Freedom of thought (also called freedom of conscience and freedom of ideas) is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, regardless of anyone else's view. Self-ownership or sovereignty of the individual or individual sovereignty is the condition where an individual has the exclusive moral right to control his or her own body and life. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Personification of thought (Greek Εννοια) in Celsus Library in Ephesos, Turkey Thought or thinking is a mental process which allows beings to model the world, and so to deal with it effectively according to their goals, plans, ends and desires. ...

Explanation

To deny a person's freedom of thought is to deny what can be considered one's most basic freedom; to think for one's self.

Since the whole concept of 'freedom of thought' rests on the freedom of the individual to believe whatever one thinks is best (freedom of belief), the notion of 'freedom of religion' is closely related and inextricably bound up with these. While in many societies and forms of government, there has been effectively no freedom of religion or belief, this same freedom has been cherished and developed to a great extent in the modern western world, such that it is taken for granted. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen guarantees freedom of religion, as long as religious activities do not infringe on public order in ways detrimental to society. ...

This development was enshrined in words in the United States Constitution by the Bill of Rights, which contains the famous guarantee in the First Amendment that laws may not be made that interfere with religion "or prohibiting the free exercise thereof". Today nearly all democratic nations around the world contain similar language within their respective Constitutions. Wikisource has original text related to this article: The United States Constitution The United States Constitution is the supreme law of the United States of America. ... The United States Bill of Rights consists of the first 10 amendments to the United States Constitution. ... “First Amendment” redirects here. ...

A US Supreme Court Justice later (Benjamin Cardozo) went on to reason in Palko v. Connecticut (1937) that: In order to become a Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States, an individual must be nominated by the President of the United States and approved by the U.S. Senate, with at least half of that body approving in the affirmative. ... Justice Benjamin Nathan Cardozo (May 24, 1870–July 9, 1938) was a distinguished American jurist who is remembered not only for his landmark decisions on negligence but also his modesty and philosophy. ... Palko v. ...

"Freedom of thought... is the matrix, the indispensable condition, of nearly every other form of freedom. With rare aberrations a pervasive recognition of this truth can be traced in our history, political and legal."^[1]

In other words, without the right to freedom of thought, other rights such as the right to freedom of speech hold little meaning. This article is about the general concept. ...

Such ideas regarding freedom of thought, as developed over time, ultimately became a vital part of international human rights law. In the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), it is listed under Article 18: Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ... The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (abbreviated UDHR) is an advisory declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly (A/RES/217, 10 December 1948 at Palais de Chaillot, Paris). ...

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

The Human Rights Committee states that the above Article 18, which became legally binding on member states with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights; The Human Rights Committee is a group of 18 experts who meet three times a year to consider the five-yearly reports submitted by United Nations member states on their compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. ... Parties to the ICCPR: members in green, non-members in grey The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights is a United Nations treaty based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, created in 1966 and entered into force on 23 March 1976. ...

"distinguishes the freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief from the freedom to manifest religion or belief. It does not permit any limitations whatsoever on the freedom of thought and conscience or on the freedom to have or adopt a religion or belief of one's choice. These freedoms are protected unconditionally."^[2]

Similarly, Article 19 of the UDHR guarantees that "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference..."

Drug prohibition

Main articles: Cognitive liberty and Prohibition (drugs)

Despite the many laws concerning freedom of thought, amongst philosophers, there is no consensus on what thought itself actually is. However, the field of neurochemistry uses a pragmatic view in linking thoughts to patterns of brain activity - ‘almost everyone now agrees… that the subject of mental properties and events is a physical thing.’ ^[3] Cognitive liberty is the freedom to be the absolute sovereign of one’s own consciousness. ... For the general concept, see Prohibitionism. ... A philosopher is a person devoted to studying and producing results in philosophy. ... Personification of thought (Greek Εννοια) in Celsus Library in Ephesos, Turkey Thought or thinking is a mental process which allows beings to model the world, and so to deal with it effectively according to their goals, plans, ends and desires. ... Neurochemistry is a branch of neuroscience that is heavily devoted to the study of neurochemicals. ...

