J.D. TUCCILLE: Free Speech Is Under Attack in the U.S., but It’s on the Ropes Elsewhere.

On the plus side were some strengthened protections for press freedom and protest. Of course, the press must operate under all those restrictions on “hate speech,” and protests are subject to curbs when governments find their subjects too sensitive or just inconvenient.

The Free Speech Recession Hits Home records attacks on free speech in the U.S., as elsewhere. But this country, importantly, has a strong free speech culture and real constitutional protections. America is third on Justitia’s index of public support for free speech (after Norway and Denmark), and restrictive laws and government schemes to suppress speech are often voided on First Amendment grounds.

That’s no guarantee that every attempt to muzzle the public will fail or that the courts will diligently apply the First Amendment. But it’s enough of an advantage to dishearten the world’s would-be censors.

“The genie is already out of the bottle and there is little likelihood of getting it back in,” moans The Globe and Mail’s Lawrence Martin about U.S. speech protections. “The greater likelihood is that extremes of free speech will continue to be tolerated.”

Read the whole thing.