Rowan Atkinson (Mr Bean) on free speech

[askandanswer]

I generally only have a mild interest and small amount of curiousity about woke-related issues, but this one caught my eye and I thought it was worth sharing. It's Rowan Atkinson talking about a planned change to section 5 of the English Public Order Act. I think he makes some good points, eloquently expressed. 

"For me, the best way to increase society's resistance to insulting or offensive speech is to allow a lot more of it. As with childhood diseases, you can better resist those germs to which you have been exposed." (9 minutes)

 

Edited June 4, 2023 by askandanswer

[JohnsonJones]

And yet, the United States still has more freedom of Speech than most nations in Europe (including Great Britain) have.  On the otherhand, Atkinson is not wrong.  He is trying to defend Freedom of Speech and what could endanger it even further where he is from (or at least where I think he is from).