Do As I Say, Not As I... Uh... Don't Do

Chris Jackson of the Ford for Senate blog is still trying to get the hang of the whole blogging thing. He still seems to think that blogs are one-way, exclusive clubs while also being public forums. Read the comments for more hilarity.

Let's try a thought experiment. If, say, Ed Bryant held a rally in a publicly accessible but privately owned space would he be OK blocking protesters from coming in? If someone spoke up against him, would it be OK to muzzle that person and escort them out? Could he dictate what people can speak, or even what they say?

The classic phrase is "Free speech for me, but not for thee." Chris wants all the benefits of free speech but none of the problems that come with it. He only wants to hear what he wants to hear, and the American democracy doesn't work that way. Freedom of speech doesn't entail listening to or even respecting others' speech, but it most definitely isn't freedom from speech, a Democratic principle de jure (by law), but sometimes a Republican principle de facto (by practice).

What Chris wants is a "blog" without commenting features, where potential commenters must email him and he will select what he wants to print. Sorta like letters to the editor in the newspaper. That's a lot of work, though, so it's just easier to shoo away the bad people.