A question of freedom

Automan21k

Shared on Tue, 02/17/2009 - 13:48

Really, what is freedom? Freedom to go where you want? Do what you want? Say what you want?

Recently a large number of White Supremacist flyers were distributed throughout several Central PA towns…it was nothing violent or even offensive, it was more pro white, than anti anything…the people in these towns are upset,…so are the cops, (but that had more to do with several hundred flyers being dumped on their town’s streets)…. But every person interviewed had some comment about respecting the first amendment, but something should be done about this, to make them stop, to FORCE them to conform….
While I don’t agree with this groups ideals, the flyers could not have been presented in a less offensive manner….it simply said “love your race” and had a phone number to call for more information….this was not a march designed to cause conflict, it was not burning crosses, defacing property, just a bit of littering….
Now to my point…has freedom of speech warped to the point people claim that their freedom of speech means they should have the right to make others hide or change their points of views? Now I’m not talking about forcing you to stop and listen, but to keep you from expressing your self because someone else is offended by it?
There was an earlier blog (sorry I can’t remember who wrote it) that talked about a videogame focused around rape….is that not their freedom of speech? Or has the obscenity restrictions come back to rear their ugly head…restrictions that at one point made it illegal to own a copy of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged because it may cause people to rebel against the concept of a government growing too big….
Are we at a point where opinions could be at an end? Even in certain blog sites (luckily not this one) your posts would be deleted if the moderator didn’t like what you had to say. So freedom of speech is then limited to places where people already agree with your point of view….or places where you control the content. So freedom of speech becomes the freedom to say what you want provided absolutely everyone agrees with you and no one complains for the sake of people who may exist but don’t have the capacity to complain….and porn, because lets face it, if they get rid of that, the riots would tear this country apart.
But Porn isn’t in question here, only freedom of speech, the written and spoken word (since I think porn still qualifies as an art so long as it doesn’t end up in the hands of a minor…but really, who on this site didn’t have a porno mag stuffed into their mattress when they were 13…and we are (almost) normal) …at one time soldiers would say “I don’t agree with what you say but I would die defending your right to say it” and many still do…but are they dieing for our freedom or for someone else’s freedom to keep us from expressing our right?
 
What brought on this rant? Besides a ton of Repressed frustration? I was told today that I MUST change the type of music I listen to while I am at work…not by a supervisor, but by someone several ranks below me who doesn’t even work around me….they said this type of music will offend someone and that I need to stop, NOW.….all that determined by what the cover art on the CD case looked like…..that’s right, the music wasn’t even playing, and if it was, what difference would it make, I wear headphones and keep it at a low volume….now for the really funny part….the CD was David Bowie’s greatest hits…Ghasp!….how offensive….
 
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Comments

RyanFromVegas's picture
Submitted by RyanFromVegas on Tue, 02/17/2009 - 17:51
Well, the argument is that all sides are excersizing their freedom of speech. The white supremesists and the people opposing them. A couple pissed off folks getting quoted in a newspaper saying it should be banned is a long way from actually legally banning it. A lot of hub-bub but no real action will ever be taken. Excepting of course that the white supremesists arent engaged in actual illegal activity that this episode shines a light on... The point is, that all sides can say whatever they want as long as its not violating anyones rights. Getting quoted in the newspaper doesnt constitute an amendment to the constitution..its just an opinion..maybe even one shared by the vast majority of the country, but thats the sort of thing the ACLU lives for...whatever you think of them. Your music at work, well that can get dicey I think as your work place is not really a venue for you to exercize your free speech...however one employee complaining about album art left out in the open is hardly a mandate from HR's legal team to cease and desist. At worst, according to your headphone usage, the album art is deemed offensive and you leave it at home..of course Im not in HR anywhere so thats just my 2 cents.
Automan21k's picture
Submitted by Automan21k on Tue, 02/17/2009 - 20:44
I didn't mean to actually get into consitutional law, but more focus on how people view rights as "their rights and no one else's"...but thanks for the input. I meant for it to get into something about the art of the debate being dead,....but I got side tracked while working and it took a bit of a swing in another direction...I guess I need to set aside time to blog durring the day since it's the 4th part of my daily multitask, and the least focused of them.

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