One of the major issues in today’s society is freedom of speech. There is a question of what are the appropriate boundaries, if any, when controlling speech is on the line. Well, there is a very clear answer. Freedom of speech is a key an integral part to retaining liberty and can not be controlled or removed. As Trenchard and Gordon wrote, “A free people will be showing that they are so, by their freedom of speech.” The proclamation of ones thoughts is the clearest example of a free being. By saying what you want, you show that there is no control over you and that no one can stop you from acting. When you have no one watching what you say, you will speak more freely, so when a tyrant is breathing down you’re neck, you hold your tongue. The free man will speak out when things are wrong, the slave will either not notice or keep quiet. Additionally, the government does not have the power to silence your speech. No matter what people say, the government can not have any power over the people that the people themselves do not have. We created the government and gave them certain powers. How can we give something we do not have? We have no authority to punish our neighbor for something he said. We have no authority to go into his house and force him to be silent. We don’t have the authority to kill a man just because of what he said, so neither does the government. If you don’t agree with something, or you don’t like what was said, ignore it. You don’t have to listen. If your neighbor can be silenced, so can you. It is our right to express our opinions. We not only have that right to speak our minds, but a responsibility when it comes to what we know is true. We must share these things we have learned, shout it from the rooftops, till it touches every ear it can. You owe it to yourself, to the people around you, and to the people come and gone that you now revere to speak out. There is debt that must be paid for the years left silent; We must pay it in any way we can. Yes, we may be talking to a wall and maybe no one will ever hear the things we say or read the things we write, but perhaps someone will. Maybe the things we do will have the power and force to change how at least one person sees the world. Maybe one more person will fight back because of us. Maybe one more person will join in our efforts to change the world. That’s enough of a chance for me. Is it enough for you?

Yours Hopefully,

Publius