Patterns of brain activity can be altered by taking psychoactive drugs – ranging from caffeine to Prozac to LSD. The United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime defines a psychoactive substance as "any substance that people take to change either the way they feel, think, or behave."^[4] Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Caffeine is a xanthine alkaloid compound that acts as a stimulant in humans. ... Background Fluoxetine hydrochloride (brand names include Prozac®, Symbyax® (compounded with olanzapine), Sarafem®, Fontex® (Sweden), Fluctine (Austria, Germany), Prodep (India), Fludac (India)) is an antidepressant drug used medically in the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, bulimia nervosa, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, and many other disorders. ... Lysergic acid diethylamide, commonly called LSD, LSD-25, or acid. ... The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ...

Authors such as Timothy Leary, Aldous Huxley and Terence McKenna have argued that certain psychoactive drugs, or ‘entheogens’, may be used to favorably alter the way we think. Religious groups have also traditionally used specific plants to alter thought, aiding members in worship or helping to put them in touch with God. Examples of this are the Rastafari movement’s use of cannabis, Islamic Sufi mystics' use of hashish to be present with the Godhead, indigenous peoples' of the Amazonian Basin ritualistic usage of the ayahuasca tea in order to connect with the spirit(s) of the jungle, Native American use of peyote and the chewing of khat (heralded as a "pipeline to Allah" among many Muslims in Eastern Africa). Timothy Francis Leary, (October 22, 1920 – May 31, 1996) was an American writer, psychologist, modern pioneer and advocate of psychedelic drug research and use, and one of the first people whose remains have been sent into space. ... Aldous Leonard Huxley (July 26, 1894 – November 22, 1963) was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. ... For the Canadian writer, actor, producer & director, see Terence McKenna (film producer). ... Entheogens are psychoactive substances that have traditionally been used in a religious context, such as psilocybin-containing mushrooms and Peyote cactuses. ... This article discusses the term God in the context of monotheism and henotheism. ... Haile Selassie I Rasta, or the Rastafari movement, is a religion that accepts Haile Selassie I, the former Emperor of Ethiopia, as God incarnate, whom they call Jah. ... Cannabis (also known as marijuana[1] or ganja[2] in its herbal form and hashish in its resinous form[3]) is a psychoactive product of the plant Cannabis sativa L. subsp. ... Sufism (Arabic تصوف taṣawwuf) is a system of esoteric philosophy commonly associated with Islam. ... Confiscated hashish. ... In Christianity, the Godhead is a unit consisting of God the Father, Jesus Christ (the Son), and the Holy Spirit. ... Ayahuasca (Quechua, pronounced ) is any of various psychoactive infusions prepared from the Banisteriopsis spp. ... Native Americans redirects here. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Binomial name (Vahl) Forssk. ... Allah is the Arabic language word for God. ... There is also a collection of Hadith called Sahih Muslim A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Persian: Mosalman or Mosalmon Urdu: مسلمان, Turkish: Müslüman, Albanian: Mysliman, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of the religion of Islam. ...

Some non-governmental organizations, such as the Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics, argue that placing limits on the use of certain drugs is akin to placing a limit on thought itself – thus violating the right to cognitive liberty. A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an organization which is not a part of a government. ... Cognitive liberty is the freedom to be the absolute sovereign of one’s own consciousness. ...

Constitutional rights-based arguments against blanket drug prohibition have featured in US legal history since the 1960s. In February of 2006, the US Supreme Court upheld the right to religious drug use in the União do Vegetal case (Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal, Docket #04-1084). This case now features in arguments for and against drug prohibition. The distinction to be made is that government regulation of drug use is not prohibiting any thought but rather prohibiting conduct. Many drugs are provided in tablet form. ... Media:Example. ... The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C., (large image) The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States... União do Vegetal (Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal or UDV) is a church which is known fundamentally for its usage of Hoasca (or Ayahuasca) as a sacramental entheogenic herbal tea — the vegetal alluded to in the name of the entity. ... Holding The courts below did not err in determining that the Government failed to demonstrate, at the preliminary injunction stage, a compelling interest in barring the UDV’s sacramental use of hoasca. ... // The United States Reports, the official reporter of the Supreme Court of the United States Case citation is the system used in common law countries such as the United States, England and Wales, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Australia and India to uniquely identify the location of past court... The prohibition of drugs is a subject of considerable controversy. ...

