The Kind-Hearted Smart Aleck

As I've long said, regardless of how much we don't want to believe it, freedom is not absolute. Whether it be our freedom to say what's on our mind or to own a firearm, there are certain guidelines to each and every "freedom." Having said that, I think law enforcement went too far in arresting Green Bay Packers wide receiver Trevor Davis after he made a bomb joke at Los Angeles International Airport the other day. At the ticket counter, Davis, who was with his girlfriend, was asked if he "was carrying any aerosol cans, knives, weapons or explosives." He then turned to his girlfriend and sarcastically asked if she remembered to pack the explosives. Look, should Davis have been detained and questioned? Yes. But should the guy have been arrested? Give me a break... First off, I've flown hundreds of times and have never been asked if I was carrying any aerosol cans, knives, weapons or explosives. If I were to be asked such a ridiculous question, chan...

As long-time readers should know, I'm not a fan of the conservative right, and this is especially the case of hyperbole-obsessed right-wing media personalities. Regular readers should also know I've long stood by our Constitutional right to freedom of speech, but even so, believe freedom of speech doesn't mean freedom from consequence. This brings me to the recent such case involving Fox News personality Laura Ingraham, who has come under fire for posting this tweet about Parkland survivor and activist David Hogg: "David Hogg Rejected By Four Colleges Which He Applied and whines about it. (Dinged by UCLA with a 4.1 GPA...totally predictable given acceptance rates.) https://www.dailywire.com/news/28770/gun-rights-provocateur-david-hogg-rejected-four-joseph-curl" Mr. Hogg responded by calling on Ingraham's advertisers to cut ties with her show. Many have done so, which has prompted Ms. Ingraham to apologize via Twitter and take what she has termed a ...

It's a tad surreal to be involved in comedy during this time in our history. Comedians have, throughout history, consistently tried pushing the envelope as far as appropriateness goes. In yesteryear, if a joke went too far, they'd remove it from their routine, try something else, and the earth would continue to move. That was before the advent of the Internet and social media, however. As times has progressed, so too has the call for increased sensitivities to all demographics. Nowadays, if a joke goes too far, social media sites like Twitter attempt to temporarily stop the world as they try and put the comedian out of business. There's always been a fine line for comedians to walk down, but that line has progressively become longer and narrower, making it ever more difficult to keep one's balance. So where do we draw the line? This isn't just limited to comedians. Is there a similar balancing act politically-correct free speech supporters can walk to help preserv...

Republican Utah Governor Gary Herbert recently signed a bill declaring that pornography is creating a public health crisis. Republican State Senator Todd Weiler, the sponsor of the measure, then appeared on the conservative Family Research Council's program, Washington Watch , when he said this: "I said to McDonald's, 'You're a family restaurant and you market to children, why would you want to be a purveyor of pornography?' You know, the librarians will put their hands over their hearts and talk about the First Amendment and yet if these libraries and these McDonald's were giving cigarettes to our children, we'd all be up in arms, we'd be picketing them. But somehow it's okay if they deliver pornography to them. That's what I think is often lost in the First Amendment discussion, because someone may have the First Amendment right, according to the U.S. Supreme Court, to view pornography, but what about my First Amendment right to not view...

I haven't handed out any douche-of-the-day or douche-of-the-week awards in a while, but Missouri state Representative Rick Brattin's recent actions helped snap that severe drought. Last week in the Missouri House, Republican state Representative Rick Brattin decided to propose a bill which would strip scholarships from any athlete who "calls, incites, supports or participates in any strike." The proposal also mandated colleges and universities to fine any coach who encouraged or enabled student-athletes' protests. While Representative Numnutz, I mean Representative Brattin, wasn't available for comment, co-sponsor Representative Kurt Bahr (tweedledum) was, and went on to say the following: "[The aim is to show that] the response that they've had (the University of Missouri) has not been as strong as the Legislature would like, and that we, the General Assembly, expect the leadership of this state institution to actually lead and now allow the st...

Many Christian conservatives and even atheist liberals complain that progressives like myself are inconsistent when it comes to our views and defenses of religion. They often times say, "You guys have a double-standard, where you openly mock and criticize Christianity, but oddly defend Islam. Look at how Muslim countries treat women!" I, for one, am not a big fan of organized religion. I was raised in a Christian household, regularly attended a nondenominational church with my mother and brother growing up, yet reached a point in my teenage years where I could no longer espouse myself to the typically sexist, anti-LGBT, anti-progressive rhetoric. The pastor's sermons started sounding progressively more like a Rush Limbaugh rant and it turned me off from the Christian faith, and honestly, organized religion altogether. Through my high school years, college, and even after, I found myself still oddly fascinated by the concept of religion. I read books about: Christianity...

I stumbled across an article written by First Amendment Coalition Executive Director, Peter Scheer, today, and felt the need to respond. The article's entitled, "College Students Need Lessons in Tolerance and Free Speech." I'll share the opening two and final full paragraphs of the article, because I think they provide a clear picture of what Mr. Scheer is trying to express. "There's nothing like the massacre of 129 Parisian civilians at the hands of jihadi sociopaths, utterly convinced that their barbarism manifests the will of God, to provide some perspective on the recent whining of students at a number of America's most elite colleges and universities. For the past few weeks, students across the country -- at Yale University in Connecticut, Amherst College in Massachusetts, New Hampshire's Dartmouth College, the University of Missouri, and southern California colleges Claremont McKenna and Occidental -- have been testing the limits of academ...

