Three Gates

Tim Griffin, 2022

The first amendment of the U. S. Constitution
Recognizes five freedoms in one resolution
But with these rights come responsibilities
For speech, consider a guy named Socrates
An ancient Greek who made an excellent suggestion
Before we speak, we ought to ask three questions

Is it true? Is it useful? Is it kind?
I’m in favor of free speech, but if you don’t mind
I’d like to tell you about the three gates of Socrates
‘Cause they belong on the top of your bill of responsibilities.

Gate one, is it true?
Ooh, here’s an exciting allegation somebody shared with you
That fits your worldview, and all your friends are repeating it
But if you can’t confirm it, consider deleting it
But wait, you got multiple sources? Great!
But if they’re all feeding off the same plate
Or if they’re all working for the same news network
Then it doesn’t add up to independent corroboration
It’s only repetition of dubious information
Speech is a right, but it’s your responsibility
To speak the truth to the best of your ability

Gate two, is it useful?
When I read some text about an actor and his ex
I don’t need every detail about their mess!
I’ve got enough stress, just like the rest of the nation
So spare us this insidious ubiquitous titillation
A real reporter reports a real story
Instead of only amplify inflammatory oratory
So if you need more followers, lead!
Stop reporting and repeating and resharing and retweeting
Every silly celebrity scandal that is bleeding in the headlines tonight
Speech is a right, but once in a while
Try to speak for substance, not for style.

Is it true? Is it useful? Is it kind?
I’m in favor of free speech, but if you don’t mind
I’d like to tell you about the three gates of Socrates
Because we need free speech on our bill of responsibilities!

Gate three, is it kind?
You don’t got to be like sunshine and rainbows all the time
But if the only motivation of your speech is for spite
Then it may feel cathartic but you’ve already lost the fight.
Cruelty’s easy but you don’t have to retweet it
And nasty notes in the comments will be deleted.
But hey, someone said or did a bad thing, you say?
Listen, I do ten dumb things on a good day.
Before you do a dog-pile denunciation
Of every unintentional micro-aggression situation
First try a few words of kindly correction
Maybe your recipient is ready to receive a lesson
Or maybe not, but at least you should try
Because if you hate cancellation, how’s it okay for that other guy?
Speech is a right, but whenever you can
Try to speak with kindness; it’s like water to a thirsty man.

Is it true? Is it useful? Is it kind?
I’m a huge fan of freedom but I have to remind
You about the three gates of Socrates
So we can keep free speech among our self-regulated liberties.

In conclusion, free speech is the oxygen of democracy
And what I say today may sound like hypocrisy
But paradoxically, before we let ‘er rip
Free speech requires a little bit of self-censorship
Which does NOT mean do not speak your mind
But first: Is it true? Is it useful? Is it kind?
If you can’t say YES to at least two out of three
Maybe don’t re-peat, re-share, or re-tweet
Until you re-consider what you wanted to say
Or maybe just say the same thing in a better way
The main thing is to think before you talk
Because liberty and responsibility have got to walk the same walk.

Print Notes

Notes

The story about Socrates and the three gates of speech is probably apocryphal, as it appears nowhere in Plato's works. Nonetheless, the three gates are an excellent filter for speech, particularly on social media where we often forget it is an actual person on the other end of the line. More importantly, the three gates may provide a useful entry to the tricky subject of how to balance our liberties with the self-discipline required in a free society.