"We don't talk about that". "Shhhh, somebody will hear you." "That's a bad word." "This is a bad subject. We're not supposed to talk about it."
I didn't grow up hearing those sorts of comments. I could tell that there were plenty of subjects that were not popular for discussions. I myself didn't want to talk about mistakes I made, failures I had or my poor judgements. But I don't think I was told that I should not mention anything. I don't remember being told that we weren't going to talk about that.
There were certainly times when my parents or others had listened to something long enough and didn't want to discuss it further at that time. But if I chose wisely, I could get back to an exhausted topic in a day or so. I usually needed some new take or angle or question or offer to reopen the discussion. I could expect diminishing enthusiasm for the topic the more times I broached it.
I was aware that the first amendment to the US constitution includes forbidding any "abridgement of freedom of speech." I was aware that constitutional protections do not apply to children and that my parents had plenty of power over me. I believed that since they were older, they might really have a better view of life and living than I did. I paid careful attention to their ideas and considered pretty carefully, extra-carefully if their ideas ran counter to mine.
TV shows and movies are not a very impressive sample of anything much beyond tv and movies. But it has seemed to me that it is American, British and maybe Canadian drama in which someone tries to utter a ban on talking about a particular subject. I did look up "freedom of speech" and found plenty of information about how it has been defined. I realize that talking is powerful. I have noticed that parts of the Old Testament condemns 'slander' and other ways of defaming or actually lying about another person.
It seems to me that the more developed nations of the world permit a wider range of utterance and writing than do the nations that seem less developed. Just as some thinkers advise being sure women have rights that are respected, I wonder if in the modern world, giving broad rein to speech isn't a ticket to development, good thought and improvement. If I go to a therapist to improve my marriage or my interpersonal skills or whatever, I expect to say as clearly and as fully as I know how, what I currently do and feel. I certainly don't expect my therapist to tell me to edit my talk and omit subjects that are upsetting to him
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