What is often misunderstood by friends and foes of free speech alike is that this sentiment is not primarily a gift to purveyors of hate and misinformation—a generous sacrifice by those of nobler intent. Rather, free speech is primarily a defense against malevolent people, their malign sentiments, and their malicious impulses. Disagreeable, erroneous, and hateful public opinions serve as an early warning system and, at times, an instrument of self-destruction for the malignant.

Safe spaces and speech codes on American campuses (and elsewhere) don’t reduce the prevalence or virulence of malicious sentiments. They merely drive the purveyors into the tall grasses, where they slither about in silence—like rattlesnakes whose rattles have been amputated by those too precious to tolerate the sound.