In the aftermath of the "Memorial to Democracy" last week, one is left to wonder if the meaning of the word "irony" has any impact on those who demand that we remember "democracy" as if it were something that a couple of thousand yaboos managed to kill in a single afternoon.

One of the bedrock principles of the so-called "American" democracy (which was NOT a democracy until the definition changed in the early 1900s) is the concept of freedom of speech. In fact, it's right there, enshrined in the US Constitution, guaranteed to be protected. Through our history various iterations of the Supreme Court have not only solidified the idea that freedom of speech is paramount, but it is almost a necessity in order to maintain a "democracy" (using the modern definition).

Which is why in the flagellation of the insurrectionists and those who theologically align with them last week, one of the people who most loudly screeches about "protecting our democracy" came up with the genius idea of... throttling freedom of speech.