If you’re afraid that books might challenge someone’s thinking, you’re not afraid of books, you’re afraid of thinking.

If you’re afraid that books might challenge someone’s thinking, you’re not afraid of books, you’re afraid of thinking.
Last week, when I picked a favorite quotation from Aldous Huxley, I was surprised to discover that Brave New World still ranks in the top 100 books suggested to be banned from libraries in the United States.
That got me to thinking. (Which presumably those who want to see the book banned, are afraid that I might do.)
Thinking causes catharsis. Catharsis gives way to change. Those who control the way things are currently, are almost always going to be resistant to change. It is the nature of Homo sapiens.
Is it wise to ban thought? We are always quick to take the side of the First Amendment, in our rush to protect Freedom of Speech. I most certainly take that stance. But… the intellectual side of my being takes the opposite posture, just to try it on… ie.. “surely there must be some things that need to be banned in order to save others from suffering.”
For example, would you be chill to discover these two tomes in your children’s library?
- Hannibal Lecter’s Cooking Secrets
- Nuclear Bomb in a Suitcase: Step by Step Instructions
Freedom of Speech is a miraculous concept, and yet it has so many perils attached as to potentially make it the ultimate danger. This is why those in power are attempting to ban the books.
If a culture holds power and sway over a society, they are fully committed to maintaining that power, at all costs. In a free society, those powers are challenged a million times a day in our legal system, and we have found civilized methods of negotiating the most difficult decisions and enabling a societal overview of the world we are living in.
Thinking truly is as dangerous as it is spectacular and enlightening. It is the ultimate evolved quality of our specie and it delivers miracles on countless fronts. Our free thoughts must always be protected, even at the risk of allowing controversial thoughts to emerge.
Happy Monday!
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