2017-08-31

The Strange Death Of England

Back in the early 20th century George Dangerfield penned 'The Strange Death of Liberal England' pointing to, in part, its failure to deal with the Irish Question and the Suffragette movement led by the mother-daughter tandem of Emmeline and Sylvia Pankhurst.

By liberal, I gather it to mean classical liberal.

So with classical liberalism in England already dead and buried, now all that's left is the passing on of England itself.

Once socialism and progressivism entered the picture, I contend it was game over for our classical liberal heritage in the English-speaking world in particular.

It's been a slow downward trend where personal liberty has become submissive to the collective force of the government.

While we've slowly given up certain freedoms in return for security, it was a matter of time before free speech and expression was going to be the next target.

The UK's Director of Public Prosecutions, Alison Saunders, is doing her part.

Reason quoted her as saying:

"The definition of hate crime, recognised by the CPS and police, is "any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice" towards the personal characteristics mentioned above. Of course, different types of offences have differing consequences and, as online abuse by its nature cannot cause direct physical harm to a victim, it can never be considered or sentenced in the same way. But we know online hate crime has devastating effects."

Once upon a time Britons gave their life in defence of liberty in the face of tyranny (against true Nazis; not the fake ones being pushed by an unsubstantiated left-wing narrative rooted in irrational ignorance). What do people think liberty means anymore? That you're free to go buy food at the grocery store? That you can go anywhere you want without permission from the state? 

While those are components of liberty they're irrelevant before freedom of speech, expression and assembly. You lose those it renders going to buy carrots as an exercise in a pointless existence. For if you have not liberty to speak FREE OF GOVERNMENT AGGRESSION, you have NO LIBERTY.

Sadly, it's amazing how America and its First Amendment is the ONLY line of defence for the torch of liberty full stop.

There's not a document or nation (including Canada) that is willing to defend the core principles of liberty like America.

If the 1A were to ever be mangled (and so far the human-link protecting it backed with the help of the Supreme Court are holding up) and eventually weakened by progressives, it would signal the final blow to the noble American experiment of liberty.

It's not people's opinions that threaten free peoples, it's people like Alison Saunders. 

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