Second Thots

Unlike gay marriage, or even abortion, free speech is a fundamental right of any free society. So it truly amazes me how people are more vocal in defending the first two as opposed to the last one. In Canada, our political dialogue is rife with talk about rights. Yet the same people who talk about our Charter as though it was the greatest political document of the last half-century stand silent as free speech is cut loose to the forces of left-wing political correctness.

This stunning development ought to be remembered the next time the usual suspects talk about rights in Canada. We'll remember where they stood on rights when it came to free speech, a right that allows for dialogue regarding all other rights, including ones not even remotely referred to in our Charter. Without free speech, who cares what anybody thinks about anything? It'll be silenced. So will democracy.

To be clear, no one's right to free speech has been taken away here. At least not yet. It just hasn't been defended or championed. I find that scarier than ten Stephen Harpers with AK-47's any day. I would like to think people who value freedom would too. Apparently not.