As most students by now have noticed, the Viking Conservatives have released another round of posters. As usual, these have provoked discussion, anger and students tearing them down. While the first two responses are acceptable and even encouraged in a civil society, the last response is not.The tearing down of posters should not occur on the Lawrence campus. Now before anyone reading this calls me a neo-conservative apologist or worse, let me premise my political positions: I’m on the exec board of the College Democrats, I support universal healthcare, a less militaristic foreign policy and homosexual civil unions among other “progressive” political positions. In short, I disagree with much of what the Viking Conservatives stand for. So the impetus for my calling out of students tearing down these posters comes not from any political allegiance with the Viking Conservatives, but from my belief in freedom of speech. Any person in this country has the right to say what they want. When someone disagrees with another, they should respond with a counter argument, not by blindly tearing down posters.
I encourage my fellow Lawrentians, wherever you fall on the political spectrum, to respect the opinion of your political opposites. If you disagree, say why you disagree. A civil society needs such a discussion to function.
Jeffery Solberg