When institutions claim to value inquiry but treat unwelcome conclusions as intolerable, whether those conclusions are mistaken or true, what remains of the freedom to think? That is the question. Most people say they support free speech. What they usually mean is the right to be wrong. That right matters. Without room to say something … Read more
Safety is a real good. No serious political tradition denies this. People need protection from violence, fraud, coercion, and the ordinary dangers of the world. A society that cannot provide a reasonable measure of safety will not remain free for long. Fear is a powerful political force. When people feel unprotected, they will accept almost … Read more
You have probably watched a familiar word change meaning in public use, sometimes quite quickly. A term that once described a specific action or condition gets expanded, narrowed, or inverted so that it better serves a preferred conclusion. The shift is rarely announced as a formal redefinition. It is simply repeated until the older sense … Read more