Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Teen sues over Confederate flag prom dress

The_Dunedan · 12-30-2004, 08:13 PM

This is nuts. The Supremes have already ruled that students retain their 1A rights at school, including the rights regarding political speech.

"You can't yell fire in a theatre!"
Sure you can, if there's a fire. However, if you yell "Fire!" falsely, this is called Giving False Alarm and is a crime. You are perfectly free to yell "Fire!" Your fellow patrons, the manager, the owner, and anyone else affected are also free to sue you blind if you're lying.

"You can't wear/say things that incite violence!"
This is equally nutso. You're basically saying that, upon sight of this hideous dress, people would spontaneously loose control of themselves and start either attacking minority students or start attacking this girl. That's not a CSA-flag problem, that's a self-control problem, and should be dealt with as such. This is the same arguement Hoplophobes use: apparently my guns are going to make me slaughter my neighbors.....any day now....
This arguement also assumes that such laws are even Constitutional. The 1A begins with "Congress shall make no law..." not "Congress shall make no law unless someone is offended."

"KKK...Nazis....slavery...EVIL WHITE SLAVEOWNING RACIST MOTHERFUCKERS!!!"
Sorry, but no. The WBtS was primarily a states-rights issue and ( initially ) had very little to do with slavery. Lincoln was desperate to preserve the Union so that Northern politicans and corporations could keep bilking Southron citizens through excessive tarrifs and mercantilist trade policies. The Emancipation Proclamation only freed slaves in states which had already seceeded: neutral or Union states were exempt.
If some fucktards in the KKK have appropriated the Confederate Battle Ensign, this does not make them correct; it makes them fucktards. It does nothing to change the fact that to many Southrons, the CBE and the Bonnie Blue Flag are symbols of states' rights and resistance to tyranny. The somewhat hackneyed slogan "Heritage, Not Hate" portrays this quite nicely.
Let's not forget that the largest slave-importing port in the US prior to 1814 was Boston, the largest slaveowner in the US was black ( lived outside of New Orleans ) and that U. S. Grant only freed his slaves in 1867, while R. E. Lee never owned slaves and condemned slavery as an "Abominable evil."

However, the dress was truly hideous.

12-30-2004, 08:13 PM	#107 (permalink)
The_Dunedan Junkie	This is nuts. The Supremes have already ruled that students retain their 1A rights at school, including the rights regarding political speech. "You can't yell fire in a theatre!" Sure you can, if there's a fire. However, if you yell "Fire!" falsely, this is called Giving False Alarm and is a crime. You are perfectly free to yell "Fire!" Your fellow patrons, the manager, the owner, and anyone else affected are also free to sue you blind if you're lying. "You can't wear/say things that incite violence!" This is equally nutso. You're basically saying that, upon sight of this hideous dress, people would spontaneously loose control of themselves and start either attacking minority students or start attacking this girl. That's not a CSA-flag problem, that's a self-control problem, and should be dealt with as such. This is the same arguement Hoplophobes use: apparently my guns are going to make me slaughter my neighbors.....any day now.... This arguement also assumes that such laws are even Constitutional. The 1A begins with "Congress shall make no law..." not "Congress shall make no law unless someone is offended." "KKK...Nazis....slavery...EVIL WHITE SLAVEOWNING RACIST MOTHERFUCKERS!!!" Sorry, but no. The WBtS was primarily a states-rights issue and ( initially ) had very little to do with slavery. Lincoln was desperate to preserve the Union so that Northern politicans and corporations could keep bilking Southron citizens through excessive tarrifs and mercantilist trade policies. The Emancipation Proclamation only freed slaves in states which had already seceeded: neutral or Union states were exempt. If some fucktards in the KKK have appropriated the Confederate Battle Ensign, this does not make them correct; it makes them fucktards. It does nothing to change the fact that to many Southrons, the CBE and the Bonnie Blue Flag are symbols of states' rights and resistance to tyranny. The somewhat hackneyed slogan "Heritage, Not Hate" portrays this quite nicely. Let's not forget that the largest slave-importing port in the US prior to 1814 was Boston, the largest slaveowner in the US was black ( lived outside of New Orleans ) and that U. S. Grant only freed his slaves in 1867, while R. E. Lee never owned slaves and condemned slavery as an "Abominable evil." However, the dress was truly hideous.