Politics Information |
People Say - and Do - the Dumbest Things
When Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Spector exercised his right to free speech last week, he prompted a quick response from Robert Bork. Known for being the first Supreme Court Justice nominee to be, well, "borked," the judge was in no mood for Spector's silliness. "I know Specter," he retorted, "and the truth is not in him." What prompted Bork's remark was the Senator's suggestion - make that accusation - that the judge "had original intent, and if his original intent stood, we'd still be segregating the United States Senate with African Americans on one side and Caucasians on the other side." Both remarks were made Sunday on CNN's Late Edition. While Spector's right to free speech is a highly valued freedom is without question. But the right to speak freely falls short of excusing some of the asinine excesses and down right abuses that often accompany that right. It's one of the of living in a free society. People have the right to say - and do - dumb things. And they exercise that freedom liberally. Columnist Morton Marcus, for example, may have out-trumped Spector. While musing in the aftermath of the Supreme Court's recent eminent domain decision, he wrote that private property is "a privilege conferred by the government." That, of course, would have come as a shock to the founders of nation whose sacrifices provided the framework for private ownership. It also irked Ross Bell, a Wayne County Libertarian. In response to Marcus opinion, Bell quipped, "Welcome to the USSA." Then there was the incident at the University of Georgia's School of Journalism, reported in the Athens Banner-Herald. John Soloski's expressed concern for a co-worker's safety - coupled with a compliment for her appearance - got him in hot water for sexual harassment. The compliment on his part turned to a complaint on her part and Soloski was found guilty. At the time, she didn't act offended, he claimed. The event took place at a fundraiser for the school where the "offender" is dean. Another recent abuse of free speech occurred in Victorville, California. Bethany Hauf, a 34-year student at the local community college, requested permission to write a term paper. The subject? The effect of Christianity on the development of the United States. Her professor, apparently unacquainted with free speech or common sense, granted permission. But he added one stipulation: "No mention of big 'G' gods, i.e., one, true god argumentation." The professor, it seems, feared other students would be offended at the mere mention of a "big 'G' god." Common sense prevailed. Hauf ignored the nutty professor and mentioned God 41 times. She receive and F. The professor received a law suit, compliments of American Center for Law and Justice. The story was reported in The Daily Press. More insanity was seen in nearby Long Beach, California. According to The Los Angeles Times, a representative of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) voiced his objection to the Aquarium of the Pacific's cafeteria including fish. "Serving fish in its cafeteria. serving fish at an aquarium is like serving poodle burgers at a dog show," he said. Speaking of animal rights, silliness isn't uniquely American. The French have their own share of curious folk. According to AFP reports, Jacques Peyrat, the mayor of the Riviera city Nice, was accused of being cruel towards the rat he killed last week. The report noted that Peyrat was visiting a trash collection area in Nice's historic center when he spotted "a rat almost as big as a cat." He grabbed a shovel and brought it down on the rodent, killing it. France's Society for the Protection of Animals (SPA) has lodged a criminal complaint against the Mayor. The report quoted SPA's regional chief as saying, "A huge rat-clearing operation is necessary, but nothing justifies going off on a punitive expedition against these animals, which are attracted to the trash cans left out at night in the Old City by restaurants." But most noticeable is the good ol' boy from Tennessee who is expressing his right to free speech by toting a Confederate Battle Flag across Dixie. H.K. Edgerton's 1,300 odyssey is designed to draw attention to Southern heritage. He plans to march all the way to Texas. Upon entering Marysville, Tennessee, Edgerton took time to lambaste the flag-banning school board for practicing what he termed, "cultural genocide" that is dividing blacks and whites, according to the Marysville Daily Times. "I'm just an ordinary country boy from the South who loves the Southland," he added. Edgerton, by the way, is black. And that causes one to wonder if he would agree that Arlen Spector's attack on Robert Bork was, indeed, out of line. Kenn Gividen
MORE RESOURCES: Unable to open template $TEMPLATEfilename, exiting |
RELATED ARTICLES
Canada Tries to Stop Flow of Drugs into the US As more and more cities and states set up websites and pass measures to allow for importing price controlled Canadian drugs into the US to control the rising cost of healthcare, Canada is starting to take notice on the impact of such practices on it's government run healthcare system. Canada doesn't like what it sees, and for good reason. Jobs and the Flow of Fuel We see today a fierce unspoken competition between trucks and trains. It is well known in those industries and with those who ship the products, components, parts, natural resources, produce and event he fuel itself. What is the Filibuster-Breaking Nuclear Option? What is the so-called "nuclear option" that Senator Bill Frist may deploy soon in a precedent-setting attempt to break a potential filibuster? It sounds ominous, but what is it all about, really?President Bush has the opportunity to nominate and fill numerous federal judicial positions this year. Eventually he will have the opportunity to nominate one or more Supreme Court jusices as well. Politicians Are Like Car Sales People Well, another election has come and gone in the US and no matter which way you voted there are some important marketing lessons to learn.First, you need to put aside the campaign rhetoric and focus on the strategy