A Rare and Resilient Parasite
Freedom of Speech isn't only unique to America, it's a uniquely American concept
People often misuse the word “unique” when describing something that’s unusual or even rare, but Merriam-Webster defines the word as “being the only one.”
As in “It’s one of a kind,” and “It’s a singular achievement,” and “There’s nothing else like it,” and so on.
So, during National Free Speech Week, which runs from today until Friday, we should ask the question: what’s truly unique about America?
Are we “the only one” that’s a democracy?
Far from it. We’re actually a constitutional federal republic, but there are dozens of other forms of democracy out there. Some a little better, according to some. Some a little worse, according to others. But democracies, all. And depending upon how quickly you’d like a government to respond to the people’s wishes, there are some nations that you might consider more “free” than ours.
Are we “the only one” that has our vast amount of natural resources?
No. Russia clearly beats us, holding the #1 spot in natural gas and timber reserves, plus being a contender for the top spot in nearly every other natural resource.
Are we “the only one” that has our level of industrial capacity?
No. China beats us. As of 2019, they possessed 28.7% of the global manufacturing output compared to our 16.5%.
Are we “the only one” where someone can rise from the lower economic classes, work hard, and eventually enjoy a life of prosperity — the proverbial American Dream?
No. Japan and Germany rank higher than we do on being favorable environments for entrepreneurship. And there are many who are right on our tails — the U.K., South Korea, and Singapore, to name just a few.
Are we “the only one” that has such a large and powerful military force?
No. Both China and India have larger armies, and a top American general warned that “we’re not as advanced as China and Russia” in terms of hypersonic missile technology, which many believe is a game-changing development.
Are we “the only one” that has freedom of religion?
No. Many Western nations followed our lead and restricted their governments from establishing state religion and from restricted free worship. Brazil and Japan actually score slightly better than the United States on this issue.
Are we “the only one” that allows its citizens to keep and bear arms?
No. The constitutions of Mexico and Guatemala guarantee their citizens such a right, same as ours. And then there are places like Switzerland. Its government actually teaches all fighting-aged men how to use a firearm … and then sends them home with a free pistol or rifle.
Are we “the only one” that has the freedom of speech?
Why … yes.
Yes, indeed. The United States is, in fact, the only nation on God’s green Earth whose citizens enjoy real, honest-to-goodness freedom of speech.
Most people know you cannot speak freely in China or Russia or dozens of other places where “disappeared” is a verb used to describe what happens to someone when they speak ill of the regime.
But what about the Canadians or Brits or Frenchies or Aussies or the Kiwis … those harmless Kiwis … surely they have the same level of freedom of speech as we do, right?
No. No. No. No. And No.
Go to any of those places and try to publicly criticize someone, especially in writing, who has some form of protection or other, be it queen or imam or a trans-queen-imam, and wham! Depending upon exactly where you are and what busybody you’ve rankled within the bureaucracy, the best you could hope for would be a small fine and a stern warning to watch your mouth.
There are some nations in Europe that will even toss you in jail for three years for simply saying the admittedly repugnant thought that you don’t believe the Jewish holocaust ever happened … but doing nothing else. Truly. Look it up.
What about elsewhere, in Africa, Asia, or South America? Sadly, no. They’re all full of countries that have lists of things one may not say, from criticizing the leader to questioning a religion.
And most of the people in most of these places don’t have any problem with that, either. For some people, the only thing better than telling someone to shut-up is having the police tell them for you. And if you don’t value something yourself, you’re apt not to value it for others.
The idea of giving someone the right to insult you, and even what you hold sacred, just so that you may have the same right to do so if needed, sounds obscene in many cultures.
This was demonstrated to the late writer Christopher Hitchens when visited Cuba in the late 1960s. He was there as young international socialist, a comrade-in-arms, to witness the miracles that Fidel Castro was accomplishing and report them back to the wider world.
But when Hitch asked about freedom of expression, some low-level commissar said Cubans were free to speak about anything, but admitted that attacking or satirizing the “Leader of the Revolution” was not only impossible, it was wholly undesirable, as if it were the height of bad taste.
“Why would anyone ever want to say anything bad about El Jefe?” you could imagine the commissar pondering as Hitch strolled away.
That goes to show that freedom of speech isn’t just unique to America, it’s a uniquely American concept.
An Idea, Vocalized
The freedom of speech is about much more than deciding for yourself what to read or listen to, or what to write or say — though it protects those things. It’s really about what speech conveys.
Speech unleashes the most powerful and resilient force known to man — an idea — which can then spread exponentially from mind to mind, rippling across society and sometimes changing the reality of the world in its wake. Its effect can be almost magical, as if an idea was a living thing that has taken up residence in the collective mind.
This is how Leonardo DiCaprio’s character in “Inception” describes it:
“What is the most resilient parasite? A bacteria? A virus? An intestinal worm? An idea. Resilient. Highly contagious. Once an idea has taken hold of the brain it’s almost impossible to eradicate. An idea that is fully formed — fully understood — that sticks,” he taps on his cranium, “right in there somewhere.”
And what is speech but an idea vocalized?
Law & Culture
Going forward, it’s important to realize and remember that in order to maintain America’s freedom of speech, we need both the law and the culture.
We have a law. Our high court has affirmed the First Amendment many times, and from justices on the left and the right.
Our culture? Well, that can change. Sometimes greatly. Sometimes quickly. Sometimes irrevocably.
It’s changing at the moment, in fact.
That’s where you come in.
That’s where that “everyman” comes in, the man in a blue-flannel shirt in Norman Rockwell’s painting, standing amid his peers and speaking his mind.
To me, that man has always appeared a little nervous. Perhaps hesitant.
He didn’t dress for the occasion. He’s not wearing a suit and tie like the men around him, who look like they regularly attend such meetings.
He’s a blue-collar man. His hands and jacket appear dirty, like he was coming home from the factory, or in from the fields, but felt like he had to go down to the town hall before supper and let them know what he thought. Tired as he was, he couldn’t let this slip. He couldn’t leave this to someone else, even though he wasn’t sure of the words he’d use.
Then, when it came time, the man summoned his courage, stood up, cleared his throat, and spoke his mind.
Here’s the part I truly love about the painting: we don’t know what he said.
And it didn’t matter, either. Because here, and only here, he was free to say it, whatever it happened to be.
But that will only remain true if you and I maintain a culture that respects and protects such a freedom, and sternly reject any attempts to do otherwise.
Remember, what is unusual is worth persevering.
What is rare is worth protecting.
But what it unique … truly unique … is worth dying for.
(J. Pepper Bryars is Alabama’s only reader-supported conservative journalist. You can support his writing by subscribing at https://jpepper.substack.com/subscribe.)