If you’re a leftist who believes in free speech you aren’t homeless
Free speech is a fundamental value of the left.
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Daughter of Spanish Civil War veteran speaks out about identity politics
“I couldn’t be myself,” or words to that effect: It was written in pencil on a piece of scrap foolscap I found amongst my father‘s papers after he died in 1982. He wrote that sentiment in 1977 when he was working on his memoir. My father’s name was Jim Higgins, and his book is called Fighting for Democracy: a Canadian Activist in Spain’s Civil War. It was not published until 2020.
Hello, do you know the difference? The Raytheon, Goldman Sachs left is not the left.
Dear Liberals or Conservatives,
When you say left, you probably aren’t actually talking about the left. Find another name. Or at least understand the difference between the woke left and the traditional left which although largely silenced does still exist.
Here is a crude guide for liberals and conservatives who want to know the difference. See the chart.
Rumors, Mob Justice and Free Speech – this time the Roma community is the target
A little over a week ago, on October 11, a young woman in France sat down in front of her video camera and earnestly recounted the story of her narrow escape from a sex trafficking and possible organ trafficking gang operating from the train station in the city of Marseille. Against the backdrop of ominous music she tells her story...
recent ARTICLES
Karl Popper, Free Speech and the Paradox of Tolerance
Cancel culture is the horror movie that has people transfixed by their computer screens, lost in the make believe exchanges of social media when suddenly, all too real, a monster steps out of the screen and into the lives of actual people, seeking their destruction and reveling in their pain and loss.
Canceled for disagreeing with the BLM organization: Tabitha Morris
On June 9th 2020, Tabitha Morris posted a video on Facebook in which she stated that she does not support the Black Lives Matter movement. When the video went viral, Tabitha’s place of work, a Kentucky hospital, received thousands of complaints and threats, and fired her from her job of twenty years.
All you hear on the news is celebrities that are being canceled, famous people that are being canceled. The story is it's not just celebrities. It is regular everyday American people—we don't have millions of dollars to fall back on. - Tabitha Morris
MK Fain responds to The Atlantic
We're putting The Atlantic's journalistic process under a microscope. We made every effort to provide a fair, honest and thorough assessment of each claim made in the article, and evaluate the sources that Tiffany relied on.
In the traditional journalistic world, a critical piece by a major outlet like The Atlantic would go unanswered by its targets. In the new media landscape, that target gets to have her say, in full, on a small platform like Plebity. With the threat and reality of big tech censorship, the role of small independent platforms like ours becomes more apparent.
The New Science Denialism with Colin Wright
Colin Wright is Managing Editor of Quillette, an evolutionary biologist, and an outspoken critic of the ideology he calls “the new evolution denialism.”
Colin joined me to talk about the increasingly mainstream movement to deny basic biological facts in the name of ideology. We also discuss his story of why he left academia, what he would say to others who may be thinking of speaking up, and the act of going against the crowd to speak the truth even when it would benefit you to stay silent.
Life in Gen Z Gender Land: an interview with a teenage critical thinker
This episode is special because we hear from a teenager who goes against the grain, who is a true independent thinker. Amy describes the culture of her some of her peers as one of silencing and thought-policing:
“People would be messaging you privately like ‘this kind of sounds sketchy,’ so maybe you should not say that, otherwise you’ll get in trouble. I was like, who is going to get me in trouble? It’s that kind of conversation where you have to watch yourself because if you’re not watching, then someone else is.” -Amy, @crimeofcupid
Canceled Women with M.K. Fain
Mary Kate (M. K.) is a feminist writer, activist, and engineer. She is the Founder and Editor in Chief of 4W and the Co-founder of Spinster.xyz. M.K. joined me to compare our experiences of being fired after expressing our gender critical views. We also discussed censorship, radical feminism versus liberal feminism, the left’s problem with class and free speech, and more!
A search and rescue experience in the apocalypse of California’s wildfires
The North Complex Fire is still burning in Butte County, Northern California. It's one of the worst wildfires in California history and has ravaged a vast area, some 40 miles long and 20 miles wide. My two days there were a visit to a different planet. We were part of a K9 search and rescue team, sent to look for dead bodies. Our team consisted of 4 humans and 2 dogs, a German shepherd and a Malinois. We were part of a larger search and rescue operation that had teams from almost every county in Northern California, several hundred individuals. Each morning, we were sent out to our assignments after signing in, listening to a 7 am briefing and after checking out various pieces of equipment which included a radio, a gadget called a nano that would track our whereabouts all day and through which we could send an emergency signal if necessary, a can of red spray paint to mark areas that were searched and a complete K9 first aid, trauma kit.
Welcome to Gender Land with Helen Joyce
"They are trying to redefine us out of existence and that does make me rather angry. And they’re denying that they do it. So I am just going to keep repeating myself that this isn’t ok. And if they hear that as aggression, which they seem to, well that’s their problem not my problem. I will remain non-aggressive but just saying ‘no.’ No is a complete sentence.” -Helen Joyce
Albert Speer: His Battle With Truth
Albert Speer: His Battle With Truth by Gitta Sereny is a psychological and historical profile of Albert Speer. Speer was Hitler’s architect and later, Minister of Armaments and War Production. At one point, he was groomed as Hitler’s successor. In the Nuremberg Trials he was one of the only Nazis to admit some responsibility for the war crimes of the Third Reich and to renounce Hitler. This admission saved his life and he was sentenced to twenty years in prison.
Free Speech is a core value of the Left
Genuine support for free speech means it must apply to speech you don’t like
Pro Free Speech Doesn't Mean Absolutist support for all speech
Blasphemy–a notion that crystallizes so many of the issues around free speech
marginalized groups benefit the most from free speech protections
If leftist values have actual moral standing they can and should stand up to scrutiny and questioning
Speech is not physical violence, it’s an alternative to violence
Successful challenges to power build on a foundation of free speech
Free thought depends on free speech: censorship leads to a culture of fear where people learn to hide their real opinions
Free Speech protection for all is inherently anti-authoritarian
Let’s hear the Arguments against free speech