Free Speech
"Bear in mind, ladies and gentlemen, that every time you violate or propose to violate the free speech of someone else you, in potensia, you are are making a rod for your own back...who is going to decide? To whom do you award the right to decide which speech is harmful or who is the harmful speaker or to determine in advance what are the harmful consequences going to be that we know enough in advance to prevent? To whom would you give this job? To whom are you going to award the task of being the censor? Isn't it a famous old story that the man who has to read all of the pornography in order to see what is fit to be passed and what is fit not to be, is the man most likely to become debauched? Did you hear any speaker in opposition to this motion eloquent enough to whom you would delegate the task of deciding for you what you could read? To whom you would give the job of deciding for you -- relieve you of the responsibility of hearing what you might have to hear? Do you know anyone? Hands up! Do you know of anyone to whom you'd give this job? Does anyone have a nominee? You mean there's no one in Canada good enough to decide what I can read? Or hear? I had no idea...but there's a law that says there must be such a person...or there's some subsection of some piddling law that says it. Well, to hell with that law then! It's inviting you to be liars and hypocrites and to deny what you evidently know already..." -- Christopher Hitchens
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