Is Hate Speech Protected by Free Speech?

Freedom of speech is a great virtue for a liberal democracy. Without free speech, liberal democracy is not truly a liberal democracy. The liberty to speak or not to speak is so essential to liberal democracy, and without this liberty liberal democracy won't be liberal democracy. 

But when we say free speech or liberty to speak, it can't mean being allowed to speak anything and everything. For example, free speech cannot definitely mean giving away vital information to enemy country. In the name of free speech, giving away such sensitive information may invite criminal charges.

In the name of free speech, can we tell lies? No. free speech also cannot mean telling lies anytime anywhere. 

What about hate speech? But before that we need to settle what hate speech is? One essential component of hate speech is to provide incorrect or incomplete information to generate hatred for the person or the community. So the intent is essential to determine whether it is hate speech or not as much as the content is important. Taken this away, free speech cannot mean being allowed to make hate speech as hate speech speech misleads others deliberately by providing incorrect information. And hate by definition is not a virtue; anything that leads to hate cannot be celebrated and honoured. So hate speech ought not to be protected by free speech. 

Screwtape Letters 5

In this fifth chapter, Wormwood is happy that a great war has engulfed Europe. So Screwtape writes to him not to take pleasure yet as things can go against their interest. How could war go against the Devil's way? Aren't humans killing another humans the best that the Devil can hope to achieve? The author says that war can divert the minds of humans to external issues rather than concentrate on their self-centredness so though humans killing killings can serve the purpose of the evil ones, it can go against their interest unless they see that human souls are finally brought unto 'their Father Below'. 

Screwtape also advises Wormwood to carefully see whether it's best to make the patient an extreme patriot or an ardent pacifist. So that accordingly they will devise their scheme to lure him towards their Father Below. 

Well, how would being an extreme patriot or an ardent pacifist serve the purpose of the evil one? C S Lewis does not delve into the matter. But it may go something like this. The Nazi Germans were hardcore patriots. They love their countrymen and countrymen, and also hate others -- the Jews, Communists and Trade Unionists. Loving one's own countrymen and countrywomen is good, but hating others is a problem. And a hardcore patriot can make those they hate the scapegoat -- responsible for their ills. 

A ardent pacifist may stand against war, and even in the face of extreme evil, just let the evil men walk over all the innocent persons and enslave everyone. And this is is bad, and this pleases the evil one. 

Muslims' Fertility Rate

Figures of Fertility Rate of some Muslims Countries. If the fertility rate is 2.1% it is able to replace its population. Lower than that will see its population not being replaced over a period time. 

1. Indonesia: 2.11% 

2. Pakistan: 2.62% 

3. Bangladesh: 2.17% 

4. India: 3.1% ( as per 2010 figure for Muslims)

5. Saudi Arabia: 2.09% 

6. Egypt: 3.47%

7. Turkey: 2.01%

8. Algeria: 2.7%

9. Morocco: 2.11%

10. Nigeria: 5.07% 

11. UAE: 2.32%

Source: CIA except for India. 

Screwtape Letters 4

The author concentrates on prayer once more. Prayer after all is a very important aspect of a Christian life. If prayer life is healthy, his or her spiritual life will be sound; and if prayer life is unhealthy, the spiritual life is affected. So Screwtape advises Wormwood to disrupt the prayer life and the quality of the patient's spiritual life.  This may be classified into three points: 

1. So the advice was that Wormwood should work to let the prayer of the patient be of the sort where the will and intelligence have no part; that it be a prayer which is mere repetitive and ritualistic, bearing no real content.

2. Let the patient also try to produce faith, courage through his own will. "When they meant to pray for courage, let them really be trying to feel brave." This way the patient will realise that his prayer has finally no utility as he would then be realising on his own will to produce virtues rather than rely on God to work in his life. 

3. Let the patient also focus the content of his spirituality and prayer to an object, say, an image of Jesus. So the prayer is not directed towards the God who is a spirit but towards an objectified entity. This way the distorted understanding of the patient will remain as it and his spiritual life will not grow. 

This objectification of God is not uncommon in many people's imagination. But CS Lewis must have written that objectification of God is what the evil one likes because God is spirit and objectification of God amounts to idol worship. God hates idolatary and the evil one likes it. Islam does not allow use of images or even statues. Having said that the question is whether using of the picture of the incarnate Jesus amounts to idolatary or not remains pertinent. Children learn better by using pictures and images. I think using Jesus' films, pictures or images does not amount to idolatary. We cannot construct Jesus exact images as there is no photograph of him. However, the fact that he lived and walked the shore of Galilee is a reality and therefore given this fact, it is theologically okay to use pictures and images of Jesus primarily for education. Islam does not have the concept of an incarnate God and therefore Christians do not necessarily share our views with Muslims in this regard. 

Screwtape Letters 3

The chapters are small, and the book is not thick. Here is chapter 3, after having done Chapter 1 and Chapter 2. In this third chapter, Screwtape writes to Wormhood on how his patient needs to related with his mother. The patient apparently does not have good relation with his mother. So Screwtape encourages Wormwood to work on this matter so that the relationship between mother and son remains sour. 

So Screwtape advises that Wormwood should continue keeping his patient focussed on his inner life such that the patient will talk and focus on spiritual things while keeping obvious facts of life neglected. 

Screwtape also advises that Wormwood should make his patient concentrate on soulish things while praying for his mother. So the trick should be not to let the patient pray for her health, for example, but concentrate on the state of her soul after death. 

Wormwood is also to work that his patient dislikes more and more of certain habits of his mother. 

Glubose is the imp working on the mother, while Wormwood is the one working on the son, the patient. So Screwtape advises that they work together to make the relationship sour even more between mother and son. 

The Screwtape Letters 2

So the patient has become a Christian, and the older imp, Screwtape, writes to the younger one to try a different method to snatch the patient from their enemy's camp. 

This young Christian will now go to a church. And as he does that he would meet all sorts of people. Uneducated, loud, singing out of tune, poor folks are going to be there in the church. Wormwood must use this opportunity when the patient is still new to enemy's territory to let him think that he has class; to let him get disappointed with the people he meets. 

C S Lewis introduces the idea through the writing that when a person comes to faith, it takes an effort in transitioning. A new reader who enjoys reading a book may need to learn language; couple who love each other so much may need to work hard to learn to live together. It's like that a new swimmer has to work hard to keep herself afloat; or a new cyclist has to paddle hard to maintain balance. But once this stage is over, living in that reality becomes a way of life which is an effortless affair or requires little effort. The couple has adjusted to live together; the reader enjoys reading now having learnt the skill required to enjoy reading. A Christian life is something like that. Acquire humility, for example, and it becomes easy to accept others. Those who are new to the faith must watch out before virtues can become habits!

The Screwtape Letters 1

The Screwtape Letters is a book written by C S Lewis. It is based on the imagination of C S Lewis where the senior evil spirit instructs the junior evil spirit on ways to tempt human being. The senior evil spirit's name is Screwtape and the junior's Wormwood. Both of them work for their Father Below so that their patient i.e the human, would remain in their side. 

In the first chapter, the Screwtape writes to the Wormwood to keep the patient away from argument. The reason is that argument leads a man to the side of the truth. So to prevent that Wormwood should infuse jargon and distract him from clear reasoning process. Wormwood should also prevent his patient from reading Science as if this would draw him away from Christianity. Just confuse this thinking -- must be the approach. If the patient gets into Science, for example, that would lead him into enemy's territory.