The circle of mainstream media denials of the above definition would, surprisingly enough, have you believe otherwise?
Do not the rights to Free Speech of an individual end whereupon they begin to infringe upon, or worse yet endanger another person? In the absence of the latter standard we lose all hope for civility not only in our politics, but in nearly every aspect of our daily lives. An acceptance of this mob-mentality behavior outright disregards the very principles upon which our representative democracy was founded and our leaders on both sides of the political aisle have an obligation to denounce this type of behavior as being unacceptable, falling well outside the realm of Free Speech and the right to PEACEFUL Protest. If shouting down those who happen to disagree with us on philosophical or political issues --especially when going about the business of our private lives-- with simplistic, repetitive mono-syllabic rantings in the absence of meaningful facts and mutual dialogue becomes the new acceptable norm in America we will have turned a very sad corner in our nation's history. And when we add violence to this mob behavior we run the risk of needlessly endangering lives.
Keep this in mind when your cast your mid-term ballot in November. Is your vote going to be for dismantling meaningful dialogue, bending to the will of a mob-like "acquiescence or be crushed" mentality moving forward in our nation ? Or will you find the courage within yourself to think and act outside box, choosing to vote for candidates --be they Democrat, Independent or Republican-- who put forth action-based ideas that will make your life tangibly better in terms of economics and security? And finally, please do consider this: Do you really want to live in country where you no longer have right to independent thought? In my humble opinion, the right to independent thought is not only unique as a key founding principle of our nation, but independent thought is essential for our individual spiritual evolution. Independent thought (and individual accountability) is the cornerstone upon which a foundation for a return to sacredness in our daily lives is built.
