The Problem With 'Hate Speech'

[JayBoorum]

I wish I could remember the source of this quote, but my father would use it all the time.”Free speech is the right for anyone to be as openly stupid as they choose to be, without the fear of the government putting a stop to it.This allows the public the opportunity to know who all the idiots are!”

[ghot]

Narcissists are masters at cutting you out from giving them any constructive criticism. Eventually you become so resentful that you are just done trying to put some sense into them and the only thing you're left with is very much justified anger. So, you can do very little at that point. You can walk away, which is probably the smartest thing to do. You can yell the nastiest thing at them. Last option is physical and that's when they paint you as the abuser and they become the victim.

[mh]

Totally agree. I phrase I've recently started using: "I am not legally required to respect you." And my speech should not be limited because of it.

[d.flaherty]

I demand hate speech be free.
That way, I will know where your head and heart truly are.

[tombickman]

Finally someone who understands what "Free speech" means

[EoinODonnell-cptk]

I've always said this..When it comes to rights there is no such thing as hate speech..its just speech period

[BB-kteb]

I actually saw that we were opening a Pandora’s box way back in the 1990’s when we started passing hate crimes legislation that made penalties for offenses that were already illegal worse solely based on the thoughts of the individuals who commit them and in many cases, it automatically assigns this thought as the motive, even if it had no relevance to why the individual committed the crime, solely based on the race/religion/gender/sexual orientation of the victim when the crime is committed by a straight white male.

[davidhull]

sometimes hate speech is just telling the ugly truth that other people don't want to

[dougearnest]

Truth is called "hate" by those who hate the truth.

[catchdog]

Our use of the word Hate is simplistic, lazy, even childish and an impediment to understanding ourselves. Little kids will say they hate stuff. Resist the use of that word.

[mrreemann]

'Freedom of speech isn't freedom for the thought you love, it's freedom for the thought you hate the most"
~Larry Flynt

[ophidiaparaclete]

How do you reconcile free speech when anything you say can and will be used against you?

[danceufo]

I appreciate vague speech which can be interpreted in a number of ways. It leaves someone wondering what did they mean when they said that? It makes one think. It also keeps mystery. Everyone talking about truth like there are only binary true or false, but many things can't be fully understood. The complexities should serve as a reminder of the awe and humility to realize that we may never know truth, but that the mystery itself serves a value that excites the mind and soul. There is much more to any subject than a simple binary. We should be allowed to speak whether true, false, or anything else

[gebtmirschuld]

My favorite quote from TNG "With the first link the chain is forged, the first speech censured, with the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."

[Versatire]

It’s worse than that. Hate speech isn’t pleasant, but if you’re deprived of the ability to express yourself with words, you’re left with the only other way to express yourself: action.

[Syncopatix.]

My Gran taught me that anthing before the word "But" can be ignored. It's at best, trying to manipulate you into a positive frame of reference so you'll agree with what comes next, or at worst, at outright lie.

[angieborras]

People have become woozies. They can't take the truth, digest, nor process the truth.

[frankrigal]

Voltaire never said this, but he did say "lie my friends, lie, there will always come something useful out of it".

[timmojb]

While we're at it, I'm banning love speech, anger speech, sad speech, happy speech, tearful The list goes on.

[bobbyguajardo]

So crazy, I knew from the moment I heard about “Hate Speech” or “Hate Crimes”, years ago, I knew the laws were designed to undermine freedom. Crime is crime, and there is no hate speech, there are only ideas that benefit humanity and those that do not.