Posts Tagged ‘1st amendment’

Black Lives Matter has become O’Brian & Madred I refuse to submit

Posted: June 4, 2020 by datechguy in culture, News/opinion, personal
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“You pay me tribute, by which you become my slaves. I have, therefore, a right to order you as think proper.”

The Dey of Algiers to Capt William Bainbridge USS George Washington 1800

We have reached the point where people are being fired for stating that all lives matter (which is true) vs “black lives matter” (which is true because they are a subset of all lives)

We have also reached a point where business’ that I go to have found the need to state very emphatically that “black lives matter” out of fear that their will be looted or vandalized while not daring to state publicly “all lives matter” for fear that they will be punished for it.

To be unable to express the point that all lives matter, which is a central theme of Christianity, because of either financial property or physical retribution is oppression and to submit this is to become a slave to fear.

Furthermore more once you give in on this there will be a new demand and then a new one and then a new one, or as the Dey of Algiers told William Bainbridge when he balked at running an errand with his warship for him after delivering American tribute , a payoff to keep US ships from being attacked he said: “You pay me tribute, by which you become my slaves. I have, therefore, a right to order you as think proper.”

We are told by the left, by the media but the democrat that if we only submit we will not be hounded or fired or have our business looted or smashed.

This is unacceptable to me. What would my father who fought in world war 2. Who defended his business when thugs and/or officials demanded tribute from him over the years so I could have the life I do, and suffered for it, say if I agreed to this demand? What example will I be giving my sons to pass on to their children if I gave in?

So knowing the cost and the risks let me say this on this public platform:

I refuse to submit.

There are four fingers, there are four lights

All Lives Matter

Free Speech / Expression explained again

Posted: January 6, 2020 by datechguy in culture, News/opinion
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It’s rather depressing that in 2020 this has to be explained once again so let’s explain freedom one more time:

As anyone who reads this site knows, I am a Fiscal & Social Conservative who follows the Catholic faith. I maintain that society, individuals, our children, our culture our county and the world would be best served if the principles of the Catholic faith and fiscal & social Conservatism were advanced and put into practice both legally and culturally. I furthermore reserve the right not only to act on these beliefs but to make my best case in public for said beliefs in the hopes of convincing others and advancing them both legally and culturally because I’m convinced that people individually and society as a whole will reap the benefits of these beliefs.

I think this would be better for the young, the old, the rich the poor, the black, the white, the gay, the straight, the christian, the Muslim, the jew, the Hindu the atheist and the agnostic and everyone else.

Furthermore I expect to be able to publicly practice these beliefs without fear of arrest by the state or danger of assault, vandalism to my property, injury or threat of violence to myself or my family.

Now here is the flip side.

The number of people in the US who share ALL of my beliefs and opinions are likely very small, quite a few I might even say a majority of share some of them and there are plenty who share few or none of them.

Some instead of believing in conservatism they believe in liberalism, instead of holding a conservative Catholic faith they are liberal Catholics or Protestant, or, Jewish, or Muslim or Hindu or of some other religion or no religion at all. Some are social liberal some are Marxists, or socialists or communists or believers in some other form of government or even haven’t made up their minds yet. Some have opinions & beliefs that I consider nonsense, some have opinions and beliefs that I think are dangerous and some have opinions or beliefs that I consider downright evil.

However as Americans they not only have the same right to hold those beliefs as I have mine but they have the same right as I have to

  • Practice those beliefs/opinions publicly
  • Argue for those beliefs/opinions publicly in person, in print or online
  • Attempt to persuade others that they should follow those beliefs/opinions
  • Attempt to elect people who will advance those beliefs
  • Or choose not to do any of the above

And they should have the expectation of being able to do these things without a threat of bodily harm, or murder, or vandalism to their property or threat of arrest for holding or expressing these beliefs.

That’s how free speech works, everyone has the right (but not the obligation) to make their best case for whatever they wish and let the better argument take the day until people decide differently.

Put simply people have the right to be wrong. Until you acknowledge that freedom for others than frankly you don’t deserve freedom yourself and if you intend to take this freedom away from me and mine, that’s a cause worth fighting for.

The final litmus test for the media

Posted: March 27, 2011 by datechguy in media, opinion/news
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One of the signs of an abusive relationship is the willingness of the person on the recipient end to take it until they reach a breaking point.

For the media and the Obama administration this should be it.

Reporter Scott Powers was the designated “pool reporter” for the vice president’s Wednesday visit to the massive Winter Park, Fla., home of developer and philanthropist Alan Ginsburg. The veep hadn’t arrived yet but most of the 150 guests (minimum $500 donation) had. They were busy noshing on caprese crostini with oven-dried mozzarella and basil, rosemary flatbread with grapes honey and gorgonzola cheese and bacon deviled eggs, before a lunch of grilled chicken Caesar and garden vegetable wraps.

Not so for Powers. A “low-level staffer” put Powers in a storage closet and then stood guard outside the door, Powers told the DRUDGE REPORT. “When I’d stick my head out, they’d say, ‘Not yet. We’ll let you know when you can come out.'”

It was first reported by PJ Tattler (at least that’s where I first saw it) but they had not confirmed it at the time and put it up with a caveat. Drudge confirmed and the London Daily Mail is on it:

The White House website proudly says ‘President Obama is committed to creating the most open and accessible administration in American history.’

But try telling Vice President Joe Biden’s staff that, after they held a local reporter in a closet for hours after he was invited to cover a Florida political fundraiser because they did not want him talking with the guests.

During the last election the press pool was so fawning of candidate Obama as to defy belief. Their promises of open access during this administration has proven empty. If the mainstream media doesn’t treat the locking up of one of their own as it is, an affront to the first amendment and freedom of the press and act accordingly then they are simply abused spouses whose obsessive hatred of all things conservative (particularly all things Palin and Bachmann) is so great that they will pay any price to keep them down.

I predict that they will use the e-mailed apology from Biden’s office to ignore or dismiss it as a “news you can’t use” segment making themselves just an unsponsored version of media matters. It would be really good for the country and the constitution if they prove me wrong.

Just because you have the right to do something…

Posted: September 6, 2010 by datechguy in internet/free speech
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…that doesn’t mean it’s either smart or honorable.

This strikes me as troubling. Not because Petraeus is wrong; on the contrary, I think he is probably right. Already, mobs in Pakistan have demonstrated against the planned Koran burning by, among other things, burning American flags. History, e.g. the homicidal response to the Danish cartoons and the false report, circulated by the American press, that U.S. soldiers had flushed a Koran down a toilet at Guantanamo Bay, suggest that Petraeus’ fears are well founded.

Moreover, I personally am not in favor of burning Korans. My advice to the Florida church would be, don’t do it.

Still, is it not highly problematic when a senior military officer warns American citizens against exercising their undoubted First Amendment rights? This situation is different from the Koran-down-the-toilet story. We criticized news outlets at the time for endangering American troops, but that was mostly because the story was false. Presumably we can all agree that newspapers and magazines should not circulate false reports that endanger our troops. But what about accurate stories of Americans exercising their constitutional right to criticize Islam by burning Korans?

In one respect this is similar to the ground zero mega mosque. In both cases the people in question have a legal right to do what they intend. It both cases it is not only insensitive but provocative.

In the end we are going to have to fight to defend these people’s right to be glory seeking idiots. The provocation of course doesn’t make any violence by those offended justified, in fact it will simply prove their barbarity and insecurity

Update: Saw the preacher on the air declare this as a statement against Sharia law and for the 1st amendment, that’s a pretty good and strong argument but this still doesn’t sit right with me.

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