A Forum for Vigorous Debate, Cornerstone of Democracy
***********************************************************************************************************************************A FORUM FOR FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND VIGOROUS DEBATE, CORNERSTONES OF DEMOCRACY[For the journal--guidelines, focus, etc.--go to www.theamericandissident.org. If you have questions, please contact me at todslone@hotmail.com. Comments are NOT moderated (i.e., CENSORED)!]Encouraged censorship and self-censorship seem to have become popular in America today. Those who censor others, not just self, tend to favor the term "moderate," as opposed to "censor" and "moderation" to "censorship." But that doesn't change what they do. They still act as Little Caesars or Big Brother protectors of the thin-skinned. Democracy, however, demands a tough populace, not so easily offended. On this blog, and to buck the trend of censorship, banning, and ostracizing, comments are NEVER "moderated." Rarely (almost NEVER) do the targets of these blog entries respond in an effort to defend themselves with cogent counter-argumentation. This blog is testimony to how little academics, poets, critics, newspaper editors, cartoonists, political hacks, cultural council apparatchiks, librarians et al appreciate VIGOROUS DEBATE, cornerstone of democracy. Clearly, far too many of them could likely prosper just fine in places like communist China and Cuba or Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Russia, not to mention Sweden, England, and Austria.
ISSUE #45 PUBLISHED MAY 2023. NOW SEEKING SUBMISSIONS FOR ISSUE #46.
More P. Maudit cartoons (and essays) at Global Free Press: http://www.globalfreepress.org
2 comments:
These epithets (Nazi, racist, fascist, etc.) can be pretty frustrating. It has frequently been said that ad hominem is the last refuge of the man who is losing the argument. Groupthink is equally frustrating. It does seem clear, however, that this behavior is not exclusive to any one group. Turn on fox, they’ll talk about the groupthink on the left, turn on MSNBC, they’ll talk about the groupthink on the right. Both sides, of course, turn a blind eye to the groupthink among their own tribe. This is part of the nature of all groups, regardless of the doctrine. The selection process tends to not favor those who have the courage to be critical of the group to which they belong. So those on the right will shout: “communists!” (juxtaposing a picture of Obama with a picture of Chairman Mao) and those on the left will shout: “racists!” (juxtaposing a picture of Trump with a picture of Adolf Hitler), everyone will cry foul, not realizing that they have more in common with their adversaries than they thought they did.
But I also have a distaste for the “both sides are the same” mentality when it comes to politics. It's clear that the left has been far worse when it comes to the issue of freedom of speech. So again, I agree with you.
It would be nice, however, if some of those first amendment loving conservatives would say something about the fact that our kids start their day in public schools pledging allegiance to the flag -- “one nation under God”. (Talk about groupthink). It seems to me that this is a clear violation of the establishment clause. Ironically the anti “big Government” crowd are often the ones who seem to have the strongest affinity for the “pledge”.
Also, “love it or leave it” has come back into fashion now that “their guy” is in power. A stark contrast with the “dissent-is-the-highest-form-of-patriotism” sentiment they had when Obama was president.
I don’t want to straw-man you here. I know that you don’t fall into this category. But I do think it is important to be critical of ALL groups. What better way to prove that you are not under the spell of groupthink.
Great comment, Tim. I’m putting that in next issue of The AD. It would make a good essay, if lengthened. Is the Pledge still done in grammar schools?
Good point on both groups! I am an atheist, so clearly do not enjoy the constant evocation of God by the right-wingers. It does, however, seem from my observations that the left has really gone wacky with ad hominem, far more than the right. It is a constant RACIST bellowing. Also, communism is alive and will and seems like it will be a persistent threat to freedom until it finally wins out. And I do think it will win out eventually.
T
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