The pain of dissent

Submitted by Mark Strassburg (United States), Dec 28, 2002 at 23:17

Once again, the danger is not the loss of freedom of speech, but the loss of consequences against those who engage in it. EVERYONE is entitled to say what they wish. One of my favorite quotes is, "I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." However, if the view you take is contrary to that of the majority of the citizenry, you are certainly subject to ridicule, scorn, harsh words, and possible ostracism. That is the risk you take. But as so many have said, dissent does not equal knowledge or equivalence. If you are wrong, nobody is required to celebrate your words or defend you from the criticism which will result. The biggest problem I have with the so-called "educators" described in your article is that they equate criticism with censorship. There is no such guarantee in our Constitution. That, and the fact that they do not seem to grasp that our enemies could not care less that our universities celebrate freedom of speech and expression... Freedom of speech has no place under the law of sharia.

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