Freedom of Speech - that doesn't mean what you think it means

[sparkindarkness]

 After numerous recent brouhahas (there’s always numerous), the Freedom of Speech wars are raising their ugly heads again, and like a compulsive whack-a-mole player, I simply have to hammer them down, because it’s amazing how much the people who scream “freedom of speech” the loudest are the ones who seem to understand it the least.

 

Freedom of speech – the freedom to not have the government come along and censor you without good reason (yes, good reason – it has never been an unqualified right). Are the people “silencing” you the government by law? No? Jog on then, your right is not being violated.

Of course, some people have severely missed what the freedom of speech actually means – or, rather, they’re trying to stretch it into weird and not very wonderful shapes to cover their scabby arses which has left it rather deformed.

 

Firstly, no-one has to give you a platform from which to speak. You can say whatever you want – but I don’t have to repeat it. I don’t have to let your words appear in my spaces, I don’t have to let you use my blog to spread your words to my audience, an editor isn’t obliged to print your letters or your articles, a TV station isn’t required to point a camera at you and spread your crap far and wide.  You can speak – you can stand on the street corner and speak, you can open your own blog, publish your own newspaper, write your own book, whatever; but no-one has to do these things for you. We didn’t sign up to be your publicists; if we don’t want to allow your voice on our spaces then so be it

 

Secondly, no-one actually has to listen to you. It doesn’t matter how wise and erudite you think you are, it doesn’t matter if you think you have are the bestest expert ever, no-one is required to listen to you. No-one has to take time out to see what you have to say, no-one has to visit your blog, listen to your excuses, accept your apologies or believe a damn thing you say.

 

Thirdly, no-one is required to go down in flames with you. If you open your mouth and all kinds of bigoted foolishness comes out, no-one is required to stand by you or defend you. No-one has to speak up for you. And you’ll probably find a lot of people dropping you – including employers, and advertisers – especially anyone who has been using you as a “spokesperson”.  That’s their prerogative, they’re not silencing you when they flee the sinking ship you just scuppered.


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