A recent British case involving this line of legal argument is that of Casey William Hardison, who is awaiting a hearing at the European Court of Human Rights after being refused a final appeal at the House of Lords, the highest court in Great Britain. Hardison is currently serving a twenty year sentence for producing a variety of entheogenic drugs. European Court of Human Rights building in Strasbourg The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), often referred to informally as the Strasbourg Court, was created to systematise the hearing of human rights complaints against States Parties to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, adopted by... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... Entheogens are psychoactive substances that have traditionally been used in a religious context, such as psilocybin-containing mushrooms and Peyote cactuses. ...

Suppression of freedom of thought

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One obvious impediment to those who would suppress freedom of thought, is that no one human being can possibly even know what everyone else is really thinking — let alone successfully regulate it. Image File history File links WikiNews-Logo. ... Wikinews is a free-content news source and a project of the Wikimedia Foundation. ...

This impossibility of controlling thought is perhaps summarized in the Biblical context nowhere more succinctly than in Ecclesiastes 8:8: "There is no man that hath power over the spirit, to retain it; neither hath he power in the day of death." In other words, trying to control the thoughts of others is as futile as trying to control death. A similar sentiment is expressed in the teachings of Jesus in the New Testament, where he seems to liken those who vainly attempt to control the emotions of their neighbours to "the children in the marketplace" who try to produce dancing with a happy song and mourning with a dirge, and then express frustration at their futility in trying to do so. (Matt. 11:16) The Bible (From Greek βιβλια—biblia, meaning books, which in turn is derived from βυβλος—byblos meaning papyrus, from the ancient Phoenician city of Byblos which exported papyrus) is the sacred scripture of Christianity. ... Ecclesiastes, Qohelet in Hebrew, is a book of the Hebrew Bible. ... This article is about Jesus of Nazareth. ... This article is about the Christian scriptures. ...

Laws that attempt to regulate what goes on inside a person’s head have long been regarded with suspicion. Queen Elizabeth I removed one such law, several hundred years ago, because, according to Sir Francis Bacon, ‘She would not make windows into men’s souls’. ^{[citation needed]} Elizabeth I Queen of England and Ireland Queen of France, nominal title Elizabeth I (September 7, 1533–March 24, 1603) was Queen of England and Queen of Ireland from November 17, 1558 until her death. ... For other persons named Francis Bacon, see Francis Bacon (disambiguation). ...

While freedom of thought is said to be one of the fundamental principles of most democracies, the attempted suppression of freedom of thought is a prominent characteristic of totalitarian and authoritarian regimes. Freedom of expression can be limited in several ways — through censorship, arrests, book burning, or propaganda, and this tends to discourage freedom of thought. Examples of effective campaigns against freedom of expression are the Soviet suppression of genetics research known as Lysenkoism, the book burning campaigns of Nazi Germany, and the radical anti-intellectualism enforced in Cambodia under Pol Pot. The concept of Totalitarianism is a typology or ideal-type used by some political scientists to encapsulate the characteristics of a number of twentieth century regimes that mobilized entire populations in support of the state or an ideology. ... The term authoritarian is used to describe an organization or a state which enforces strong and sometimes oppressive measures against the population, generally without attempts at gaining the consent of the population. ... For other uses, see Censor. ... Book burning is the practice of ceremoniously destroying by fire one or more copies of a book or other written material. ... For other uses, see Propaganda (disambiguation). ... Please wikify (format) this article as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... Anti-intellectualism describes a sentiment of hostility towards, or mistrust of, intellectuals and intellectual pursuits. ... Saloth Sar (May 19, 1925 – April 15, 1998), better known as Pol Pot, was the leader of the Khmer Rouge and the Prime Minister of Cambodia (officially renamed the Democratic Kampuchea during his rule) from 1976 to 1979, having been de facto leader since mid-1975. ...

