Cal Thomas - Free speech hypocrisy

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Thursday, April 21st. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Myrna Brown.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard. Time now for commentator Cal Thomas.

CAL THOMAS, COMMENTATOR: Americans who subscribe to “traditional values” have had to put up with a lot from the left in the name of the First Amendment. Here’s just a short list, starting with vulgarities on TV. Self-described First Amendment defenders said things like, “If you don't like it, change the channel.” Then it was sexual scenes in movies. They said, “If you don't like it, don't go.” How about the ready availability of pornography on the internet? They said, “Use blockers if you don't want to view it.” From books that offend parental values in public schools, to flag burning during protests. Any opposition to those things prompted cries of “censorship.”

Now comes Elon Musk and suddenly everything has changed. Musk wants to buy Twitter and add to the diversity of opinions that can be expressed on the popular platform. At first the Twitter board welcomed him to the company. But board members quickly changed their minds and have now inserted a “poison pill” they hope will keep him from taking over.

Musk's attempt to purchase Twitter has revealed a double standard when it comes to free speech. Why do liberals only approve speech they agree with? Doesn't the word “free” imply without cost? It does, but it means more than that. It's also about not imposing the “cost” of telling people what they can and cannot say. People mostly agree on limits involving libel, slander, and crying “fire” in a crowded theater when there is no fire. But what’s happening now is different. We’re talking about political speech that doesn't agree with the secular-progressive worldview. Liberals want to control, or even ban it in some cases.

Twitter (and Facebook) have “standards” that, if violated, can get users suspended or banned. They define “hate speech,” but it’s often arbitrary. And the companies in too many cases seem to bow to the wishes of leftist organizations.

During the turbulent years leading up to the founding of our nation some people spoke out against the Revolution. Even so, George Washington said, “If freedom of speech is taken away, then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter.”

In an Aug. 8, 1950, message to Congress regarding the internal security of the United States, President Harry Truman wrote: “Once a government is committed to the principle of silencing the voice of opposition, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of increasingly repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens and creates a country where everyone lives in fear.” The same could be said of non-government entities like social media.

The response to speech you don’t like is more speech, not less. That's what freedom of speech ultimately means. And it's what Elon Musk appears to want to promote on Twitter should he get the chance.

I’m Cal Thomas.

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