Important Values

 Blog Post #3

The idea of the Eight Values of Free Expression holds many very impactful and influential ideas, but some hold truer than others.  As good as things like Stable Change are, ideas such as Protecting Dissent and Promoting Innovation hold far more weight in the infrastructural strength of a modern society.

(Getty Images)

As the needs of society increase, it becomes increasingly important for the innovation of modern and past technologies into our coming future.  With each passing day, every one of the world's nations improve their technological knowledge tenfold.  As stated by MasterClass, although intended for a different contextual purpose, innovation allows a nation to stay ahead of the technological curve, and as other countries blossom into their technological revolutions, it only stands to reason that our nation should continue to lead that push.  Since the industrial revolution America has stood as the leader of technological innovation in the modern age, and this constant increase in knowledge allows America to pave the way for other developing nations as they too innovate and improve their own technologies.  As stated by Julia Kylliainen of Viima, "since the Industrial Revolution, energy-driven consumption of fossil fuels has led to a rapid increase in CO2 emissions, disruption the global carbon cycle and leading to a planetary warming impact."

Similarly to innovation, dissent has been nothing if not the backbone of America's history.  At its birth, America was a group of dissenting colonists who were sick of a government that treated them poorly.  Dissent and the idea that a negative government should be overthrown is something almost entirely exclusive to the Western ideology, and it has been incredibly influential on global politics.  America's drive to push against over-stepping governments assisted the world in both World Wars and has allowed for America to remain one of the most well put together nations in the world.  If only to perfectly summarize the importance of this value, Justice Deepak Gupta stated, "Dissent is essential in a democracy. If a country has to grow in a holistic manner where not only the economic rights but also the civil rights of the citizen are to be protected, dissent and disagreement have to be permitted, and in fact, should be encouraged. It is only if there is discussion, disagreement and dialogue that we can arrive at better ways to run the country."

(DH Photo)