Selective Silencing: Why Censorship Spells Doom for Democracy
There has been an alarming spike in censorship lately, most noticeably on the internet, and this ominous trend should be deeply disturbing to all Americans.
When you start cherry-picking who gets to benefit from first amendment rights and who does not, its original intent of guaranteed free speech is so obscured you should just skip the B.S. and chuck it in the trash.
Viewpoints that challenge the status quo are being squelched under the guise of eliminating “fake news,” which is merely a banner under which to silence anyone and anything that questions our slide into fascism.
As any student of history can tell you, it’s not the first time an oppressive government has used this tactic to limit their citizens' access to anything but state-sanctioned propaganda.
The people of the United States, be they on the Right or the Left, are hypersensitive and borderline-paranoid these days, rather reminiscent of the vibe during the1930s in Germany (hint, hint). This is just the sort of septic psychic stew needed to get massive groups of people consenting to their own downfall in the quest for safety and security.
But giving up your power to communicate your truth freely doesn’t keep you safe. It makes you a prisoner.
If the Powers That Be feel the need to ban public dissent, it’s proof positive that all our institutions are in the midst of an epic fail. The establishment is obviously attempting to silence all non-corporate, independent media outlets to control the narrative and do damage control.
Some celebrate this “diligence” as a method to subdue hate speech. But since that is judged by such highly subjective criteria, it’s clearly more prudent to err on the side of free speech. Whatever your personal feelings are toward those censored, you should be concerned that the rules and standards are applied so arbitrarily.
I know this point has been made a gazillionty times, but it bears repetition: Maybe it’s not you being blackballed today, but hey, there’s always tomorrow. And there will be a tomorrow, and someone new in the Thought Police’s firing line.
This is how we show what we are really made of as Americans — when we have to defend the rights of people that make us projectile vomit. So put on your Big Kid Panties and grab a barf bucket kids. It’s no time to succumb to tyranny.
