From: patriot-AT-mip.net
Date: Tue, 03 Dec 1996 04:16:02 -0200
Subject: Re: Never Again...


I sort of feel the same way as the original poster.  As Winston Churchill
said in the House of Commons in 1936, when they were booing and hissing and
trying to keep him from speaking, "You only lend more importance to anything
I may have to say by denying me the right to say it !".  
I tend to think that one should make up one's OWN mind as to what one would
or would not support and you can't do that if you don't "see" it or "hear"
it in the first place.  Censors would deny you the right to make your own
choice as to the "goodness" or "badness" of what is being said.
There is some inherent unfairness about being always "politically correct".
For example, it's FINE to have an organization that collects money for "The
National Negro College Students Fund" with their well-known motto, "a mind
is a terrible thing to waste".  While I agree with the motto, I believe that
ANY mind is a terrible thing to waste and I wonder what would be the cry if
someone began advertising and soliciting for "The National WHITE College
Students Fund".  I have the feeling that THAT would be deemed "racist" while
the Negro fund is not and there's just something wrong with that !
Another recent example of this kind of mental set is the Furman thing.  What
a big deal over a word !  However, he should never have said he never said
it if it was habitual, but it may well have been the only instance when he
did.  But would the controversy have been the same had the word been
"honkey", "whitey", "Mr. Charlie", "wop" or "kike" had they been uttered by
a black ?  I really doubt it.  He may well BE prejudiced, but that does not
automatically mean he is also "dishonest".
My point being that we should not condemn, out of hand, ANYTHING and call
for immediate repression without examining it carefully whether or not we
may agree with the sentiments expressed.  Just remember that when "we"
censor "them", WE wind up being censored as well in the long run and we may
have given up some of our OWN rights and privileges without realizing it.
David

At 10:30 PM 12/2/96 PST, you wrote:
>
>On Mon, 2 Dec 1996 15:13:43 -1000 D Scott Woods <woodsd-AT-hawaii.edu>
>writes:
>>I vote 'yes' . Freedom of speech, no matter how disgusting the speech 
>>may be, is the most important - especially in cyberspace! say NO to
>>censorship.
>
>Being a veteran, I suppose I should readily agree with you, after all,
>that's supposed to be one of the things I served for.
>I'll be the first to say I don't know who I would want to draw the line
>and where, when it comes to freedom of speech, but you know, I'm
>starting to get a bit weary of those three words, "freedom of speech"
>being abused.
>It's a wonderful founding principle of this country, but when people use
>it and abuse it so that they can preach drug use and irresponsible sex
>and murder in songs, or in this case, to spread a message of hatred and
murder on the internet, I don't know.  
>I served in the military to protect freedom of speech, but I also served
>to protect people from what these neo-nazis are advocating.
>
>Dave  8^)
>
>
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>
>



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