For many centuries, “shouting fire in a crowded theater” set the limits of free speech under English Common Law. The reason wasn’t a rash of practical jokers shouting “fire!” in London theaters.  It was endless, murderous religious preachers like Oliver Cromwell, a Calvinist war leader who ended up killing lots of Catholics and Royalists in England and Ireland between 1642 and 1651. He did so with the best intentions, of course. The English civil wars led to the Glorious Revolution of 1688 and much improved religious tolerance in England.  Before 1776, the American Founders read their Bibles and their John Locke, but they also loved Blackstone on The Laws of England.  Blackstone put a lot of thought into free speech and its legal limits, as we can see in our First Amendment, which is based on that legal tradition. Today, most Americans are sunk in shameful ignorance about their own culture, so they can’t figure out what...(Read Full Article)