Re:Once a bastion of free speech, the ACLU faces an identity...
by tomlockwood on Sunday June 06, 2021 @11:07PM
(#27418601)
If by living, you have the right, then you don't need to fight for it. You already have it.
Re:Once a bastion of free speech, the ACLU faces an identity...
by batch12 on Sunday June 06, 2021 @11:17PM
(#27418664)
> If by living, you have the right, then you don't need to fight for it. You already have it.
Exactly. I would not fight _for_ my right, but to protect the rights I already have. In the US, thats why articles in the bill of rights are phrased as they are. The first amendment doesn't say, "congress grants the right speak freely." Instead it is -- congress shall make no law [...] abridging the freedom of speech. This is because I have the right already and the amendment is there to protect it.
Edit: typos, grammar, and clarification
Re:Once a bastion of free speech, the ACLU faces an identity...
by tomlockwood on Sunday June 06, 2021 @11:29PM
(#27418737)
Ok, would you be able to protect your right to free speech if you were dead? Is being alive a requirement for protecting your right to free speech?
Re:Once a bastion of free speech, the ACLU faces an identity...
by hallway_monitor on Monday June 07, 2021 @12:21AM
(#27418968)
This is an intentionally antagonistic line of questioning. The answer has been given clearly. Freedom of speech is equally important as freedom of life. To put it bluntly, you'll have to kill me to silence me.
Re:Once a bastion of free speech, the ACLU faces an identity...
by tomlockwood on Monday June 07, 2021 @12:46AM
(#27419084)
I'm exercising my ability to speak freely, and it would be impossible for me to be here, speaking, if I was dead. However, it would be possible for me to live without freedom of speech. To put it bluntly, without life, my freedom of speech is useless. Being alive gives me the ability to exercise my right to live, and my right to speak freely. Its two rights for the price of one! Clearly a better deal!
Are you being pedantic to win an internet debate or really trying to understand other perspectives?
Edit: The thing you keep missing though is that one cannot choose. I have the right by default. I can choose not to exercise my rights, but by living I have the right to speech.