Sarah on 1st Amendment: So Dumb it Hurts

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-08-2008
Sarah on 1st Amendment: So Dumb it Hurts
133
Fri, 10-31-2008 - 9:15pm
Friday Oct. 31, 2008 13:38 EDT

Sarah Palin speaks on the First Amendment

(updated below - Update II - Update III)


Glenn Greenwald

http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2008/10/31/palin/


Somehow, in Sarah Palin's brain, it's a threat to the First Amendment when newspapers criticize her negative attacks on Barack Obama.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 08-27-2001
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:31pm

< And I don't know what the crusades have to do with colonial America, but even in the 12th century, they weren't being used to promote Christianity. Thanks for playing...NEXT!


>>> I read this to mean that the Crusades were not used to promote Christianity.


Right...the crusades were not missionaries, they were soldiers send to wrest holy sites from infidel hands.





I don't think anyone thought they were missionaries.

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2008
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:32pm
I agree, but then sometimes I get curious about the posts directed back to them and I have to un-ignore just to see what is going on. Just like watching a traffic accident I guess.
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2008
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:34pm

>>> It would be so refreshing if you could just acknowledge that Palin misspoke or misinterpreted the Constitution.

I'm sure that life would be much easier for you if everyone simply agreed with you...alas...

>>> This is such a stretch, it's reflecting badly on you. And though I disagree with you, I see that you do your best to stay well-informed.

Thanks...but I don't think it's a stretch at all. As I said, most people interpret the First Amendment as a broad personal right, not simply a protection from Government legislation. The most frequent "altercations" with "freedom of speech" have not been between legislatures and the public but between the public and the public...and the public asserts it's "fundamental right." For Palin to assert that intimidation from the press can be an infringement on her right to speak is a real assessment of the situation she's experiencing.

>>> It's almost like me sitting here and arguing that under certain circumstances, jobs really has only 3 letters. Or I can just say Biden made a mistake. Seems simpler to me.

I'd love to hear your mathematical argument for that one.

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2008
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:35pm
Thanks.
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2008
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:36pm
A socio-economic institution.
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:45pm
So, you never judge institutions of the socio-economic kind?
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2008
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:48pm

>>> I don't think anyone thought they were missionaries. They tried to convert and subdue non-Christians with force. I guess I wouldn't use the term "promote" Christianity, it was more like a "mandate" to practice Christianity.

There obviously were instances of religious conversions, but the purpose of the crusades was not the promotion of Christianity or the conversion of the Muslims.

>>> Just so we're clear that the Crusades were absolutely an attempt by the Catholic Church to overcome non-Christians.

If by "over come" you mean "kill or convert" then you are mistaken. Richard's treaty with Saladin is evidence of this.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-27-2001
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:48pm
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2008
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:51pm

>>> So, you never judge institutions of the socio-economic kind?

No, I don't think you should "judge" "institutions of the socio-economic kind"...but I think it's appropriate to examine them in their historical context.

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-20-2008
Sun, 11-02-2008 - 5:57pm

>>> I'm sorry, but it's not that I want you to agree with me. It's that I would like for you and Governor Palin to understand the First Amendment which states:

I understand what it state, but you seem intent on ignoring it's real world applications. The next time you see a protester, get a group of friends and confront them...the first thing you'll hear is "right to free speech," and I don't think it's because the protesters have confused you with the US Congress.

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