Ever since the planned terrorist attack on our Libyan compound and diplomatic personnel “spontaneous uprising” over a stupid video which none had actually seen, per the administration, there has been much hang wringing and navel gazing over the freedoms enshrined in our 1st Amendment. It’s the usual pattern, where something happens, liberals blame someone for saying something mean, and then start wondering about whether free speech is all that it’s cracked up to be, instead of saying “I disagree with what you’re stating, but, I’ll fight to the death to defend your right to say it”. And here comes Eric Posner at Slate wondering if the US overvalues free speech
The universal response in the United States to the uproar over the anti-Muslim video is that the Muslim world will just have to get used to freedom of expression…….Muslims need to grow a thick skin, the thinking goes, as believers in the West have done over the centuries. Perhaps they will even learn what it means to live in a free society, and adopt something like the First Amendment in their own countries.
But there is another possible response. This is that Americans need to learn that the rest of the world—and not just Muslims—see no sense in the First Amendment. Even other Western nations take a more circumspect position on freedom of expression than we do, realizing that often free speech must yield to other values and the need for order. Our own history suggests that they might have a point.
King George and his governors saw no point in freedom of speech, either. And once that free speech starts being chipped away, where does it stop? What freedoms will next be targeted?
More from Q&O
You see one of the acknowledged problems with freedom is it’s messy. That’s right, people get to make choices you don’t agree with and, even more importantly, get to act on them without your permission.
And the Left, much like Salafists, don’t particularly care for any dissent.
It is the end of September, pretty soon we should begin to hear the clamour over “the war against Christmass”
Go to hell. Can I say that still? Well I don’t care- GO TO HELL Slate & John.
There’s certainly a war on Christmas and on Christians in this country, coming directly from the left. And the big lie is the “war on women” supposedly on the right, that the same morons whine about.
Freedom of speech does not entitle one to shout “Fire” in a crowded theater – BUT – violent religions do not entitle anyone to make the whole world a crowded theater, or make a dissenting video the equivalent of shouting “Fire”.
If there is a gray area in your thoughts regarding this issue, go with Freedom of Speech. It is a blessing to any nation.
Remember this; Yankee, go home, Go home Gringo. No one ever bothered to see just how traumatized I was by this kind of rhetoric so I don’t care if the Muslim’s like what we say or not!!! Screw you, Inman!!