# Censorship By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2023-03-02 Attention is frequently and correctly given to the notion of political censorship. Within the United States, from either the political left or the right, any governmental infringement on one’s right to protest, dissent, or say unpopular things is often met with resistance. The right to free expression and association is enshrined in the First Amendment of The Constitution. That’s cool. This is one position held in common between radicals and reactionaries, liberals and conservatives. Freedom of speech is an essential human freedom and a shared value in our increasingly fragmented society. Whereas the tyranny of political censorship receives most of our attention on the topic, other forms of censorship exist. One form is corporate censorship which exists anytime a business refuses to present information with which it disagrees or is against its profit motives. A person might write a radical manifesto, but that doesn’t mean a publishing house is required to print and distribute it. Ideas are routinely censored through such market dynamics. Increasingly, there are ways around corporate censorship. One can post a blog, record a podcast, or self-publish a manifesto. This is a historic anomaly. It is remarkable the degree to which individuals can maneuver around corporate barriers. As amazing as this is, one still faces a third form of censorship, the censorship of obscurity. Politicians do not need to censor if they know corporations will; corporations do not need to censor if they know ideas outside the mainstream and lacking marketing and distribution will languish in oblivion. Societies thrive through the free exchange of ideas. Some ideas are ill-conceived, some are dangerous, some are radical, and some hold potential for advancement. Liking a given idea provides little insight as to which category it belongs. Most people think the ideas they like are good ones. Encountering ideas foreign to our own causes tension. It challenges us to confront things we would rather ignore. Censorship helps maintain the [[status quo]] by limiting growth and advancement. Whether political, corporate, or the censorship of obscurity we benefit from actively resisting the allure of the conventional wisdom that sustains subjugation, alienation, and collective despair. The ideas given to us before we can recognize them as propaganda constrain us; new ideas might set us free. Rather than find information designed to convince us that we are right, let’s find the ideas that inspire us to improve. With so many forms of censorship addressed and overcome, let’s not self-censor what we consume. Find and read subversive material. Talk about it frequently. Especially when it is least appropriate. #### Related Items [[Thinking]] [[Ideas]] [[Propaganda]] [[Progress]] [[Politics]] [[Organization]]