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Old 02-15-2005, 07:59 PM   #49 (permalink)
daswig
Banned
 
Location: BFE
Quote:
Originally Posted by filtherton
We have been bamboozled from the get-go. How far does your freedom of speech or assembly go onto private property, or even public property? Do you have the freedom to assemble anywhere you want? Can you say whatever you want whenever you want in a court of law without being made to suffer consequences? My constitution doesn't have a footnote on the bill of rights leading to a gigantor-sized list of exceptions. Yet there are so many exceptions. Where do they all come from? Who decides where the freedom of speech ends? My guess is, with the endorsement of the courts, congress. But wait, doesn't the constitution expressly forbid congress from making laws abridging the freedom of speech or the right to peaceably assemble?
On private property, if you own the property in question, it goes quite a long way. If you don't own the property in question, they can indeed kick your ass off. That's not about the First Amendment, that's about trespass. On public property, there can be restrictions placed upon gatherings for public safety, but content-driven discrimination isn't allowed. This means that if a permit is required, and one group with a popular message is issued a permit, the goverment can't deny the other group with the other, unpopular message a permit for the same venue at a different time based upon the message. That's why the Skokie Nazis could march.

You don't have the freedom to assemble wherever you want. If you have no right to be someplace, you can't assemble there. You can't decide to assemble in my house or on my land if I don't want you here. You can't decide to assemble in the middle of a busy highway to block traffic. But if it's a public forum, you can't be denied equal access with all other groups because your message is unpopular, unless it reaches the point that your message is actually violating the law.

Regarding a court of law: Perjury is a crime, which dates back long before white people came to the Americas. And you can't act in a disruptive manner. For example, screaming at the Judge "I'm going to kill you!" is considered not only improper courtroom etiquette, it's criminal. But if you're acting pro se in your own defense, generally there's a LOT of leeway granted.

Regarding things like perjury, fraud, et cetera being covered by the First Amendment WRT congress making laws about them, it's not the speech that's the issue, it's the intent to steal that's the issue.
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