Bloggers of the world, unite!

Via Michelle Malkin I learn that there may be a conference sometime next year for conservative bloggers to discuss strategy for retaking the government in future elections.  Sounds good.  But here’s an issue I’d also like to see bloggers focus on: practical measures for the protection of free speech.

Many in the new government are going to be hostile to free speech and will want to implement measures such as the misnamed “Fairness” Doctrine to control it.  For an example, see Chuck Schumer’s recent comparison of free speech to pornography.  As far as I’m concerned Schumer effectively makes the case for deregulating pornography rather than regulating speech here, but that’s not how Congress will vote.

And moreover, I’m worried about people in the government attacking critics through other means - everything from nuisance suits to IRS audits - that won’t run up against the First Amendment and may not even appear to be censorship at all.  We need to watch and see if this sort of thing happens disproportionately to those speaking out against the government.

More importantly, we also need effective defenses.  I’ve been following Ezra Levant’s free speech battle up in Canada, and recall that he was working on a defense fund for bloggers.  I’d like to see focus on such ideas, and I’d like to see it very soon; we may be facing censorship before much longer.