Second look at limiting free speech?

Ibrahim Gassama, a human rights activist and a professor of law at the University of Oregon, argues that the American response to violent outbursts like the one in Libya actually misses the chance to talk about the rule of law. “The dangerous thing is to excuse the violence,” he says. Instead, people in Muslim countries might want to consider that “there’s a legal case to be made for objecting — bringing a lawsuit.” Taking Innocence to court somewhere in the world would be a huge improvement over burning diplomats to death.

My point is not that the international community is right and we are wrong. It is that our national self-absorption makes it difficult for us to talk to the world about a very important issue. Smart, enlightened people can and do argue that laws against Innocence are compatible with a free society.

We can, if we choose, refute that case, and perhaps win respect. If we ignore it, however, we look not only arrogant but stupid.