Freedom Of Speech Includes The Right To Say Stupid Stuff
Germany is proposing that the EUmake it a
crime to deny the Holocaust as historical truth:
Germany hopes to make Holocaust denial a crime across the EU as part of a package of laws it wants to introduce during its presidency of the bloc.
Berlin is also set to outline plans to ban Nazi symbols like the swastika, which, like denying the massacre of the Jews, is already outlawed in Germany.
Such moves may be seen as curtailing freedom of speech and could prove controversial in several member states.
But the German justice minister says she is confident of winning support.
If it goes ahead, it will be the second time in two years that an attempt has been made to ban the display of Nazi symbols within the EU.
Of course, this could pose a problem as the swastika has many, non-Nazi, meanings:
The swastika, while used by the Nazis as an insignia, was not created by them, and a number of groups still use it.
It has featured in traditional Latvian knitwear for centuries, variously known as the Thunder Cross or Fire Cross, and remains a time-honoured good luck symbol for Hindus.
But the more important point is this: Freedom of speech includes the right to say incredibly stupid, even offensive things. You and I may not agree with someone who wants to write a book contending that the Holocaust is a myth, but the way to deal with them isn’t to turn them into criminals — it is to let them air their ideas and show themselves for the idiots and bigots that they are.
McQ at QandO puts it best:
Letting fools act as fools is the price of freedom. Restricting their ability to say or publish their foolishness only helps them gain a measure of sympathy and credibility. One only has to review how those at the recent Holocaust denial conference in Iran turned the discussion from the subject of denial to that of freedom of speech, and effectively so, to understand how such a law would actually aid their cause.
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Freedom Of Speech Means The Freedom To Offend