and tactics and there are a number of clear winners for both sides. Tax Dollars and Transparency of Government Agencies As we watch fewer Americans voting it is no wonder why, they have lost faith in their government. Why can't we as citizens who own our government demand equal and/or reasonable compliance with our tax dollars? Why can't we demand the same from government as they enforce on our corporations? Why can't government clean it's act up and stop flushing our monies down the toilets? No wonder so many government workers wanted to install two more Johns in the white house during our last election; they obviously believe no one is watching and need more toilets to flush our money down in DC? Can you imagine for one minute the Government trying to comply with Sarbaines Oxley? They would crumble, stagnate and become even more ineffective than they already are. Hillary Says Health Care Can Be Fixed with IT The great leader and Senator from New York and wife of a former President cares about America and says that Health Care can be fixed with IT? Yes, perhaps that will help with accountability of the taxpayers wasted dollars in Health Care indeed. But how will that help the quality of Health Care?What I find interesting is that President Bush a couple of years ago said that he believed that the HIPPA Legislation would be able to be handled by entrepreneurial problem solvers through IT. An Overlooked Plan for Bush, Kerry, Democrats, Republicans, and Healthcare Costs In an effort to assist our political leadership it would be wise to have a simple solution to a life threatening problem. The much talked about Medicare Medication benefits are going to waste if the medications are not taken properly. Battling Societys Cancer: Unemployment The official figures are staggering: 35% of the workforce - about 280,000 people - are unemployed and looking for a job. Each 1. The Options For Regime Change In Iran If recent speeches by US officials on Iran's plans to become a nuclear power can be seen as part of a build-up to a possible US-evoked regime change in Iran, the intelligence behind it is at once scant and abundant. Whatever the real official US policy toward Iran is aiming for exactly is hard to get clear, but it is noteworthy that off late, US officials have stepped up their campaign of Iran criticism. Government Overregulation of Broadcast Content Could Backfire Rush is right! The government's stepped up bid to regulate broadcast television content is indeed frightening. Limbaugh made his comments during one of his regular radio broadcasts last year. Will They Sterilize Vagabonds and Drunkards in Belarus? In Belarus parliament is going to struggle with degeneration of the Belarus society. Deputy Kostjan in his statement suggested passing the law on violent sterilization of the citizens leading asocial way of life. Feeling Squeezed by Political Correctness I'm starting to feel squeezed by all the political correctness being imposed on us by both the Left and the Right. Both sides are constantly trying to infringe on our freedoms by telling us what we can and cannot say or do. Public Utilities, Monopolies and Problematic Structures Public utilities and a problematic issue on the allowance of profits. We all know that if you are only allowed to make 15 percent profit as in the case of Utilities Companies then why not spend more money so you can make 15 percent go up. Secret Clandestine Facial Recognition Countermeasures and The Future of the CIA Presently Universities and Private Enterprise are working to build more robust "Facial Recognition Technologies" due to the Homeland Security Funding for such research this field continues to grow. Anti-Terrorist efforts are a worldwide goal, so we are sharing this technologies with allies for use in their countries. Eurovision Song Contest - Kiss My Butt Neighbours Tonight I resigned myself to the fact that this is the last Eurovision Song Contest I shall ever watch. In fairness the only reason I did watch it was due to media reports mentioning that steps had been taken to try and mitigate the blatant vote rigging that takes place each time the contest is aired. More Devastating Than a Nuclear Bomb Despite their signature on the Biological Weapons Convention of 1975, it has been reported that China has the most advanced modern germ warfare arsenal in the world at Xian, Shaanxi province.As proof, information obtained using the Freedom of Information Act shows that in 1997 Clinton administration officials approved supercomputer exports to a known Chinese germ warfare lab without an end use inspection. We Do Not Have An Upside Down Trade Deficit Because We Cannot Compete Our trade deficit is directly proportional to our attacks on US Businesses and Entrepreneurs. We do not have an upside down trade deficit because we cannot compete. Open Source and Post-Capitalistic Society Capitalism as the social structure was founded in order to support further evolution and development of human race, to support the innovation which was oppressed by the former system. It was brought up by the two industrial revolutions. Question Authority Policemen in many US cities are taking their new authority over the terrorism issue way too seriously. They are using it as a reason to harass our citizenry. Illegal Aliens and Homeland Security; Rants from Lance 2003 Is it just me or are you concerned that illegal aliens were working on a nuclear submarine in San Diego? Is it just me or are you upset that 81,000 people come over the border in Laredo TX every day to shop and from there can go nearly anywhere if they time their travel correctly? Is it just me or are you concerned that we only have our borders secured in one direction, coming into the country? Is it just me or are you concerned about the two houses with tunnels from Mexico to the US with handrails and lighting and cement sides, roof and floor that was just found, but had been there for two decades? At least it was ADA Compliant?We harass our own people yet let things like this go by our so-called enforcement agencies. Government's job as outlined in the Constitution is to protect our people. |
home | site map | contact us |