Compassionate Free Speech
()
About this ebook
Two loose currents appear to be in opposition in today's culture. One is animated by a strong insistence on empathy and compassion as core values, the other by a strong insistence on free speech as a core value. These two currents are often portrayed as though they must necessarily be in conflict.
Compassionate Free Speech makes the case that this is a mistake. While ethical principles of compassion and free speech can be in tension, it is possible to reconcile them in a refined synthesis that allows us to chart a balanced middle path of a free and compassionate society.
"Magnus Vinding argues both that people should not be subjected to social punishment for honest expression of their views and that we must work much harder to practice compassion, fairness, generosity, openness, and truthfulness in our own speech. He shows how social media pressures all of us to spread ignorance and rancor, and he proposes a wise set of norms to guide our online interactions. This is a deeply argued and richly insightful discussion that sheds new light on a vexing subject."
— Jamie Mayerfeld, professor of political science at the University of Washington, author of Suffering and Moral Responsibility and The Promise of Human Rights
Magnus Vinding
Magnus Vinding is the author of Speciesism: Why It Is Wrong and the Implications of Rejecting It (2015), Reflections on Intelligence (2016), You Are Them (2017), Effective Altruism: How Can We Best Help Others? (2018), Suffering-Focused Ethics: Defense and Implications (2020), Reasoned Politics (2022), and Essays on Suffering-Focused Ethics (2022).He is blogging at magnusvinding.com
Read more from Magnus Vinding
Free Will: An Examination of Human Freedom Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Meaning of Life: An Examination of Purpose Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMoral Truths: The Foundation of Ethics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsReflections on Intelligence Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Nature of Mathematics Given Physicalism Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEssays on Suffering-Focused Ethics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Simple Case for Going Vegan Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Speciesism of Leaving Nature Alone and the Theoretical Case for “Wildlife Anti-Natalism” Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Why "Happy Meat" Is Always Wrong Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsIn Defense of Nuance Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsInduction Is All We Got: Essays on Epistemology Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhat Should We Do?: Essays on Cause Prioritization and Fundamental Values Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsInduction Is All We Got Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsReasoned Politics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Compassionate Free Speech
Related ebooks
Compassionate Free Speech Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Candid Discussion on Freedom of Expression Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDare to Speak: Defending Free Speech for All Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5On Liberty and Peace - Part 2: Peace Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Essential Aristotle Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Must We Defend Nazis?: Why the First Amendment Should Not Protect Hate Speech and White Supremacy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Common Excuses of the Comfortable Compromiser: Understanding Why People Oppose Your Great Idea Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Poverty of Liberalism Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Rhetoric Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Case Against a Democratic State: An Essay in Cultural Criticism Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBlack and White: An Essay on Critical Theory, Freedom, and the Pursuit of Happiness Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsReasoned Politics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe French Revolution Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWe the People: Restoring Civility, Sanity, and Unifying Solutions to U.S. Politics Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMusings of A Moderate: Political Discourse in The Age of Polarization Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhy Liberalism? How our Sense of Empathy and Fairness Determines our Political Orientation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRhetoric: With linked Table of Contents Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art Of Rhetoric Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Tool Kit for Spreading Eracism (End Racism) Like a Virus Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA History of Freedom of Thought Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhy People Don't Think For Themselves -- How To Renew A Failing Democracy Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCollateral Damage: The Imperiled Status of Truth in American Public Discourse and Why It Matters to You Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTo Do or Not To Do: Inaction as a Form of Action Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhy Free Speech Matters Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPolitical Philosophy: An Introduction Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Elements of Libertarian Leadership: Notes on the Theory, Methods, and Practice of Freedom Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsAnarcho-Fascism: Nature Reborn Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Practical Argumentation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsProperly Understood: If Citizens Are To Be Free Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSummary of Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In by Roger Fisher and William Ury Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Philosophy For You
The Denial of Death Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Four Loves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sun Tzu's The Art of War: Bilingual Edition Complete Chinese and English Text Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Meditations: Complete and Unabridged Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of War Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond Good and Evil Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The City of God Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar...: Understanding Philosophy Through Jokes Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Republic by Plato Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of Loving Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Human Condition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Inward Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Courage to Be Happy: Discover the Power of Positive Psychology and Choose Happiness Every Day Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mindfulness in Plain English: 20th Anniversary Edition Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tao Te Ching: A New English Version Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Daily Stoic: A Daily Journal On Meditation, Stoicism, Wisdom and Philosophy to Improve Your Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Course in Miracles: Text, Workbook for Students, Manual for Teachers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Allegory of the Cave Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Experiencing God (2021 Edition): Knowing and Doing the Will of God Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tao Te Ching: Six Translations Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Egyptian Book of the Dead: The Complete Papyrus of Ani Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lying Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fear: Essential Wisdom for Getting Through the Storm Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5No Man Is an Island Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Compassionate Free Speech
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Compassionate Free Speech - Magnus Vinding
Two loose currents appear to be in opposition in today's culture. One is animated by a strong insistence on empathy and compassion as core values, the other by a strong insistence on free speech as a core value. These two currents are often portrayed as though they must necessarily be in conflict. I think this is a mistake.
To be sure, the two values described above can be in tension, and none of them strictly imply the other. But it is possible to reconcile them in a refined and elegant synthesis. That, I submit, is what we should be aiming for. A synthesis of two vital and mutually reinforcing values.
Definitions and outline
It is crucial to distinguish 1) social and ethical norms, and 2) state-enforced laws. The argument I make here pertains to the first level. That is, I am arguing that we should aim to observe and promote ethical norms of compassion and open conversation, respectively.
What do I mean by these terms? Compassion is commonly defined as sympathetic consciousness of others' distress together with a desire to alleviate it
. I here use the term in a broader sense that also covers related virtues such as understanding, charitable interpretation, and kindness.
By norms of open conversation, or free expression, I mean