by Andrew P. Napolitano
LewRockwell.com
“If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.” – John Stuart Mill (1806-1873)
For two and a half centuries, the concept of free speech has bedeviled the United States.
The Framers suffered under a British colonial regime that punished speech critical of the British monarch. Yet, shortly after the ratification of the Bill of Rights, in which the First Amendment expressly commands that Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, Congress enacted the Alien and Sedition Acts, which criminalized speaking maliciously about the government.