Do Humans have the right to offend? Assuming they live in a free country and have reached the age of majority of course they do.

Who has the right to tell another adult not to offend? For that matter, who gets to say what is offensive? Isn’t the choice of whether or not to be offended up to the one who feels offended?

The very question put forth in this debate could be offensive to many people and cause fear in the hearts of others. Who would dare take away this basic right?

Let’s take a ridiculous tack here and say we don’t have the right to offend. If that is the case, what would be the punishment for the act of offending? Would it be a criminal act? Should people be put in jail for it? Would it be a misdemeanor involving a nominal fine and/or some time in the county jail? Or would it be a real big offense? One that would involve prison and a felony conviction. Maybe it would be a civil case and the offended person could sue the offender for monetary damages. Attorneys would love that. But then, if the attorneys got abrasive in the trial they could be seen as being offensive and find themselves being a defendant.

Maybe it would be neither civil or criminal as far as our court system goes. Maybe the court system would have nothing to do with it. Maybe the decider of what’s offensive would also get to say what the punishment would be for the alleged offense. Sounds a bit like Taliban justice doesn’t it? Actually the question itself sounds like Taliban law.

Common sense dictates this is a one way issue. We do get to be offensive. We get to be so offensive we could even suggest that we shouldn’t have the right to be offensive.

This convoluted reasoning process is making me a little dizzy but then the whole question makes me dizzy. Where do we get these ridiculous ideas that have us taking away other people’s rights?

If someone wants to be offensive and it isn’t criminal then they get to be offensive. Ultimately it is our choice as the listener or observer of the offensive act to decide whether or not we want to be offended. If we want to be offended we get to do that. We can even choose to be offensive in our being offended if we wish.

Or not.

Maybe this article is offensive to some readers. It is their right to be offended by it just like it is my right to write things that offend them. Those are our collective rights.

If that offends those who want the right to deprive us of the right to offend, great. They can knock themselves out and be offended. The ironic thing is they can’t offend me in return because they don’t think people have the right to offend anyone.

Okay, I’m done now. That’s about as dizzy as I want to get.