Saturday, February 11, 2006

Unclear On The Concept

This is typical thinking from the anti-cartooners:
This cartoon depicts an image as either racist/anti-Semitic/etc. or as freedom of expression. What they invariably fail to grasp is that it is not an either/or proposition. An image can be racist/anti-Semitic/etc. and be freedom of expression. That's rather the point, in fact. If everyone loves what you're drawing then you don't need Constitutional protection, do you?

That some (or even most) people call an image racist/anti-Semitic/etc. is just part of the process. If I use words (my freedom of speech) to denounce your drawing, I haven't impinged on your freedom of speech. If I use, or threaten to use, violence to suppress your drawing, then I have impinged on your freedom of speech.

Let's illustrate with another cartoon:


Really. This is so Poly/Sci 101 that I can hardly we're discussing it.


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