Do We Really Have Freedom of Speech in the U.S?

1. 67

   mahsa setarehposted 8 years ago

   Do We Really Have Freedom of Speech in the U.S?
   
   Do we really have freedom of speech here in the U.S? What should we change about it? How can we stand up for this right?
   
   

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2. 53

   peter565posted 8 years ago

   Freedom is under not effective the freedom of others and causing harm to society or the state. But, sometime very minor offense to effecting other's freedom or harm to society should be tolerated. But where should that line be drawn, is blury. In Singapore for example, public littering can at worst send a person in prison, because they believe as a small city state, if everybody do public littering, it would cause major problem, and it is true, for example Hong Kong is extremely dirty, due to been relax on this arena and disease such as SARS emerged in Hong Kong, in large country such as US, such strict law is not necessary, so at most, u get a fine for littering or nothing happen.
   
   Same apply for the freedom of speech, speech that don't effeect other's freedom, cause harm to others, to society or the state, should be allow, the rest, depends on the circumstances, for example the defamation law of Australia, disallow people from speaking defaming speech, but allow it, if the person saying defaming thing, (1) make it clear what they say is an opinion or (2) Prove what they say is true and is in public interest or (3) make it clear it is just satire

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3. 50

   bradmasterOCcalposted 8 years ago

   Political Correctness is an abridgement against free speech, and it has a chilling effect on it.
   
   ....the right of people to express their opinions publicly without governmental interference, subject to the laws against libel, incitement to violence or rebellion, etc.
   .....
   That was the definition, now apply it to what we see today.
   The difference today is that certain groups have created an artificial INcitement to violence because they have become too sensitive to simple words.
   PC is part of that sensitivity and now the once home of the brave, and the strong has become the home of the insecure, and the weak.

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4. 79

   dashingscorpioposted 8 years ago

   
   
   Yes and no.
   Anyone can say: "The president is an idiot" and not go to jail.
   Try living in North Korea saying on TV "Kim Jong-un is an idiot!"
   You're free to express your opinion for the most part in the U.S.
   Naturally we do have laws against libel and defamation of character especially when it comes to non public figures in our society.
   An employer can be sued for discriminatory practices and statements made against employees regarding gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation, as well as sexual harassment. There's no jail time though.
   One also can't yell "Fire!" in a crowded theatre.
   In our current climate we have a lot of "political correctness" however this has no actual (legal bearing), There is no jail time awarded for not being "politically correct". People may protest against you or disassociate themselves away from you but it's not against the law to be not politically correct. Trump is on his way to becoming the Republican party's presidential nominee!
   Essentially "freedom of speech" doesn't mean "Anything goes!"

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   1. 0

      LoliHeyposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Good points made.  Freedom of speech within reason.

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   2. 67

      mahsa setarehposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Well you should have the freedom of speech if that's what it is..Sometimes I feel as if it has been totally taken away from us and we can't even open our mouths to say anything to no one.

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5. 86

   tamarawilhiteposted 8 years ago

   We are seeing the label hate speech used to silence speech. If you don't like it, say it is hate speech, assuming that their disagreement isn't a reasoned position but based on "hate". Then ban the speech you assume is based on hate.
   Oppose illegal immigration, get accused of hating Hispanics, instead of supporting rule of law. And hate speech to protect minorities means you can't espouse a political viewpoint.
   Criticize giving a man with a penis, breasts and makeup a women's sports award over a girl who died of brain cancer, get criticized as transphobic and silenced for hate speech, instead of a rational debate about why we have women's awards versus men's awards and what criteria should be used.
   Islam seeks to be an all encompassing political and religious system, yet criticism of an ideology that gives its members permission to kill one who converts to atheism and daughters who pick their own husbands isn't something we're supposed to criticize - you get called Islamophobic or racist, though you don't see Christians or Buddhists around the world regularly killing people at random for not belonging to their faiths.
   Silencing debate on common sense topics shuts down discussion, so that only the ideologues and radicals remain. So you have Social Justice Warriors on the left who want to ban all speech they don't agree with per a long leftist laundry list that grows longer, vs Donald Trump's followers.
   Because everyone more moderate was told to shut up, browbeaten for expressing an opinion, people like Eich drummed out of a job. So you get the most extreme, and people lynch mobbed online for expressing a view half the population holds now cheerlead the only person left saying what they moderately believed but now support more extremely for being attacked for saying.

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   1. 79

      dashingscorpioposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Would you agree so called "hate speech" is not illegal?
      No one in the U.S. is arrested for expressing a different opinion. It is (the majority of society) in a particular era that decides what is offensive. Exp. names for women & gays...

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   2. 86

      tamarawilhiteposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      2 Secaucus men arrested 12/2015 anti-Muslim speech, UK and Canadian pastors many times since 2010, David Lenio for anti-Jewish statements on Twitter while blacks saying kill all whites get a pass, Edwin Wagensveld arrested 2015

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6. 0

   LoliHeyposted 8 years ago

   For the moment, yes.  But I have a feeling that is about to change.  Pretty soon it will be illegal to say anything bad against Muslims or gays (but bash away at those Christians!).  Also, racist stuff will get you in trouble.  Now, I am not condoning that behavior.  However, the First Amendment gives us the right to say what we want without fear of violence or imprisonment, or fine.  You may hate me if I say something bad to you, you may feel bad, or you may ignore it, but I have that right to say it.  As do you.  Saying anti-Muslim stuff is not nice, but prosecuting people for doing it is infringing upon their right to free speech.  The bottom line is that you have the right to speak your mind, which is something the Founding Fathers fought heavily for.  If they go ahead and take away our free speech, many will be mad, and they will be rightfully so.

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   1. 67

      mahsa setarehposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I'm sure it will change and the whole thing will be taken away..People who start protests have the right to freedom of speech, don't they, and then all of a sudden they get attacked and whatnot because of offensive use of language...

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7. 83

   tsmogposted 8 years ago

   IMO it a lot of the time it is based on the social setting whether speech is limited or not, so yes it can be restricted. Even though one has the right to say this or that, there may be consequence. If one stands up for a view against the city building a park the consequence may be many not doing business with you anymore. So, though said freely, there was a cost. If considered beforehand and one does not speak out then freedom of speech was inhibited, although not prohibited. Yet subjectively one feels they did not have free speech.

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8. 0

   JG Hemlockposted 8 years ago

   No. People do not realize that the constitution has been changed a little at a time and it now is almost gone! You could get in trouble for even asking this question now. If you see black-hawks flying around your house you will know why. lol

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   1. 67

      mahsa setarehposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I could't agree more! We have lost that sense of being able to express ourselves through that freedom that we did have..

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9. 70

   Mick Beetposted 7 years ago

   Yes  http://hubpages.com/politics/Gun-laws-i … -should-go

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