Freedom of Speech?

What is this thing people call "freedom," anyway?

We usually think of "freedom of speech" in the context of having the freedom to convey something controversial or even antisocial.

But a lot of times, a far more insidious control on your freedom of speech comes in the form of peer pressure to conform. It's something most of us have encountered many times in our lives... the lingering and uneasy feeling that you'd better conform to the group-think, "or else."

Alas, rules — written and unwritten — tend to be the enemy of creativity.

Maybe we are more familiar with the concept in the arena of politics, than creativity... but it happens everywhere.

Way back when, during the earliest runs of web sites that paid content creators for their contributions, there were "unspoken rules" as to the formats you were expected to follow... "or else."

I think people misunderstand the whole idea of "freedom" pretty thoroughly. Without a doubt, it's a very complex issue.

Since I came to the US from Denmark, people here in the US often wondered what sort of "restricted" world I grew up in. And they were amazed to learn that I actually believed Denmark to have a lot more true freedom than the US!

I remember sitting through many very long and complex discussions about this very topic... and we invariably ended up at the delicate differences between "Freedom TO" do something, as opposed to "Freedom FROM" something.

Here in the US, freedom is taken very seriously.

So seriously that I sometimes wonder whether the police will show up at my door to make sure that I have used my daily dose of freedom appropriately!

I say that only tongue-in-cheek, but it reflects widely different cultures. Back in Denmark I virtually never see a police car... here — even in our very small town of 10,000 — I will likely see 3-4 police cars, just driving the 10 km from my house to the downtown shopping district.

And those police cars will likely be lined up if 20 people get together for a peaceful demonstration... because I different 20 people will show up to protest them.

That's that "peer pressure" thing...

I don't claim to have any easy or ready answers... but I do know this: If I have to worry too much about whether my words will upset someone, or cause someone to tell me that I am "doing it wrong," then my creativity will for sure wither away...

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful weekend!

How about you? What do you think freedom is? Do you think your freedom is sometimes limited by "unsaid rules" that put pressure on you? Leave a comment if you feel so inclined — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

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Created at 2025.01.25 00:22 PST
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