If you could permanently ban a word from general usage, which one would it be? Why?
I am not a big fan of banning anything. For example, I am not in favor of banning books. I often don’t agree with most things that other people write. But it’s their right to say it. The same goes for individual words. I don’t think I’d like to have the power to ban any particular word. Who can guarantee that by banning the wrong books, or words, we are also not banning the right ones? If people want to say it, let them do it. No more bans, please!
That’s not to say that we need to passively accept everything that other people say. Of course, there are many lies, hate speech, and propaganda in the world today. Specially in the last decade or so. But what to do in that case? Simply ban people from saying it? I don’t think so. We need to fight back, to fact-check, to correct, to inform. Ideas are fought with ideas. In the end, the truth will prevail.
I know you are waiting for me to repeat a famous quote from Voltaire about free speech. It was one of the first things that came to my mind when I started thinking about this post. But do you know that he didn’t really say it? It’s fair to say that it encapsulates his ideas about free speech, but it wasn’t his actual words. At least we don’t have any record of it. There’s a subtle irony to it. Instead of someone trying to ban what he said, someone is putting words in his mouth.
“I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it”
Often attributed to Voltaire, but it’s a summary of Voltaire’s attitude by Evelyn Beatrice Hall.
She was actually trying to sum up his views in a book called The Friends of Voltaire. People afterwards misattributed the quotation as if it was he saying it himself.
Well, you can never be too careful. Some people will try to ban you from saying certain things. Others will try to put words in your mouth, even if unintentionally. Our solution for that is to fight back with the truth.
But in the end, my general position is: no more bans!