Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1497871
94 | SIGNATURE MONTANA BY GREGG SMITH THE LAST WORD e individual issues are the various topics I will touch on in this piece, along with some basic, right-leaning arguments on those topics. Some of these arguments are so simplistic that they read like something Sean Hannity might say on his show (which I do not care for), but that simplicity is intuitively tempting and is rarely refuted (at least publicly). And if these right-leaning arguments do not represent the viewpoints of half the adults in this country, it's likely darn close to half. us, these positions are hardly "fringe" or "extreme," despite how they might be characterized in the popular or mainstream press. e big issue, though, the actual point of this piece is something different and much more basic. I would bet that the vast majority of people who read this will agree with my take on the big issue, even if they think the simplistic arguments on the individual issues are nuy. e big issue, the real question, is whether you can accept the basic premise that someone who disagrees with you on the individual issues is nevertheless entitled/allowed to have a different opinion--whether you can accept that disagreement without defaulting to 'you're evil,' or 'you're an idiot.' In other words, once you recognize that most people (probably not most of the loudest people) respect your right to hold contrary positions on some or all of the current political issues, then you will recognize that despite the impression given in the media today, it is ok to disagree. It is ok to disagree with the popular narrative. You are allowed to believe that the federal government should not be working hand in glove with social media companies to monitor, police, and push for censorship of our speech. When people such as Rep. Adam Schiff defend this, you should tell them to go to hell! Our country was built on the idea that people can largely say whatever they want, especially about the government and its officials, and especially about political topics. Government employees, who should be working for us, do not monitor and police our speech. is is absolutely reprehensible! Don't let them get away with pretending it isn't through tortured arguments about misinformation. e US Supreme Court has stated, "Under the First Amendment, there is no such thing as a false idea. However pernicious an opinion may seem, we depend for its correction not on the conscience of judges and juries but on the competition of other ideas." You don't bow before functionaries, bureaucrats, or even members of Congress. ey don't have the right to censor you because they allege your opinions are "false" or "misinformation." If they want to monitor and suppress what you can say, they can take a flying leap. Seriously, this should tick you off that these mental midgets presume for themselves the power to decide what you can think. It's Not About the Individual Issues It's About the BIG Issue OPINION