“I may disagree with what you say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it.”—Voltaire/Ewelyn Beatrice Hall?
“Remember when the Left was all in favor of free speech, no matter how offensive, in the belief that clarity emerged from conflict, that sunlight was the best disinfectant, and that brotherhood was possible only after we cleared away the barriers that divided us …”—Michael Walsh
But that was the “sunshine” sentiments of the lollipop left in 1974; this is 2010 and the sun has been obscured by clouds and it’s now darkness at noon for free speech:
“There’s nothing entertaining about watching goons hurl venomous slurs at congressmen like the civil rights hero John Lewis and the openly gay Barney Frank. And as the week dragged on, and reports of death threats and vandalism stretched from Arizona to Kansas to upstate New York, the F.B.I. and the local police had to get into the act to protect members of Congress and their families.”—Frank Rich
Although Lewis has yet to produce any proof that racial slurs were yelled out from the crowd, eyewitnesses and “journalists” say they heard someone call Bathhouse Barney a faggot.
Even if “venomous slurs” were hurled at the Democrat congressmen, what’s the big deal? Has name-calling become a crime in America? If so, is it a misdemeanor or a felony, and punishable by what … 60 days mandatory attendance at a Romper Room school singing the “Do-Bee Song” with Miss Patti and a sock puppet?
“Do be a universal health care supporter
Don’t be a universal health care denier”
In the article “Hate is no crime,” Willis E. Elliott points out why it’s criminal to criminalize free speech:
“[W]hen any group succeeds in its appeal for legislation silencing its critics, the social effects are tragic. Inter-group tensions increase as one group is provided with special protection from other groups and/or the general society. Crime increases as members of one group see themselves as representatives of their group against “them” (another group, or a person perceived as representing another group). Law, whose function is to effectuate justice with an individual in the dock, loses dignity as it is dragged down into mediating intergroup conflicts, defining human emotions (e.g., “hate”) and attitudes (e.g., “bigotry” and “tolerance”) and culture-war terms (e.g., “politically correct,” “pro-life / pro-choice,” “marriage”), and expanding “equality” from individuals to groups. The upshot? Freedom shrinks as interpersonal and intergroup discomforts move from the dynamics of society to the specifics of jurisprudence, and government expands its controls over the populace as the people increasingly appeal to government to resolve their conflicts and solve their problems.”
I am riled up … I am fed up …
I.M. Kane
For those who still dare to believe in free speech, check out the clip of Dustin Hoffman in the role of Lenny Bruce performing his classic routine on ethnic insults. Beware: racial slurs ahead:
Lenny – Lenny Bruce hard words 1:56 video
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