This is a good point. I definitely support free speech (that should go without saying), but it seems to be spread with a fervor not unlike how Christianity was spread during colonization.
For example, is the quality of life in Mexico--with free speech and democracy--better than one like Singapore or even China?
There are also different ideals of free speech too. The US version is very different from the European version.
Free speech should be ultimate goal, but perhaps there are other steps that need to be achieved first.
Mexico doesn't have free speech in practice: If you speak out against the wrong people you get killed by the cartels. Also, we don't know what the quality of life in China is, because ... you cannot talk about things which are critical of the government.
That is technically correct, but being allowed to criticize the government without getting send to a prison seems to be a common denominator, so we could start with that.
That assumes you cannot work on free speech and "other steps" at the same time. Free speech is so easy, blocking it costs more resources than just accepting it. These resources could be used for "other steps", so blocking free speech is detrimental to them.
> we don't know what the quality of life in China is, because ... you cannot talk about things which are critical of the government.
If you want to know what the quality of life is like in China you can visit China and meet people living there. Visas are easy to get. It's not a secret, and there are plenty of first hand accounts of even their darkest hours.
For example, is the quality of life in Mexico--with free speech and democracy--better than one like Singapore or even China?
There are also different ideals of free speech too. The US version is very different from the European version.
Free speech should be ultimate goal, but perhaps there are other steps that need to be achieved first.