I’m glad the Arkansas Society of Freethinkers won the right to have their solstice exhibit displayed on the grounds of the state capitol. We are all fond of expressing our love for freedom, but sometimes we forget that freedom can be messy.  It can lead to dissonance and it can make people uncomfortable.  But the cost of removing that dissonance far outweighs the benefit.

If there’s one thing that’s clear about the bickering down in Little Rock, it’s that the reactions of people against the Freethinkers validate the actions of the Freethinkers.  The mere fact that people can get so bent out of shape when their monopoly on public space is threatened  is reason enough to threaten it.  I doubt that the Freethinkers would care to erect their own monument if they weren’t so appalled that so many forces were opposed to them exercising their right.

Disputes over public displays of religion are usually resolved in two ways.  Public displays can become areas where any form of expression is excluded, or areas where anything can be included.  Either nobody wins, or everybody wins.  The Freethinkers chose the latter approach, and it’s the right approach.  They didn’t attempt to remove any acts of expression, they simply insisted that they be given the same opportunity to be included.  It would be nice if their opponents extended them the same courtesy.

Nobody who is confident in their beliefs should be afraid to let their views freely compete in the marketplace of ideas.  The history of free ideas exemplifies the greatest example of a meritocracy that humans have ever achieved.  Good ideas  grow and flourish, and bad ideas whither and die.  And if you’re as right as you think you are, there’s nothing to worry about.

Of course, inclusion can have it’s drawbacks.  In an article where The Economist reported on the display in Little Rock, they accounted a similar chain of events:

The Arkansas Freethinkers do not want the Little Rock Nativity scene removed. They simply want the state to set up a “free-speech zone” and let them be part of it, along with Jews, Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims. “The holiday is big enough to accommodate everyone,” says Tod Billings, a Freethinker.

Some say that this will lead to chaos. In Olympia, Washington, the capitol’s all-inclusive free-speech zone became hopelessly overcrowded. Even the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster mounted a display. This year the state has banned the lot. The only evidence of the holidays? An evergreen tree in the capitol’s rotunda. It’s definitely not a Christmas tree, mind.

Too bad.  I would’ve liked to have seen that Spaghetti Monster display.

On a related note, in an attempt to make fun of the Freethinkers, Arkansas blogger Jason Tolbert requested and got permission to add a Festivus display to the mix.  Word is, however, that he is chickening out and doesn’t plan on delivering the Festivus pole after all.

Come on, Jason, we all want to see you and the Freethinkers engage in a good old fashioned airing of grievances before one of you is pinned in the annual feats of strength!

UPDATE: The Dem-Gaz reported some good and bad developments about this issue today.  The bad: Rep. John Lowery, D-El Dorado, who is against the Freethinker’s display, called for the Arkansas Legislative Council to denounce the federal court’s ruling.  Lowery says he is “fearful,” and that “History tells us when this is allowed to happen in high places by people in authority this is what happens: Societies become chaotic, economies collapse and nations are taken over by other nations.” He added that lawmakers would be “cursed” if they didn’t voice their objections.  Too bad he didn’t provide any examples of the chaos and collapse he is referring to, because history seems to tell us the opposite.  There are many examples of societies that have collapsed when the state has the sole power to dictate one version of state sponsored truth.  On the other hand, governments that allow for greater economic and social freedom have flourished.  Someone should get Rep. Lowery a history book for Christmas.

The good:  Rep. Nancy Blount, D- Marianna, voted “no” on the resolution.  Blount said she was a Christian who believed in free speech: ” I think people ought to have the right to believe in whatever they want to believe in. The Constitution says we are allowed to do that.  We say we will uphold the Constitution when we are sworn in.  We would be double-talking to then turn around and say we were against the Constitution.”  Well said, Ms. Blount.