Today, dodging the inevitable protesters handing out flyers near the subway station, it occurred to me how blase we are about free speech. There are protests and rallies going on all the time, people chanting and marching and handing out stuff. In many countries in the world, people who do those things are risking their lives - they could be arrested, tortured or even put to death. I get Amnesty International reports of people who have been imprisoned for twenty years, for doing less.
Yet, although we have the right to speak out about injustice, it's hard to get anyone to listen. In more authoritarian countries, anyone with a bullhorn on a street corner handing out flyers would be surrounded by an amazed crowd - people would listen, consider the words seriously, and perhaps join up. Here, busy commuters duck to avoid being handed things, or brush the protesters aside. Everyone is too accustomed to them to care any more - and there are so many causes worth fighting for, they all blend together. We're all blitzed by advertising and don't have room to think about anything more.
So whether governments choose to repress or allow free speech, it ends up having the same effect - nothing really ever changes.
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