The Progressive Fallacy on Free Speech

[xsited1]

Progressives are outraged that the Supreme Court overturned limits on corporate political advertising last month. Here's why they should be rejoicing.

When the Supreme Court overturned campaign finance law in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission last month, civil libertarians and free-speech enthusiasts applauded.

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So I was caught off-guard when MSNBC's Keith Olbermann called the Citizens United decision "a Supreme Court sanctioned murder of what little democracy is left in this democracy."

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Thus for many progressives, the struggle for control of the mass media is a de facto struggle for democracy.

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But all is not lost — even for progressives. Because the analysis driving their outrage is badly flawed.

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First, progressives mischaracterize the nature of corporations.

...second progressive error: the tendency to fixate on the high drama of elections rather than the more mundane processes by which corporate and other special interests actually do rig legislation and regulation in their favor.

But the granddaddy of all progressive errors — the one that breeds all others — is the assumption that greater government power can rectify the problem of unequal citizen power. Government can only act as a "countervailing force" in this regard if it is not acting already to serve corporate and special interests. But it is. That is why new government powers merely augment, rather than offset, the already disproportionate power of entrenched interests.

The Progressive Fallacy on Free Speech | Will Wilkinson | Cato Institute: Commentary

I doubt people like Keith Olbermann will understand this commentary, but it's spot on. To quote the author: "By limiting government power, it protects our freedom."

 

[The Rabbi]

According to "progressives" gov't is what protects our freedom. So more gov't equals more freedom. They can't stand the idea of people working things out for themselves, or that people are going to be responsible. So they seize on any bad news story as cover to "do something" about whatever problem and expand gov't.

The fact that progressives are so opposed to the Supreme Court decision is indicative of their regard for the constitution. What part of "Congress shall make no law" did they not understand?