Who has the most power to hurt us, individuals who belittle or slander us, or authorities who can literally enslave or kill us? When we as citizens see or hear things that offend or attack us, we have some form of redress through both social and judicial mechanisms. When we are silenced by regulation or censorship, there are no means of appeal or redress. The political prisoners of many countries throughout the world (including Britain and the US) are all too aware of this.
How does this apply to hate speech, porn, trolls, burning the US flag or the Quran? The same way it applies to infomercials, beer and underwear ads, Rush Limbaugh rants and scientific articles on evolution and global warming. All of these communications are detested by some number of the population, but desired by others. Who is to judge what we can and cannot see and hear? Once they become judge of one thing, they become judge of all, this has been proven time and again. Authorities never surrender power voluntarily.
It is a fact of human nature that people will surrender almost anything for a perceived short-term gain. People have surrendered their fortunes, dignity, family members, even their physical freedom throughout the ages. They have sold their childrens' birthrights, accepted demeaning constraints, and even locked the collars around their own necks over the ages. It appears we have not conquered this basic flaw in human character.
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