>
> In fact Mill's utilitarianism probably undermines his or any defense
> of free speech as an absolute right. As I recall Herbert Marcuse
> (who himself was attracted to utilitarianism) was able to Mill's
> utilitarianism against the defense of free speech as an absolute
> right. Marcuse argued that under certain circumstances reactionary
> speech could be justifiably repressed particularly racist and/or
> pro-fascist speech. He took the view that the failure of the Weimar
> Republic to repress the Nazis paved the way for their eventual
> ascension to power.
>
> Jim Farmelant
I'd say the Weiwar failed at a tad more than suppressing the Nazi's and those failures were every bit as responsible for the rise of the Nazi's to power.
--
Joseph Noonan jfn1 at msc.com