July 21,
2025
Crimes of Opinion
It seems to me that crimes of opinion are at
odds with democratic freedoms. Of course, laws can prohibit racial and sexual
discrimination: for example, I can't refuse to hire Black people or homosexuals
if I run a business (although in practice, I could still do it under some other
pretext).
But I believe that if freedom of opinion exists, then we cannot forbid opinions
that go against the prevailing ones (that would be a kind of reverse fascism, as
people say).
It also seems contradictory to me for a law to forbid the dissemination of a
certain opposing idea (for example: the supposed inferiority of Black people).
Laws, after all, can be repealed (there is even the possibility of a
referendum).
Now, if a law forbids the dissemination of the opposing idea, then it would no
longer be possible, in effect, to repeal it. It would no longer be a state law
connected to an ever-changing culture, but rather a divine law, immutable for
eternity.