Religious Tolerance

[Darth]

In my country,freedom of religion and freedom of speech are guaranteed by our constitution and laws,and enforced by the rule of law. However, I recognise no such innate rights. I will support the rights of others as long as it is my best interest. To what degree depends on the level of threat to my interest.

I would argue that it's always in your best interests, do you want to live in a place where whether you can speak or not depends on what you are going to say and whether people support that view? It's easy to support popular speech and speech that you agree with, it's the unpopular, revolutionary speech that is the most vulnerable (some of the most important discoveries and ideas in human history).

He that would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself. -Thomas Paine

But that's a purely utilitarian point. To hear people say that they support freedom of speech for only as long as it serves their interests scares and saddens me, because it means they don't really support it. Is being able to form our own opinions, to share knowledge and thoughts, to express ourselves, not one of the things that define us as humans? Even though you have goals that might be opposed to mine that does not mean that I would want your freedom of speech any less protected. I wouldn't support it, and the rights of the speaker, any less than I would support speech that furthers my own goals.