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Showing posts with label First Amendment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label First Amendment. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 28, 2017
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
The WikiLeaks Conundrum
By Jack Brummet
Social Mores Editor, All This Is That
It's fascinating that WikiLeaks is still breathing. When you think of the people we (yes, we, of we the people) have assassinated--from low level intelligence operatives, up to and including, Presidents of foreign countries--you really do have to wonder how do these guys survive? Sure, there's Executive Order 12333, but that didn't save Ngo Dinh Diem in Vietnam, or Patrice Lumumba in the Congo, or Rene Schneider in Chile. Maybe Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan too. And we made more than one hapless attempt on Fidel's life. So how does Julian Assange--variously described as somewhat paranoid to nuttier than a fruitcake--get a pass once again?
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Social Mores Editor, All This Is That
Julian Assange - Mr. WikiLeaks
Today our government shut down hundreds of counterfeit, pirate, and software download sites. Whatever the merits of their uber-Freedom of Information stance, WikiLeaks seems to be faring much better than a site selling fake designer tennis shoes did today.
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Wednesday, September 08, 2010
I plan to light up 2,000 Bibles on a bed of 50 American Flags in Florida on September 11th
By Pablo Fanque
National Affairs Editor
I don't know, maybe it doesn't make much sense, but I plan to drive this afternoon to Florida in a pickup with a case of bourbon, a jar of criss-cross methamphetamines, 2,000 Bibles, 50 American flags, a gallon of kerosene, and as many of you as I can convince to go with me. As Preacher Jones ignites his Qurans, I will light up 2,000 Bibles on a bed of 50 kerosene-soaked American Flags. I would prefer not to. I never feel like burning things accomplishes much--draft cards, police cars, bras, flags, effigies. . .all it ever seems to really accomplish is to incite people. Granted, people sometimes need to be incited, but not now, not this time, or about this "cause."
As Woody Allen once said apropos the First Amendment, "I think you should defend to the death their right to march, and then go down and meet them with baseball bats."
My message to The Rev. and his possibly millions of short-term and fair-weather friends is: if you don't torch yours, I won't ignite mine. If you do burn the Qurans, I have no compunction about lighting up the Bibles and flags. If you go through with it, I feel like this counterstrike, or ballast may at least let our brothers and sisters know that we too felt this was the misguided action of a misanthropic few. Maybe this makes no sense at all, but I hope it may be some kind of balm for the outrage Dr. Jones and the laughably named Dove World Outreach Center provoke.
Sorry Muslims...part of this democracy thing is allowing even deranged hatemongers to practice free speech; the first amendment is inviolable, but please don't confuse the Quran Burners and Tea Baggers (it would be interesting to see a Venn Diagram of the overlaps of these two groups) with real Americans.
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National Affairs Editor
I don't know, maybe it doesn't make much sense, but I plan to drive this afternoon to Florida in a pickup with a case of bourbon, a jar of criss-cross methamphetamines, 2,000 Bibles, 50 American flags, a gallon of kerosene, and as many of you as I can convince to go with me. As Preacher Jones ignites his Qurans, I will light up 2,000 Bibles on a bed of 50 kerosene-soaked American Flags. I would prefer not to. I never feel like burning things accomplishes much--draft cards, police cars, bras, flags, effigies. . .all it ever seems to really accomplish is to incite people. Granted, people sometimes need to be incited, but not now, not this time, or about this "cause."
As Woody Allen once said apropos the First Amendment, "I think you should defend to the death their right to march, and then go down and meet them with baseball bats."
My message to The Rev. and his possibly millions of short-term and fair-weather friends is: if you don't torch yours, I won't ignite mine. If you do burn the Qurans, I have no compunction about lighting up the Bibles and flags. If you go through with it, I feel like this counterstrike, or ballast may at least let our brothers and sisters know that we too felt this was the misguided action of a misanthropic few. Maybe this makes no sense at all, but I hope it may be some kind of balm for the outrage Dr. Jones and the laughably named Dove World Outreach Center provoke.
Sorry Muslims...part of this democracy thing is allowing even deranged hatemongers to practice free speech; the first amendment is inviolable, but please don't confuse the Quran Burners and Tea Baggers (it would be interesting to see a Venn Diagram of the overlaps of these two groups) with real Americans.
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