2008 Woodie Awards
"Misjudging Our Freedoms"
Nick Hemenway
Issue date: 9/26/07 Section: Opinion
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We are now at F-day plus five.
No matter what side of the debate you took, the discussion circled around one thing - freedom of speech.
Contrary to what some may think, we conservatives do hold up more than just the Second Amendment. I fully support the Editorial Board's legal right to say what they did.
However, what David McSwane and the rest of the board failed to remember is, although the First Amendment gives us the freedom of speech, it does not give us freedom from consequences.
Far too many Americans view our First Amendment rights from a false perspective.
In the late 1700s, our forefathers were in the process of separating themselves from British control.
Under British law, one could be arrested for criticizing the Queen, possibly leading to life in prison. In order to prevent this from happening, the First Amendment was ratified to the Constitution.
Since that day in 1791, people like Andrew Meyer at the University of Florida have tried to pervert the definition of free speech.
Most of us have seen the YouTube videos of the tazer incident, from several different angles. What you may not have seen was what happened when the cameras were not on.
According to police reports, Meyer rushed the microphone without regard to the rules of the forum, while yelling profanities that rivaled Friday's Collegian.
After causing enough commotion, Sen. Kerry told him to calm down and that he would answer his question. Just before he started his next round of tirades, he asked his friends if they were ready to tape what he was about to do, as noted in the police report.
At the order of the event director, the police attempted to remove Meyer.
If Meyer had stopped his fit and obeyed the officers, nothing would have happened. Of course, then again, he knew remaining calm wouldn't make him famous.
Meyer immediately went crazy and resisted arrest, which is a huge no-no.
No matter what side of the debate you took, the discussion circled around one thing - freedom of speech.
Contrary to what some may think, we conservatives do hold up more than just the Second Amendment. I fully support the Editorial Board's legal right to say what they did.
However, what David McSwane and the rest of the board failed to remember is, although the First Amendment gives us the freedom of speech, it does not give us freedom from consequences.
Far too many Americans view our First Amendment rights from a false perspective.
In the late 1700s, our forefathers were in the process of separating themselves from British control.
Under British law, one could be arrested for criticizing the Queen, possibly leading to life in prison. In order to prevent this from happening, the First Amendment was ratified to the Constitution.
Since that day in 1791, people like Andrew Meyer at the University of Florida have tried to pervert the definition of free speech.
Most of us have seen the YouTube videos of the tazer incident, from several different angles. What you may not have seen was what happened when the cameras were not on.
According to police reports, Meyer rushed the microphone without regard to the rules of the forum, while yelling profanities that rivaled Friday's Collegian.
After causing enough commotion, Sen. Kerry told him to calm down and that he would answer his question. Just before he started his next round of tirades, he asked his friends if they were ready to tape what he was about to do, as noted in the police report.
At the order of the event director, the police attempted to remove Meyer.
If Meyer had stopped his fit and obeyed the officers, nothing would have happened. Of course, then again, he knew remaining calm wouldn't make him famous.
Meyer immediately went crazy and resisted arrest, which is a huge no-no.
Viewing Comments 1 - 6 of 9
Steven
posted 9/26/07 @ 2:02 AM MST
You're wrong.
Firstly, your argument concerning the "taser incident" seems to rely pretty heavily on "facts" provided by a police report. In addition, this sentence: "Meyer immediately went crazy and resisted arrest, which is a huge no-no" has three significant problems. (Continued…)
Abel
posted 9/26/07 @ 5:53 AM MST
Contacting your online and print advertisers voicing my objections is proving quite effective. $30k is just the start. Too bad the laid off employees have to learn McSwane's lesson for him. (Continued…)
Erin
posted 9/26/07 @ 3:56 PM MST
I think it is nice to see a conservative look past the political comments and see this for what it was: an exercise in the right to freedom of speech without considering the consequences! There were no legal lines crossed in McSwane's editorial, just public lines of integrity, which have direct consequences. (Continued…)
Please Read the 1st Amendment
posted 9/26/07 @ 7:40 PM MST
The 1st Amendment does not guarantee unlimited free speech. If you read the entire amendment, and how the courts have interpreted it, you will see it in fact guarantees freedom of speech and freedom of the press without interference from the government. (Continued…)
Bob Dylan
posted 9/26/07 @ 7:56 PM MST
Ron Paul is the ONLY antiwar Candidate and the ONLY man with the proven spotless track record that deserves our trust to inherit the 'thrown' after Bush. (Continued…)
John M.
posted 9/27/07 @ 8:45 AM MST
Two great cards just in case of an emergency.
1) The Free Speech card
2) The Race card
What card are in your wallet?
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