After receiving some criticism from both the left and the right regarding his anti-Muslim comments, Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson went on the Fox News show, Hannity , to try and elaborate on his previous statements. On the program, Carson and host Sean Hannity engaged in the following back-and-forth: Sean Hannity: "Was that what you were thinking in your mind when you were answering the question, in other words, the way Muslim theocracies currently operate?" Ben Carson: "That's correct. I mean, they currently do not tend to operate the same way that our system does. Now, if someone has a Muslim background and they're willing to reject those tenets and to accept the way of life that we have, and clearly will swear to place our Constitution above their religion, then, of course, they will be considered infidels and heretics, but at least I would then be quite willing to support them." Hannity: "All right, so what I hear in your statem...

After seeing the results from a recent Public Policy Polling (PPP) poll of Republican primary voters, I have to now beg the question, "What exactly does the Constitution mean to many self-described 'Constitutional' conservatives?" According to this national poll, 57% of these voters support "establishing Christianity as the national religion," even though the First Amendment of the Constitution plainly states that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion." How does that work exactly? Coyote Blitzer: "So, how would you describe yourself politically? Would you say you're a conservative, a liberal, a moderate?" Anthony Baloney: "I'm a Constitutional conservative through and through, like most of my GOP and Tea Party brethren." Blitzer: "But it says here that you would support a measure making Christianity the national religion of this country; is that true?" Baloney: "Ye...

A church facing a lawsuit from former members whom have accused church officials of covering up sex abuse allegations is thinking about using the First Amendment as its defense. Sovereign Grace Ministries saw a former member indicted this past December on charges that he molested multiple boys in the 1980s, and is now dealing with the very real possibility that multiple members covered up these alleged acts. Seeming to hint that the church was going to lean on the First Amendment as the members' defense, University of Virginia law professor Douglas Laycock commented on the matter with the following: "To the extent that there's a First Amendment issue they're talking about, it is not about sexual abuse as a First Amendment right. It is about the church deciding for itself how to respond to claims of misconduct among its members." So, let me get this straight. Many members of the church don't believe in the separation of church and state, yet when it com...

Have you heard or seen this? Someone adamantly declaring the following - "I'm not a Republican. I'm not a Democrat. I'm an American and I want my country back!"? This makes me laugh, because I'd say a good 9 out of 10 people who say this are indeed either a Republican or a Democrat. When President George W. Bush was in office, what did many Democrats say? "We want our country back!" Now that Barack Obama is president, what are Republicans saying? "We want our country back!" Indeed. What these people today are really saying is, "President Barack Obama and the Democrats have destroyed this country! This isn't the America our Founding Fathers wanted. I'm voting for Republican Mitt Romney to take my country back!" When a Republican is next in office, Democrats will utter similar words and the cycle shall continue. It's all pretty silly, misleading and hyperbolic. What irks me slightly is the part about being an ...

An article entitled "Obama Caves to Romney Embraces Free Speech for Critics of Islam" was recently published on the conservative website The Daily Caller .  During his speech with CBS's Steve Kroft, Obama said, “We believe in the First Amendment. It is one of the hallmarks of our Constitution that I’m sworn to uphold, and so we are always going to uphold the rights for individuals to speak their mind." The Daily Caller makes the claim that Obama caved to Romney and free speech due the message the U.S. Embassy in Cairo released before the attacks two days ago. The message read: “The United States Embassy in Cairo condemns the continuing efforts by misguided individuals to hurt the religious feelings of Muslims — as we condemn efforts to offend believers of all religions." For the record, President Obama didn't say that and didn't even give the approval to say that. So, first of all - how and when was it that he was critical of First Amendment rig...

I've read many comments from conservative Republican politicians and commentators whom suggested that all Mitt Romney was doing Tuesday night when he falsely claimed that President Barack Obama sympathized with the attackers in Egypt and Libya was exercise his First Amendment rights - freedom of speech. He may have been freely able to exercise that right and spew those words from his mouth on Tuesday night, but just as well, people have the right to criticize said words. I'd like to exercise my First Amendment rights and speak what's on my mind about Romney's false claims, but will refrain from doing so, because I know better. It's quite sad that a man running for president lacks that same maturity and will-power.

I just read a ranting blog from a person whom stated that while it was our first amendment right to express our opinions and views, if we complained at all regarding our country or our way of life, then we could celebrate another right that's allowed in this country and leave. How I just love, I mean, loathe that philosophy, because well, it makes no sense to me. So, let me get this straight, we should all celebrate our first amendment rights of free speech, but if we disagree with anything this person has to say, we should leave the country and live elsewhere? Hmm. What is the point of having free speech if we're not allowed to disagree? It's not free then, is it? It'd definitely come at a price! If a person is a strong advocate of the death penalty, while I may strongly disagree with their opinion, I'm not going to say, "You know, you can just leave!" That's their opinion and they have every right to express that. If they're Jewish or Muslim ...