Eight Values of Free Expression

 Free Speech is a cherished pillar of American Democracy and Western Civilization. There are 8 values to Freedom of Speech. They are the marketplace of ideas, participation in self-government, stable change, individual self-fulfillment, check on government power, promoting tolerance, promoting innovation, and protecting dissent. Whilst all of these things are important, I believe that individual self-fulfillment is the most important one. I am a weird guy. I make Communist propaganda of Comrade General Big Bird and a variety of other creative absurdities. I am allowed to do this because we live in a society that allows people to express themselves freely.  In our Declaration of Independence, it says "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." 

The pursuit of Happiness is my goal when I indulge my creative urges and make Communist Big Bird Propaganda. I am putting my desires into reality. It is important that everyone be able to share their ideas. It may seem a little weird to some, and frankly, it is, but we should be allowed to do weird things, as long as they do not hurt anyone. It is important that we be allowed to experiment in our society. America is an experiment, it is a nation that has changed in many ways since its inception. America is often seen as backward by Europeans for not having similar hate speech laws to them. However, this is a strength of America because it allows all ideas, even if they are weird to be able to present their case. I have said and believed things in the past that I think now are stupid, uneducated, bigoted, or cruel, but I was able to move on because we allow debate to flourish in this country. We allow people to present almost any idea and allow people to react to what is proposed. 

Individual self-fulfillment has allowed America to be a haven for many artists and other creative types. Many creative works, like the one pictured above, can be offensive to some people. However, I cannot be jailed for enjoying them or making them. 

Leaders can be made fun of in ways that are ridiculous. In other nations, this is not the case. Even in Spain, you could get jailed for insulting the King. America, on the other hand, welcomes such scrutiny and mockery of its leaders, even if it is absurd such as saying Biden is a puppet of the Pope.