Anthology of Ideas

During the 18th century, scientific and social changes reshaped the concept of the self. The individual slowly separated from the collective and began to develop as an antithesis of the collective agrarian society of prior centuries; thus, giving rise to a wave of new philosophical thought that evolved into the popular movement of the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment developed around the belief that scientific thought and expression should be free from religious interference and that the foundations of society should be human reason and logic.

The following text comes from an American Army guidebook that was distributed during the second World War to soldiers stationed in Iraq. (Emphasis added to some lines.) SOME IMPORTANT DO’S AND DON’TS Keep away from mosques. Smoke or spit somewhere else””never in front of a mosque. If you come near a mosque, keep moving (away) and don’t loiter. Keep silent when the Moslems are praying (which they do five times a day) and don’t stare.

Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why The Cage Bird Sings” is a wonderful look into the mind of a girl in her battles with racism, sexism and coming to terms with herself. Her story begins at the age of three on the way Momma’s store after her mother put her on a train and ends years later after the birth of her son. Through out this time Maya must learn to live with others perception of her and even more difficultly herself.

The line between safe and free speech is quite thin, or so Susan Estrich claims. In reality the line is actually non-existent because in stopping free speech you also stop the basic foundation of the constitution. However occasionally, under the correct circumstances it is more important to stop the speech, for whatever reason, than ensure the right to the same speech. Because even if it does deny the freedom of speech, it can also prevent the spreading of speech that would likely cause death or injury.

History has shown us that it takes as much government influence to protect free speech as it does to deny it. The government sometimes seems like a spinning top; one moment it is denying a form of free speech and another it is protecting a different form of free speech. For a large part of the last century the government, more specifically the FCC, had a policy called the Fairness Doctrine, this policy forced the media to be unbiased and give fair and balanced reports on political issues.

During the 18th century, scientific and social changes reshaped the concept of the self. The individual slowly separated from the collective and began to develop as an antithesis of the collective agrarian society of prior centuries; thus, giving rise to a wave of new philosophical thought that evolved into the popular movement of the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment developed around the belief that scientific thought and expression should be free from religious interference and that the foundations of society should be human reason and logic.

The following text comes from an American Army guidebook that was distributed during the second World War to soldiers stationed in Iraq. (Emphasis added to some lines.) SOME IMPORTANT DO’S AND DON’TS Keep away from mosques. Smoke or spit somewhere else””never in front of a mosque. If you come near a mosque, keep moving (away) and don’t loiter. Keep silent when the Moslems are praying (which they do five times a day) and don’t stare.

Maya Angelou’s “I Know Why The Cage Bird Sings” is a wonderful look into the mind of a girl in her battles with racism, sexism and coming to terms with herself. Her story begins at the age of three on the way Momma’s store after her mother put her on a train and ends years later after the birth of her son. Through out this time Maya must learn to live with others perception of her and even more difficultly herself.

The line between safe and free speech is quite thin, or so Susan Estrich claims. In reality the line is actually non-existent because in stopping free speech you also stop the basic foundation of the constitution. However occasionally, under the correct circumstances it is more important to stop the speech, for whatever reason, than ensure the right to the same speech. Because even if it does deny the freedom of speech, it can also prevent the spreading of speech that would likely cause death or injury.

History has shown us that it takes as much government influence to protect free speech as it does to deny it. The government sometimes seems like a spinning top; one moment it is denying a form of free speech and another it is protecting a different form of free speech. For a large part of the last century the government, more specifically the FCC, had a policy called the Fairness Doctrine, this policy forced the media to be unbiased and give fair and balanced reports on political issues.