Quote:
Originally Posted by nightfighter
If I went into an airport and cried out that God has put bombs in the airport, or cried out in a theater that there would be a fire, would the Supreme Court see that as my freedom of speech? I think not.... My azz would be in jail.
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Exercising your rights cannot violate the rights of another person. In this case, exercising your right to free speech would violate the right of life (Not to be injured or abused) of everyone who is in the theater or airport.
I have to agree with Chesapeake Bill. The people from WBC are disgusting, vile "human beings". However, this judgment was the correct interpretation of their Constitutional right to protest.
The Bill of Rights was not drafted with clauses that state we have specific freedoms "as long as we don't offend anyone" or "unless your views are unpopular." I think this judgment falls right in line with what our Founding Fathers would have wanted. Even though their (the WBC) words and actions are disgusting, ungrateful, hate-filled and offensive, it is within their right to say whatever they choose.
As soon as we allow the government to limit, through case law or other methods, any of our Constitutional Rights, we open the doors wide open for a whole world of hurt and the inevitable destruction of all the principles for which the best country on Earth was founded on. We have already allowed our right to Privacy to be thrown away through laws like the Patriot Act and the unopposed actions of the FBI, CIA and Homeland Security. Let's not allow the government to erode yet another one of our rights.