Is it a good idea to ban harmful gossip?
Banning harmful gossip can be a positive step in creating a more enlightened and civilized society. On the strength of the results of harmful gossip, past leaders had to take the ability to take action, in a bid to enrichen their society’s culture. Imagine living in the Philippines, in a small town called Binalonan; instead of people minding their own business whilst you peacefully gossip in the shades of the trees, you will have to pay a fine, and do up to eight hours of community service, if you get caught gossiping. Taking such effect could be positive, by means of stopping what gossiping aims for, which leads to an offence against social harmony. Gossip is information that spreads around, without having any evidence, so it could occur as a good idea to ban this offensive behavior, so things don’t get out of hand. Although, for an idea so extraordinaire, there are many things people don’t seem to notice. For instance, banning gossip raises concerns about freedom of speech. People may argue that prohibiting gossip interferes with their right to express opinions. Yet still, leaders seem to follow the idea of having a precise culture; a culture where everyone follows the law, which concludes to a peaceful society. Maybe even a normal one, although it can’t be a normal society if you restrain the right of speech.
In the end, I wouldn’t say that you could decide weather or not to ban gossip. Banning it, means helping a community be more cultivating and respectful, however on the other hand, it also means forbidding the right of speech. At the end of the day, the leaders themselves are the main resource of gossip, so maybe they could take a break from these harsh laws, and not ban gossiping, but ban what makes it harmful, such as, spreading it on social media platforms, maybe even across the whole country, since this is what is practically making the harm. After all, a little ear to ear conversation didn’t end up to a worldwide problem.
