FREE SPEECH
Today’s ramble is about FREE SPEECH
What’s the big deal about free speech? I mean why do we make such a huge issue out of it?
There are several reasons why not to make a big deal about free speech.
One is the risk of offending others. We are sensitive people and any stray remark can hurt people’s sentiments quite badly. And that psychological violence has a cost, a backlash.
I remember the song from “Aaja Nachle” where the lyrics that mentioned a cobbler and goldsmith in the same light were heavily protested and eventually changed because it hurt the sentiments of an already very oppressed group.
The second reason for no free speech is that of respect. We have been taught to respect our elders. Questioning them too early is not worth it — we waste our time beyond a point questioning time tested wisdom. And too much questioning can lead you to the trap a lot of the Left finds itself in today — long endless loops of questioning with no action.
The elders don’t enjoy being questioned too much, and quite often they can’t argue on ‘rational’ terms with this generation. And it is unfair to them. Why should they have to come to a rational world view when their beliefs come from a whole different world view based on faith? Is that scrutiny even fair?
And then, already there is a lot of freedom of speech some may argue. If anything, so much freedom has created a hall of mirrors and smokescreens. It is almost impossible anymore to find out whats “true”. Atleast in the Vividh Bharti / DD1 era you had one voice that went to the whole country and could be reasonably counted on.
Now, each of us (including me) are just saying what we want and that makes it so hard to make up your mind! It’s quite a disaster.
Moreover, sedition is a serious threat because language that incites can spark unnecessary dissent that may threaten our country. So language that goes in that direction must be curtailed too.
Taking these positions to an extreme can get problematic though. If each of us starts getting progressively “offended” the universe of acceptable conversation will begin to shrink. If all we do is listen to elders and not question, we’ll lose our energy and creative edge as a society. And if we suppress voices that speak their truth, so many narratives will be forever unheard.
At the bottom of our emblem is written “Satyamev Jayate” — celebrating truth as a founding value. And as Jordan Peterson points out (and this is one of the few cases where I agree with him), in the pursuit of truth, you have to risk offending others.
And that risk is worth it because you want a society where there is freedom for anyone to raise a voice, even if it is a minority of one. If there is a threat to them, that is to be taken seriously.
Because on some issue, someday, it may be me or you or our loved ones who may be that minority.
P.S : Our stand-up comedians in particular need to be protected and given all the freedom to poke fun at anything and anyone. They are the modern versions of the fools, the jesters who show the society the mirror it needs to see. Wise kings perhaps took the jester’s sarcasm as feedback and incorporated its wisdom. Hopefully, our representatives today will do the same!
