Opinion

Its simplest expression was formulated by Holocaust historian Yehudah Bauer: Thou shalt not be a bystander.

A writer can still write while hiding from the thought police. But a writer who carries the thought police around in his head, who always feels compelled to ask: Can I say this? Do I have a right? Is my terminology correct? Will my allies get angry? Will it help my enemies? Will it get me ratioed on Twitter?—that writer’s work will soon become life