“Free speech zones” are areas that universities specifically set aside as the only areas on campus that students and faculty can speak, protest, or gather signatures for a cause they believe in. In order to use these patches of the university, a person must request a permit or submit a request form three business days before the demonstration. These zones have faced an immense amount of backlash and court cases have been seen in the public eye recently. One case resulted in Georgia Gwinnett College abandoning their free speech zone policies and stating that any person could practice free speech anywhere on campus without a permit. Another case occurred at Arkansas State University, and organizations like Peace & Love and Turning Point USA were struck down and were not allowed to speak because they did not act within the confines of the rules of the “free expression areas”; this authoritarian behavior was enforced using university policy and local law enforcement. These kinds of acts are in question as to if they are in line with the free speech principles of American life and culture, and that perhaps is an issue for an academic institution which is meant to continue the growth of American culture and foster the dispersal of ideas to enhance the minds of our youth. 

            An approach to solve this problem in particular is to amplify the court-cases and calls for removal of these sorts of policies. The correct desired end under the circumstances would be to abolish these so called “free expression zones”, as free speech is a gift and a privilege bestowed upon society to facilitate growth all around. 

This I believe: rational thought is the key to many of the successes in life and in the world. Human rationality is the catalyst conscious element that has led me and humanity to where it is now. Rationality and rational thinking cause each and every one of us to see through the fog and the haze that is often brought upon by excessive amounts of human emotion and feeling to then think logically and objectively about our lives. Through the good and the bad in life, our rational self is always there to think through the next goal, milestone or step – a method of living that is incapsulated within the stoic philosophy, which was started by the philosophers of Ancient Greece. It pushes all of us to process information, and then develop the best plan of action possible. This is all represented best within my story of using the rational mind to achieve an outstanding accomplishment. It all began in the latter half of my senior year of high school, where I could see a long road of success in front of me; I just had to figure out how to navigate that road. Then, an opportunity arose, one which required the most astute of movements, planning and decisions. The opportunity was a new scholarship that narrowed down the available selection pool, which made it much more probable to win, and what ensued was a series of events happening over the course of several weeks that would decide my future career, tied right together with my future successes. I engaged in exactly what I have described: the rational, logical mind. With this being a what-I-felt largely social examination, that is a test trying to evaluate an overall individual for signs of potential success in high pressure environments, I amplified my application’s strengths and paradigm shifted my weaknesses to become strengths; for example, myself being obsessed became possessing a tremendous drive and a strong focus. I represented the best side of myself personally by conveying my leadership abilities, my ability to handle situations under pressure, and my loyalty to those who are loyal. This strategic manner of socially proving myself to well-educated individuals and people of character eventually led me to winning the prestigious military scholarship, a feat that has led me to firmly believe that success in many formats is usually brought about by the rational mind. While human emotion and feeling is necessary towards having a long, happy life as well as for many other successes in life, it is rational thinking that leads to success in most facets. The development of technology, personal professional advancement, ingenuity, innovation, and societal growth are all byproducts of logical pontification. All in all, rational thinking has put me in my contemporary position, it has produced the modern world, and in my estimation, it will continue to enhance the world we live in.