Oct. 10, 2010
Schieffer on Free Speech and Military Funerals
Asks, If One Cannot Shout "Fire" in Crowded Theater, Must Harassment of the Grieving to Promote a Cause Be Allowed?
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Westboro Baptist Church members Gabriel and Grace Phelps-Roper of Topeka, Kan., protest at the funeral of Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew A. Snyder in Westminster, Md., in this March 2006 file photo. (AP)
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Play CBS Video Video Schieffer Speaks Against Military Funeral Protests Bob Schieffer comments on our right to freedom of speech by bringing attention to a group which protests military funerals for their belief that soldiers are dying because God is punishing America for tolerating homosexuality.
Freedom of speech is our most important freedom. Without it we could not defend the others.
But as I watched the lawyer for those Kansas protestors argue before the Supreme Court that her group had a right to hold protests at the funerals of American soldiers, I was reminded that no freedom is possible without some limit.
The courts decided long ago that free speech does not allow someone to falsely shout "fire" in a crowded theater.
This group believes that soldiers are dying because God is punishing America for tolerating gays.
So, they argue they have the right to show up at any soldier's funeral and shout and wave disgraceful signs, as long as they stay in a public area.
I understand that in a free society even a group as vile as the Nazis has the right to publicize its cause.
I don't like it, but I recognize that even flag burning is a form of legal political expression.
But does the First Amendment give anyone the right to open the heart of a dead soldier's parent and invade that person's privacy and grief with hateful noise and sights?
I'm no lawyer, but I know enough about our constitution to know it is based on the premise of fairness.
What these people are doing is not just unfair, it is wrong.
If we can bar political parties from campaigning at polling places, surely there is a way to stop those who wish, for their own selfish purpose, to harass those who have given their children in the cause of freedom.
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Add a Comment See all 102 Comments
- Congratulations! You're exactly wrong. Which only goes to show that even the most venerable are sometimes foolish and silly. "No freedom is possible without some limit."??! What does that mean? What these people are doing is reprehensible, but they are not wrong for doing it in our society. "The courts decided long ago that free speech does not allow someone to falsely shout "fire" in a crowded theater." You do realize, Bob Schieffer, that this most famous ruling by O.W. Holmes from which the quote emmanates was overturned with an equally famous question, "What if the theatre owner wanted the patrons to shout fire?" Please check your bias at the door and your history books before engaging the typewriter.
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- No freedom is possible without some limit example: You are free to be stupid and steal from your neighbor but you better expect to pay for the theft by going to jail and/or a civil lawsuit complete with a find of "guilty" and payment for damages. Having lived in Kansas in the late 70s and early 80s and reading a story in the Topeka Journal that these "people" tied up a state government office's phone line so that the state was unable to do business over the phone (if memory serves me correctly) these people should have been stopped long ago. I can tell you the vast majority of people in Kansas have no love for these people.
- Ms_enza...please go see a movie a scream "fire". Better yet...yell "bomb". See if your 1st ammendment rights are protected. Also recheck YOUR facts on that ruling and you will find you are wrong. Reckless Endangerment is against the law. But hey, you were right with one sentence! Keep working at it... :)
- The Bible contains a passage that covers homosexuality. It also says "Judge not lest ye be judged". The maggots from the Foxborough Church evidently not read this part. Their day will come.!!!
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- This comes from not reading what is there. plane. This flight attendant from NC was only on ONE plane....the one the passengers brought down...in Pennslyvania. Sorry you are displeased. Wonder why?
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- This church is in NO way Biblical. Hopefully anyone, Christian or not, can see that. In fact, the Bible teaches that God's judgment will come upon the churches before it comes upon the world. This is why ministries such as Family Radio rightly teach that God's judgment is next year. This is one of THE proofs. They have twisted the Bible to practice the most egregious hatred toward others imaginable in their self-righteousness. This is not the humility of Christ that recognizes they do not deserve eternal life, but death for their own sins. May 21 will prove that they did not follow the Bible if they do not become saved themselves! Nobody should desire or delight in the death of others.
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- OK, but what about the ninth amendment. Does the contents of the first amendment, (because they are listed first?) trump the contents of the ninth amendment? The ninth amendment, I read, has to do with rights to privacy. Don't you think this rights to privacy amendment is broad enough to include privacy at the funeral?
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- Here here! Are gays any more important in our society than straight people? They have separate rules for anti-gay attacks, to be anti gay is to be a racist, or equal to one? Protesting at a funeral for military personal killed in action is a disgrace and shows how far these nuts are willing to go for attention. The are low life, and have no compassion for anybody but themselves.
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- Have you seen some interviews with these protesters? I've seen more tact and decorum from angry skin heads.
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- The only reason any of the violent TV watching coach potato Americans care about this is that it disrespects the military. They are on a godly pedestal like big corporations in the minds of most Americans: no matter how much graft, corruption and violent criminal activity these organizations do, it is OK. Try standing on a freeway overpass with a "No War" sign and "War is Corporate Terrorism" sign and see what happens.
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- I've been trying to think of a way to bring up that point, but couldn't quite figure out how to approach it ... I mean like if (when) the Supreme Court decides to uphold the decision of the lower court to allow the dad to recover damages from the Phelps', it'll be the right ruling according to most people in that there's practically no real chilling to free speech and it minimizes the harm to society. Maybe the only dissenter might be somebody like J. Thomas. That being said, the Supreme Court isn't always forward-looking, and their decisions don't always stand the test of time. Just look at Plessy v. Ferguson ... separate but equal was a 7 to 1 decision that lasted 60 years until it finally got overturned. The part of this case I'm going to be watching closely is whether the court will say anything about the scenario skeezix06 brought up of the Westboros possibly now instead targeting the funerals of gays. Like you would think that if people were outraged that the families of fallen soldiers have had to endure the torment of the Phelps' family, that people would be as equally outraged that any family would have to endure the torment of the Phelps' family. But ... :(
- If you do any research into this group, you will find that they don't find anything wrong with what they are doing. They don't hate soldiers and they are not trying to be mean; they have just misunderstood something from the bible and are following a maniacal leader (who has a grudge against gays and establishment)and he feeds their delusions. They actually feel they are just doing what the Bible says they must do. They will stop doing this when a sniper starts following them around.
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- Bob Schieffer is he best. When he speaks about anything or interviews someone; you always know he has done his homework and is versed on the topic. He has a way of speaking and asking questions that really helps deliver the truth. I can sing his praises over and over but anyone who watches Bob and Face the Nation regularly knows what I mean. We are so lucky to have Bob Scheiffer to watch every week. I hope he is around for years to come.
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