Blog Post #3 (Key Post)

     After much personal deliberation and taking all eight values of free expression into account, I feel that the most important one that resonated with me would be 4. Individual/Self Fulfillment, also known as Self Actualization. I feel it's the most important not just because it encourages the freedom m of speech and expression, but allows one to freely establish an identity for yourself as you use it in the real world.

    As the first amendment has outlined, you are allowed freedom of

speech, freedom of religion and from religion, freedom of the press, and freedom of petition. I've thought of what all of these rights have in common, and that each one is a form of expression. There are different kinds of people in the world who have different religious beliefs, different ideas, different values, etc. I am of course no exception, and knowing this, I feel it should be very important that people should be allowed to express their ideas. To me, this value encourages you to express it all without the government controlling it, as all these personal values make up who you are, and you should be allowed to be yourself.

    Just imagine if you will, a world where this particular value of free

expression did not exist. As the blue states: "Free speech enables individuals to express themselves and thereby create their own identity..." The government prohibits you from being able to freely express your ideas, or at the very least, limits what your ideals are and how/when you can express them in some way. This would leave you unable to create your own identity and have an artificial one forced upon you by the government. This to me could make one feel as if they're living life for the government which sounds very unpleasant.

    I would also argue to an extent that this value of expression is actually vital to the other seven values, as if this one didn't exist, there would be no point for the other values to be established. The values "Marketplace of Ideas" and Stable Change wouldn't work if you weren't allowed to freely express your ideas by speaking your mind, and being unable to speak

your mind means that people won't "discover the truth" as Milton implies. As for the second value, people won't make unwise decisions regarding elections if they aren't allowed to express their opinion. Without this value, we can't tolerate other ideas if we only live by the government's ideas, we can't promote innovation, and especially check on the government's power and criticize it freely.

    In this world, there are a lot of people who are struggling to find themselves, trying to figure out their beliefs and whether or not their ideas could get them by in this country, but they don't have to worry as it is my firm belief that this value provides reassurance to be confident in their identity and personal values and not to be afraid to express them to the world. I'm sure that this expressive value encourages you to establish your own identity while reinforcing the other seven ideas that help to give you freedom. If you would like to learn more, follow the links below. 

Links:

Source 1

Source 2