Politics

The Most Human Right: Why Free Speech Is Everything

The Most Human Right: Why Free Speech Is Everything

  • Downloads：5466
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-04-22 19:21:42
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Eric Heinze
  • ISBN：0262046458
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Jitendra ，

What are the human values that can be shared by people across the world ？ Diplomats set together in 1948 and came up with the Universal declaration of human rights。 This declaration says that no one shall be subjected to toruture or inhuman treatment and all are equal before the law。 How much progress humanity has made so far ？Justice system throughout history has relied on terms like “fairness”， “”respect”， ''honor”， ”decency” and so on。 The Christian scriptures say - “do not resist an evil doe What are the human values that can be shared by people across the world ？ Diplomats set together in 1948 and came up with the Universal declaration of human rights。 This declaration says that no one shall be subjected to toruture or inhuman treatment and all are equal before the law。 How much progress humanity has made so far ？Justice system throughout history has relied on terms like “fairness”， “”respect”， ''honor”， ”decency” and so on。 The Christian scriptures say - “do not resist an evil doer。 But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek ， turn the other also。” How would you fight a tyrant with this attitude ？ Even today， The relationship between a ruler and his subjects is generally considered a domestic matter。But after Human Rights came into the picture this is no longer true。 If any human right is violated anywhere you will hear the noise at the global level。 But still it’s not effective。 What are the reasons ？ Why is it considered as a tool of western domination ？This book talks about what human rights are and how governments handle it or violate it。 And the author’s suggestion to have a dignified life for every human being。 I like this book。 。。。more

Kat ，

Books like this one are hard to review。 It is all about philosophical and legal concepts。 Because I am not a scholar or a lawyer， I found this book not easy to read。 The rights that we take for granted aren´t granted easily and forever。 In fact， many rights aren´t exactly obvious in the eyes of law， which， of course， varies from one country to another。Free speech is a fundament of democracy and a basic human right。 Yet it cannot be limitless。 Where we should draw a line then？ It´s one of the mos Books like this one are hard to review。 It is all about philosophical and legal concepts。 Because I am not a scholar or a lawyer， I found this book not easy to read。 The rights that we take for granted aren´t granted easily and forever。 In fact， many rights aren´t exactly obvious in the eyes of law， which， of course， varies from one country to another。Free speech is a fundament of democracy and a basic human right。 Yet it cannot be limitless。 Where we should draw a line then？ It´s one of the most difficult questions to answer and nowadays one of the most important。Overall it´s an interesting book to read for those who have a genuine interest in the topic。 。。。more

J Earl ，

The Most Human Right: Why Free Speech Is Everything by Eric Heinze is a detailed but argument for the primacy of what is commonly referred to as free speech。 I was torn between four and five stars but went with five because I think the book is written so those with no foundation beyond the popular arguments about free speech can understand the background and basic distinctions Heinze is using in making his case。 As such， I think it succeeds quite well。 If parts of the book seem basic to you， the The Most Human Right: Why Free Speech Is Everything by Eric Heinze is a detailed but argument for the primacy of what is commonly referred to as free speech。 I was torn between four and five stars but went with five because I think the book is written so those with no foundation beyond the popular arguments about free speech can understand the background and basic distinctions Heinze is using in making his case。 As such， I think it succeeds quite well。 If parts of the book seem basic to you， they are still important to make sure you are understanding his argument on his terms， after which you can make any other case you may want。I seem to remember from an earlier piece from Heinze that the distinction was between free speech absolutism and viewpoint absolutism。 To make the terminology more readily understandable I like his adoption of content-based and viewpoint-based as the distinguishing factors of the free speech public debate。 The need for viewpoint-based absolutism or near-absolutism is shown， through theoretical concepts and practical examples， as necessary， though not sufficient， for other human goods （commonly called human rights） to even be possible。The overall argument seems like it should be agreeable to most， though it is in the details where debate usually arises。 No matter what human goods are "guaranteed" as rights within state apparatus， if every single citizen doesn't feel able to safely and effectively speak out and advocate then those human goods have not truly become human rights。 It is the ability to speak freely， with certain limitations， mostly content-based， and having a voice in making decisions， not just offering opinions about decisions， that allow human goods to become human rights。I would recommend this to anyone interested in thinking in a more nuanced manner about free speech and human rights。 It is not a difficult read so much as it is a read that requires you to pay attention to what words are being used， by whom， and what they might mean in practice as well as theory。 In other words， it is an accessible work for those who don't mind working to grasp new perspectives on commonly （mis）used concepts。Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more