Recently there has been a national trend towards limiting free speech from the political right. This movement manifests in a broad array of circumstances, including national and regional politics, state organizations, nonprofits and personal conversations. It seems that wherever one looks there is evidence of the need of social conservatives to prevent people from expressing their minds.

A few examples would include the Presidents outrage over Fake News; internet trolls attacking factual accounts of peaceful public protests, and local politicians threatening to withdraw support from organizations whose members they simply disagree with. And of course Tuesdays letter to the editor in this newspaper calling for penalties provided on reporting in such a biased and untrue method.

The authors of the United States Constitution were students of the enlightenment and understood that free speech is both a bulwark against tyranny as well as a path toward scientific progress. They knew that no tyrant can long survive the bright light of the truth, and scientific insights require open, unfettered communication. Every person who uses a cellular phone owes a debt not just to the capitalist who sold it to them but also the scientists and engineers who built it using information and conversations which were not limited by the government.

And also, of course, we should note that those governments and groups that the United States claims to oppose universally hold that free speech should be limited or outright forbidden. So the more we oppose free speech, the more we begin to look like our sworn enemies.

Finally, heres the first amendment as a reminder:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Andrew Picken

Pendleton

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Read more:

Letter: First Amendment is first for a reason - East Oregonian (subscription)