Commentary: Many of the pro-Hamas protesters on college campuses clearly do not believe in free speech

I believe in freedom of speech.

This means that students (or anyone) can peacefully gather in a public place and hold up a placard, even if their beliefs support murderous religious fundamentalist war criminals like Hamas. I believe people should be allowed to chant stupid slogans or otherwise make their beliefs known.

Instead, I peacefully tell these people that they are useful idiots to murderers and cowards who hate everything they stand for and defend people who are going to kill people. Should. they I was given a half chance.

One principle necessary for free speech is that at the end of this conversation both parties must be allowed to leave Although there are still disagreements And live your life without any inconvenience.

Failure to understand or accept this principle is pervasive on the modern left, which is why today many of these protesters face arrest and suspension from universities. .

Lately, I’ve found myself quite often in vehement disagreement with people on both sides of the political spectrum. I’m often discouraged by the pervasiveness of wrong ideas on either side, but what’s really scary these days is how many liberals can’t seem to deal with the fact that people don’t agree with them. It’s visible. It is true that some on the right have a hard time letting their political opponents lead peaceful lives, but objectively this is a more serious problem on the left.

For example, I do not agree that the 2020 election was stolen. At the time of the election and in the weeks that followed, I followed all the claims to that effect and found them all to be unfounded. Many on the right vehemently disagree with me on this, and that’s okay. No one on the right has tried to get me fired, ban me from social media, sit in the middle of the road and not get on a plane because of what I believe. I never tried to do that. On the other hand, I don’t think there is anyone like this. do Those who believe the election was stolen should be banned from social media, fired, or otherwise silenced.

In contrast, if I disagree with liberals (e.g., whether or not COVID-19 is naturally occurring, or whether it has been proven in children in response to potentially temporary gender confusion) I will soon be faced with the question of whether or not I should undergo life-changing treatment. By people who claim my opinions are harmful, dangerous, or in any way represent actual violence. Our recent history is full of examples of liberals successfully getting social media companies to silence certain views they disagree with, especially in the name of combating “misinformation.”

For too many liberals, being allowed to speak their minds freely is not enough. You must accept their opinion as correct. Otherwise, they will continue to stalk you and interfere with your life, often in illegal ways, until you stop voicing opposing views. This is not the mindset of someone who believes in free speech.

If the pro-Hamas loons currently occupying university campuses were to allow people to continue to live their lives around protests, no one would object to their presence so far. . As long as school administrators continue to do their jobs and allow students who oppose or are indifferent to the protests to attend classes peacefully, they will be on strong ground.

But for them, like many liberals, it’s not enough to have their voices heard. heard. their voices are win, and if you don’t accept it, they will make you pay by cutting off the ability of these institutions to do their work. They will block entrances to classrooms and monopolize public spaces. Physically prevent students who disagree with them from participating in campus activities. They invade faculty private areas in an attempt to bully administrators. And they will seek to exclude everyone but their fellow protesters from the public areas they claim to be. In the wider world, they would sit in traffic jams and unjustly imprison thousands of innocent people trying to get to work unless they get their way.

Those who believe in free speech believe that everyone should be given a reasonable opportunity to express their views, and at the end of the process be free to walk away with any disagreements remaining. I believe that. That is not the case with many of the protesters we have seen over the past two weeks. They don’t believe in free speech. They only believe what they say.