One of the curious things about censorship is that no one seems to believe in it for himself. We want censorship to protect someone else— the young, the unstable, the suggestible, the stupid. I have never heard of anyone who wanted a film or speaker banned because otherwise he himself might be harmed.
Interpretation
Censorship is often sought to protect others, but not for oneself.
This quote highlights the irony of censorship, suggesting that people typically advocate for restricting information or expression to safeguard others rather than out of self-interest. It questions the motivations behind censorship and implies that individuals rarely feel the need to censor content for their own protection, emphasizing a paradox in the way society approaches freedom of speech and protection from harmful ideas.
In practice
During a debate on freedom of speech, one could use this quote to illustrate the complexities of censorship.
No one can say just how long a message should be, but you rarely hear complaints about a speech being too short. The amateur worries about what he is going to put in his speech or article. The expert worries about what he should take out.
It is a mysterious thing, the loss of faith—as mysterious as faith itself.
Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds.
Unsung, the noblest deed will die.
When a place gets crowded enough to require ID's, social collapse is not far away. It is time to go elsewhere. The best thing about space travel is that it made it possible to go elsewhere.
Like you're riding a train at night across some vast plain, and you catch a glimpse of a tiny light in a window of a farmhouse. In an instant it's sucked back into the darkness behind and vanishes. But if you close your eyes, that point of light stays with you, just barely for a few moments.
Expectations are a form of first-class truth: If people believe it, it's true.
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