A couple days ago, Matt Taibbi, Michael Shellenberger and others launched the Westminster Declaration. Signed by 138 big shots and very big shots, the Declaration is a powerful statement on the importance of free speech and the current threat to it from very strong censorious forces. The Declaration begins,
We write as journalists, artists, authors, activists, technologists, and academics to warn of increasing international censorship that threatens to erode centuries-old democratic norms.
Coming from the left, right, and centre, we are united by our commitment to universal human rights and freedom of speech, and we are all deeply concerned about attempts to label protected speech as ‘misinformation,’ ‘disinformation,’ and other ill-defined terms.
And, later,
We stand for your right to ask questions. Heated arguments, even those that may cause distress, are far better than no arguments at all.
That’s all you really need.
It’s a great statement, both in its general call for principle and in its naming of specifically dangerous legislative schemes. This includes singling out Australia’s idiotic and insidious draft legislation on “misinformation”.
The introduction to the Westminster Declaration is here, and the full statement and list of signatories is here.
