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The danger of Trump’s tweets

Dallas Morning News

Originally Posted: January 17, 2017

About the Author: Robert J. Howell is Dedman Family Distinguished Professor of Philosophy in SMU’s Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences.  He earned his Ph.D. in philosophy from Brown University and joined SMU in 2002.  His areas of specialization are philosophy of the mind, epistemology and metaphysics. Howell was featured in a fall 2016 program hosted by SMU’s Center for Presidential History titled, “Are We Too Dumb for Democracy?”

I don’t think we should worry too much about Meryl Streep. Her cred can withstand some silly tweets from our President-elect, and she has chosen to live in the public eye. But this recent episode of twitter abuse is merely the tip of the iceberg and we need to think about its implications.

A government should not use intimidation to suppress criticism and dissent. Private citizens are entitled to criticize their leaders without fear that those leaders will retaliate in a manner that jeopardizes their lives. Of all of the checks on governmental power enshrined in democratic institutions, this is perhaps the most important.  READ MORE