President Trump promotes the cause of free speech
Re “Does America have a free-speech problem?” (Question of the Week, Feb. 27):
When I was young, attending UC Berkeley during the 1960s, it was conservatives who seemed the most repressive. Free-speech pioneers like Lenny Bruce were actually jailed for using profane language that offended their sense of decency or decorum.
Then at some point the so-called liberals became the authoritarians: Journalists began acting like a police force for political correctness, telling us we must refrain from any speech offending “people of color” and inventing code words like “diversity” and “tolerance” to control speech and demand apologies from anyone who broke the rules.
People were called “racists” or “xenophobes” simply for wanting to strengthen our borders to prevent an influx of illegal aliens, criminals and drugs. Anyone who dared to express a Euro-American perspective on society was labeled a “white supremacist” and ostracized as such.
President Trump exposed the absurdity of this and became a champion for all of us who truly value freedom of speech.
No words should be forbidden. Freedom of thought and speech is more important than the sensitivity of any minority group, whether it be racial, religious or gendered in nature.
I look forward to the day when so-called “hate speech” will be as distant a memory as the arrest of Lenny Bruce.
— Richard Keeling, Torrance
Cherish it while we have it
The problem with free speech is that we only want other people to have it when they agree with us! George Orwell’s “Nineteen Eighty-Four” should be mandatory reading for everyone so they appreciate freedom of speech. When you no longer have it, it’s too late.
How long will it be before Donald Trump establishes the “Ministry of Truth”? His comment that Fox News is a reputable member of the media is laughable. It is the largest purveyor of faux news.
— Shirley Conley, Gardena
Terms of the debate
Anybody from any country in the world who goes to a different country that is not theirs without permission from the government is an illegal immigrant.
— Betty Larson, Redondo Beach
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