be argued that Schenck was actually screaming that there weren’t enough fire exits in the theatre in question.
A final inspiration comes from the first two amendments to the United States Constitution, (First being Freedom of Speech, Expression, Religion, Assembly and Press, and the Second being the right to bear arms), and the slogan, which is popular amongst many gun owners: "The Second protects the First."
Category Poetry / All
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So-called "Hate Speech" laws are perhaps the single most grievous wounds that Free Speech has ever endured. If such atrocities as the proposed blasphemy laws ever get passed, those wounds will become mortal. Especially since other, smaller wounds such as so-called "Free Speech Zones", echo chambers and/or so-called "Safe Spaces" have become infected and are suppurating.
*gives you a standing ovation* Bravo good sir. :) I don't BELIEVE in hate speech.. quite the contrary I think it's abysmal! However, if you take away the right to say that.. then where does it go next? Do you know we are facing a law in CA if you MISGENDER someone (calling a he a she) you can get a $1000 fine!?! THIS is a violation of free speech (Yes I know it makes me an asshole to deliberately call a female trans person male and vice versa.. but I don't do that). I hope this law gets struck down because it is unconstitutional
There are plenty of viewpoints I find utterly repugnant, and which I have railed on constantly, to the point of it costing me so-called 'friends', such as the trendy SJW Anti-Semitism that is all the rage these days. However, I have never once advocated censoring such viewpoints. On the contrary, I think those assholes should be given all the airtime they need, because the more they use it, the less effective they are.
Anything that hides itself underneath a rock needs to be dragged, kicking and screaming, out into the light for all to see, and all to mock.
Thanks for the comment and the fave. :)
Anything that hides itself underneath a rock needs to be dragged, kicking and screaming, out into the light for all to see, and all to mock.
Thanks for the comment and the fave. :)
As lib as I might be I agree. It's gotten so I don't feel safe expressing my opinion on things lest I lose friends. I guess I should question the value of their friendship but at the same time I understand all too well where this attitude is coming from. I think it's that cognitive dissonance doesn't have a political affiliation. People are tribal and can't deal with the chaos and dark and need their echo chambers to feel safe. We're getting too much input and too many people are twisting things because fear is a great way to get people to go along with you. People just love to tear each other down and they take advantage of that.
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