Comment

German Court Fines Ultraconservative British Bishop for Denying Holocaust in Interview

7
jogiff1/18/2013 1:14:21 am PST

re: #1 Destro

Lumping all people who feel that free speech should not be censored as “right wingers and Euro-haters” is not conducive to productive discussion.

Some people do hold opinions that seem stupid or even hateful, but to cast a blanket condemnation of certain views is not just counterproductive (forbidding certain beliefs only makes them more appealing to significant parts of our society), but also poses a threat to progress in other fields.

I think that we all agree that the Holocaust happened and that millions of men, women, and children were murdered in industrialized slave camps for no offense other than their ancestry or sexual heritage. And I think that most of us agree that Holocaust denial is largely borne of hatred for the groups who were targeted.

However, some people are simply ignorant and forbidding people from holding certain views simply because shitty people also hold them is a policy that I feel is a genuinely slippery slope that could eventually be used to stifle progress.

(I’m sorry if I wrote this response like a pompous asshole. I just use unwieldy and unnatural language when I’m tired)