Independent of the other threads here (talking about freedom from prosecution from government vs private companies vs individual reputation) And everyone talki

Independent of the other threads here (talking about freedom from prosecution from government vs private companies vs individual reputation) And everyone talking about their own limitations on free speech (I support Bernie Sanders, but I draw the line at Trans rights) I think it's also worth noting the changes in expectations of magnitude of reactions and reprisal for free speech today vs say Voltaire's age. Reputation and shame used to drive so much of our public discourse. Whenever you hear about people challenging each other over some disagreement or disapproval, it's always the most benign stuff. In that context, saying "not only will I not challenge you to a dual for disagreeing with me, but I will actually fight to PROTECT your right to say it" is pretty revolutionary stuff. We should ask Voltaire (or whoever was actually responsible) if he would feel the same way if the person who he disapproved of was a person of significant means and power and was calling for the destruction of Voltaire's life, liberty, or pursuit of happiness. So when people today scream about cancel culture because of some heinous shit they said about black or trans people, then use this quote to suggest that we should be defending to the death their right to call for systemic discrimination and repression of others....it's just not the same.