Freedom of expression can also be stifled without institutional interference when the views of the majority become so widely accepted that other ways of expression are repressed. For this reason, some condemn "political correctness" as a form of limiting freedom of thought. Although proponents of "political correctness" claim that it aims to give minority views an equal representation, critics point to instances in which the majority view is also the view which is seen as "politically correct." For example, college student Max Karson was arrested following the Virginia Tech shootings for politically incorrect comments that authorities saw as "sympathetic to the killer." Karson's arrest raised important questions regarding freedom of thought and whether or not it applies in educational settings. A majority is a subset of a group that is more than half of the entire group. ... Political correctness is the alteration of language to redress real or alleged injustices and discrimination or to avoid offense. ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... Wikinews has news related to: Shooting at Virginia Tech; at least 31 dead This article is about the April 2007 shootings. ...

The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, which states that thought is inherently embedded in language, would support the claim that an effort to limit the use of words of language is actually a form of restricting freedom of thought. In linguistics, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis (SWH) states that there is a systematic relationship between the grammatical categories of the language a person speaks and how that person both understands the world and behaves in it. ... Personification of thought (Greek Εννοια) in Celsus Library in Ephesos, Turkey Thought or thinking is a mental process which allows beings to model the world, and so to deal with it effectively according to their goals, plans, ends and desires. ...

Internet censorship and freedom of thought

A screenshot of a blocked website in Iran.

A current example of censorship and therefore suppression of freedom of thought, is the control of information on the world wide web in such countries as Iran^[5], Saudi Arabia, UK^[6], Egypt^[7], China, Germany and others^[8]. In October 2006, Iranian mullahs ordered internet service providers to reduce connection speeds for home and cafe computers.^[9] Image File history File links Iran_Web_screenshot. ... “ISP” redirects here. ...

See also

• Freedom of speech
• Freedom of expression
• Public opinion
• Intellectual Freedom
• Cognitive liberty
• Prisoner of conscience
• Thoughtcrime
• Free will
• Freethought
• Casey William Hardison
• Hate crime
• 1984

This article is about the general concept. ... Freedom of speech is the right to freely say what one pleases, as well as the related right to hear what others have stated. ... Public Opinion is a book on media and democracy by Walter Lippmann. ... Intellectual Freedom is a human right. ... Cognitive liberty is the freedom to be the absolute sovereign of one’s own consciousness. ... Prisoner of conscience (POC) is a term coined by the human rights pressure group Amnesty International in the early 1960s. ... In George Orwells dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four the government attempts to control not only the speech and actions, but also the thoughts of its subjects, labeling disapproved thoughts with the term thoughtcrime or, in Newspeak, crimethink. In the book, Winston Smith, the main character, writes in his diary... Free-Will is a Japanese independent record label founded in 1986. ... Freethought is a philosophical viewpoint that holds that beliefs should be formed on the basis of science and logical principles and not be compromised by authority, tradition, or any other dogma. ... A Jewish cemetery in France after being defaced by Neo-Nazis. ... This article is about the Orwell novel. ...

References and notes

December 11 is the 345th day of the year (346th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 53rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st Century. ...

Further reading

1. George Botterill and Peter Carruthers, ‘The Philosophy of Psychology’, Cambridge University Press (1999), p3
2. The Hon. Sir John Laws, ‘The Limitations of Human Rights’, [1998] P.L. Summer, Sweet & Maxwell and Contributors, p260

External links

• Freedom of Thought - Iranian Underground Art Movement
• Dictionary of the History of Ideas: Academic Freedom
• The Beckley Foundation - a charitable trust that promotes the investigation of consciousness
• www.medienhilfe.org Internationale Medienhilfe (IMH) - International organization for press freedom
• The Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics - a network of scholars elaborating the law, policy and ethics of freedom of thought
• Information about Casey Hardison - the first individual in the UK to use an elaborate freedom of thought argument to challenge drug prohibition in court
• John Bagnell Bury (1861-1927) A History of Freedom of Thought - E-book online (Copyright expired)