Freedom of speach doesn't license "Bogan Bigots".

[Br.IanVonTurpie]

http://www.ntnews.com.au/news/opinion/freedom-of-speech-doesnt-license-bogan-bigots/story-fnk0b216-1227195663123

THE only thing bogans seem to love more than an icy cold stubby on Australia Day is sharing their offensive views with the world. 
 
There is nothing like listening to the all too familiar drawl of an Aussie bogan while they complain about people from overseas coming to take over their country – the irony apparently lost on them.

What's that old saying? Opinions are like arseholes: everybody's got one and most of them stink. Well, something like that, anyway.

Over the past few months I've noticed an alarming trend of people proclaiming they have a right to say whatever they want without having their opinion "censored".

Unsurprisingly, the common denominator between all of these opinions seems to be that they are discriminatory or extremely offensive in nature.

Now freedom of speech is a great idea in theory. Everybody is technically allowed to have an opinion – hell, mine are published every week much to the chagrin of some.

But somewhere along the line, it seems as though free speech has become the go-to catchcry of bogan Australia.

How dare we deprive them of their right to openly be bigots? It is their God-given right to yell their offensive views from the rooftops, if they want.



After all, it's right there in the Australian constitution. Oh wait, no it's not.

Can I really blame Australians for thinking we have explicit freedom of speech rights when we live in a country oversaturated by American media and pop culture?

Freedom of speech is most definitely protected by the First Amendment in the United States of America's constitution, and it is commonly referred to in films and television shows illegally downloaded here. But last I checked, despite many attempts by Prime Minister Tony Abbott to turn us into America-lite, this is not the United States of Oz.

Some argue that freedom of speech is listed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. What they seem to ignore­ is the fact it also states that it is subject to restrictions.

You're allowed to hold an opinion and you are allowed to share it with the world, but there can still be repercussions.







   

For instance, if you start telling everybody down at the local pub that Joe Blow is a wife basher, rapist or a paedophile, you are still open to getting sued for defamation.

If you discriminate against someone because of their age, gender, race or disability, you are also leaving yourself open to the possibility of a lawsuit.

A good example of this would be the woman in Western Australia who recently had to pay her ex-husband $12,500 compensation after she accused him of domestic abuse in a Facebook post.

Or when controversial News Corp columnist Andrew Bolt was found in court to have breached the Racial Discrimination Act when he implied light-skinned people who identified as Aboriginal did so for personal gain.



Having an opinion is all fun and games until you have to pay someone thousands of dollars­ in compensation.

Working in the media, we know better than anybody (except maybe lawyers) that we can be held accountable for what we say and write.

If there is any doubt about the possible legal repercussions of something we have written, it is sent to a legal team who go over it with a fine-tooth comb.

Some of the juiciest parts of stories are often removed, and sometimes whole stories are squashed because of the legal ramifications we face from printing them.

Unfortunately for the public, sending your opinion off to an expert legal team is not exactly financially viable. You know what is a cheap alternative? Thinking before you speak, or before publishing your opinion on social media.

No doubt there are plenty of people on the internet who share your opinion. Stupid people usually talk the loudest.

However, when push comes to shove and you get sued over your very intelligent, well-rounded and educated opinion, "other people agreed" isn't really going to stand up as an excuse in a court of law. And do you really think they are going to be standing there backing you up?

One of the most amusing things about those who use freedom of speech as a defence is the hypocritical fact that it only applies to their opinion.

If anyone else has something to say that differs from their opinion, they automatically start attacking them.

For instance, when Aboriginal people spoke out against Jessica Mauboy performing at the Australia Day concert in Sydney, everybody attacked them for their "us and them" attitude creating a divide.

You know, the same "us and them" attitude adopted when discussing Muslims, gay people or any other minority.



I'm a firm believer that everybody has the right to make up their own mind about things. I also think people should be allowed to share their opinions with the world without being persecuted.

The only exception to this – which is backed up by law (and this is where the bogans' freedom of speech catchcry falls short) – is when it discriminates against someone.

While growing up, I always rolled my eyes at the saying 'if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all'.

After all one of my favourite pastimes is being offensively politically incorrect.

But as we grow up and mature­, something I am still admittedly doing now at 28, we are meant to learn to differentiate between what is right and what is wrong.

Now for some reason that saying makes perfect sense to me, and with the rise of social media, is more apt than ever.

With Australia Day tomorrow, it's about time we as a country worry more about becoming­ better people than our "right to free speech" – which is just used to show the rest of the world how terribly backwards we are at times.

Sometimes your opinion is just better kept to yourself.



I guess now there is no such thing as free speech, if it gets in the way of Global agenda and "fat cats" selling our land off and employing gook and curry  invaders as cheap labour? Or getting in the way of their miscegenation plans?