Opposing Viewpoints: Free Speech Should Not Be Regulated

Opposing Viewpoints:Freedom of Speech Should Not Be Regulated

Article: Free Speech Should Not Be Regulated

summary of article (provided by Gale Opposing Viewpoints):

In the following viewpoint, Oliver Kamm contends that free speech must be protected because people's feelings cannot be legislated. The author alleges that speech at its most extreme draws attention to social problems and stimulates debate, and moderating speech undermines this process. In fact, Kamm argues that if the state has the power to legislate its citizens' sensibilities, its power is, in effect, limitless. Furthermore, he claims that ideas alone do not merit respect—ideas earn respect through their intellectual resilience. Kamm is an author and columnist for the Times (UK).

citation of source:  

Kamm, Oliver. "Free Speech Should Not Be Regulated." Civil Liberties. Ed. Auriana

     Ojeda. San Diego:Greenhaven Press, 2004. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from "The 

     Tyranny of Moderation." Index on Censorship (Feb. 2007): 82-86. Gale Opposing 

     Viewpoints In Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2012.