8 Values of Free Expression

 The 8 values of free expression are a great tool for Americans to analyze and understand what makes the United States different from other nations. It's also beneficial for political figures, all the way to the average citizen, to grasp why these values are in place. They help us understand the nature of humans and how that coincides with running a successful government. While they aren't straight-up rules or laws, they are ideas that allow a unique perspective that other countries don't provide. The values also keep society healthy in general, which is more important than ever in today's day and age, with all the distractions and disagreements around us. 

That is a perfect segue into one of the values on this list. It is value number 8... Protect Dissent. This can be described as the tolerance to new and unpopular ideas; it urges respect for those who may have a contrarian viewpoint. In fact, it also urges us to try to think against the government sometimes. A lot of American citizens just believe the government has our best interests in mind, but that isn't always true. If we can't challenge ourselves to challenge the government, then we fall victim to whatever they say goes. 

For most of human history, successful change was often brought about by the courage to think outside the box. The men who may have been ostracized or overlooked due to their unique beliefs often were the ones sparking the real change. The courage to think eccentrically is what this country was built on. Progress and dissent often go hand in hand. For example, without the radical thinking and overall displeasure with the Articles of Confederation in the late 1780s, we would never have gotten the Constitution. The point being, sometimes it takes a Shay's Rebellion to get the protection you deserve as humans. 

We all know that one friend who disagrees with everything you say. While super annoying, these oftentimes are the friends that pull the most out of you. Pull a perspective or feeling out of you that you may not have ever considered. They may open your eyes to something you've never thought about. Or they may just flat out annoy you. But it's important to keep this friend around: 1. Because they're your friend and we try to be loyal... And 2. Because it's this kind of contrarian insight that we sometimes need. If everyone you rolled with just "yes'd" you to death, then nothing productive would come out of the time you spend with those people. 

In a future sense, we may come across people with ideas or opinions that seem so out of this world that you may actually question their intelligence. But to completely ignore the space in your mind for that idea to exist makes you more ignorant than they are in my eyes. Yes, sometimes these "visionaries" of the future will be wrong. But that does not mean they or their idea should be treated any less human than yours. And who knows, a decade may pass, and their idea was right, and you look like an idiot. 

Overall, Protect Dissent is very important to our 1st Amendment rights. Sometimes the majority isn't always correct. The minority view has emerged as the standard plenty of times throughout history. This is why it is important to leave the minority view alone and try to see things from their perspective at times.