Why Suppressing Free Speech to Protect Religion Is a Bad Idea

[trotsky]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sanjay-sanghoee/why-suppressing-free-spee_b_6498198.html

In the wake of the terrorist attacks in Paris, much of Europe and now the U.S. it seems is edging towards censorship of anything that could be construed as offensive to a religion. This includes a report compiled by the NYPD on Islamic terrorism, which some Muslim organizations apparently want taken down from the police department's website and pretty much shredded.

...

While the cartoons published by Charlie Hebdo lampooning the Islamic faith were, in my opinion, tasteless and sensationalist, nobody deserved to get killed over them. It's fine to question the judgment and even personal biases of the editors, but not to suppress their right to express their opinion. Muslims in Paris always had the right to picket Charlie Hebdo's offices, write their own scathing editorials and point out that the cartoons weren't really thought-provoking but merely insulting. Where was there a need or justification for violence?

I anxiously await the believers and "allies" who attacked us so viciously for saying that the right to free speech and free expression was greater than the right not to be offended, to begin their attacks on these liberal websites that are now echoing what many of us have said.

[cleanhippie]

1. That is so last-weeks position.

This week it's cool.

Consistency not required.

[skepticscott]

2. I think most of the crowd mouthing things like

"I believe in freedom of speech, but people need to restrict what they say" or "If you mock religion, you should expect to get whacked" has been shamed into silence (as they should be) by far more abundant and wiser voice than theirs.

[cleanhippie]

3. Yeah, they skipped town on a boat.

[trotsky]

4. Oh, damn, it's so hard to keep up.

All I know is that I'll always be on the wrong side of an issue because I'm an evil horrible bigoted atheist.