Does freedom of speech really exist?

The point of free speech is the pursuit of truth. That is all. All speech must be allowed so that all ideas can be heard and to give the best chance for one of them to contain a weight of truth.  Gratuitous insult on the other hand offers no truth, or intellectual substance, offering nothing except hate, suffering, harassment and divisiveness.  Insulting a belief does not change people's minds when they believe their ideas are right - instead, it makes them more entrenched - since it is human nature to demand respect for oneself, and one's beliefs are a fundamental part of one's personality.  Many European countries have bans on speech including insulting the French flag, holocaust denial, publishing the Swastika Image in the case of Germany, public order laws prohibit public insult outlawing slander, libel, tort and defamation - allowing people to sue each other for expressing untrue or degrading and humiliating speech against each other something that courts have to decide all the time.
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Bradley Manning sentenced for 35 years ‪#‎exercisingfreedomofspeech‬

Ironic how people become least tolerant of any dissent when they're most fervently defending "free speech" !

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