We know that free speech is not an absolute right. There are some limits that even the most tolerant societies have imposed in order to (say) protect children. In the US, the limits to what adults can say is usually judged according to the landmark US Supreme Court decision in the 1969 case of Brandenburg v. Ohio. [Read more…]
Three Republican state officials have unanimously ruled that Barack Obama’s name will be on the ballot in Kansas in November after all, frustrating birthers who had been hoping for a victory. [Read more…]
The site Politico had a long piece on the disarray and infighting within the Romney campaign. This is just one of a slew of articles in a similar vein as can be seen here, here, and here. [Read more…]
So now a key figure in Iran’s Islamic hierarchy has said that the reason that the film Innocence of Muslims was even produced was because Ayatollah Khomeini’s order to execute novelist Salman Rushdie was never carried out, thus emboldening critics of Islam. Yes, he seems to feel that the fear of summary execution is a worthy threat to hold over anyone who even thinks of offending his sensibilities. [Read more…]
He delivers a good rant on 9/11 commemorations, god, religion, money, and the war on terror. [Read more…]
So I decided that I owed it to myself to watch the infamous trailer of the film that has caused all this trouble around the world. From news reports, I expected it to be poorly done but I had no idea that it would be such absolute dreck. [Read more…]
There is mixed news on the birther front. On the one hand, an event that was heralded as being the largest birther gathering to date to be held on September 22 has been cancelled due to poor ticket sales. [Read more…]
Jonathan Turley points to a disturbing sign that the Obama administration is softening its defense of free speech rights in the wake of the backlash over the Mohammed film. He quotes reports that say that the Justice Department has asked YouTube to ‘review’ the film. [Read more…]
There is a palpable sign of panic within the Republican party that Mitt Romney is heading for defeat in the election. The signs are everywhere as people start preemptively assigning blame as they jockey to take control of the direction of the party when it happens. [Read more…]