Fools for censorship

There is a distinct affinity between fools and censorship. It seems to be one of those breeding grounds where they rush in.

Heywood Campbell Brown

I have long believed that virtually everyone supports censorship, except that everyone favors drawing the line at a different point. Child pornography is one point that almost everyone can agree on. As a general rule, conservatives like to draw their line somewhere on matters relating to sex and/or religion. Liberals usually draw their line on political and social thought. Puritan-like, holier-than-thou attitudes can be found at both ends of the spectrum.

Amy Coney Barrett

Recently most of the push for censorship has been coming from the left. A number of authors, members of the press, publishers and people who work for publishing companies and even Barnes & Noble just sent an open letter to Random House urging the publisher to stop publication of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett's scheduled book, on which a $2 million advance has already been paid. 

The signers began their letter by claiming they "care deeply about freedom of speech," before demonstrating that they actually don't. "We are not calling for censorship," they wrote in a letter calling for censorship. Without having read Barrett's book, they advocate blocking its publication. And these are people whose very livelihoods depend on freedom of expression and the publication and sale of books not everyone will agree with.

The controversy over Elon Musk's purchase of Twitter sounds very similar. Critics claim to favor free expression of ideas while objecting to the wider spectrum of ideas that Musk's ownership may bring about. These may be the same people who argue that fair elections somehow threaten democracy.

The United States was founded with a fundamental belief in free speech and a free press. Courts may sometimes permit exceptions, such as child pornography and falsely yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theater. Everything else must be allowed, including fools who claim to oppose censorship while advocating censorship.