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CONSERVATIVES. Can we talk about the First Amendment please?
Lesson #1. It applies to government entities, NOT private people or corporations. If I don’t like what you say, I can kick you out of my store or refuse to publish whatever garbage opinion you have. 1/8
Lesson #1. It applies to government entities, NOT private people or corporations. If I don’t like what you say, I can kick you out of my store or refuse to publish whatever garbage opinion you have. 1/8
Lesson #2. If a company can’t draw the line at refusing to publish what they consider to be incitement to seditious riot, then they have no freedom either. You would think the people who want bakers to be able to refuse to bake cakes for gay people would understand that. 2/8
(I’m only using that example to draw an analogy, not to imply that bakers should be able to discriminate. The law around discrimination based on sexual orientation applies to anyone engaged in interstate commerce; the first amendment does not). 3/8
Lesson #3. If the government forced a private company to publish particular govovernment speech (like the president’s), that would b something they do in like, I don’t know... China. 4/8
Lesson #4. No, Twitter has not “become the public square.” It doesn’t work like that. See Lesson #3. If u want to start your own company & shout racist, fascist garbage on it, and u want to advocate overthrowing the government on it, go right ahead. No one is stopping you. 5/8
(But if you act on that shit, expect to get arrested. Also, if you advocate overthrowing the government and then you take a couple steps toward that, be prepared to get arrested for conspiracy to commit treason.) 6/8
Lesson # 5. While the First Amendment’s bar on infrigment of free speech doesn’t apply to individuals or corporations, its right of association, and its right of NON-ASSOCIATION, does! 7/8
In other words, you can’t be forced to associate with people you don’t like. For example: people trying to overthrow the government. (Thank you to @ChrisMurphyCT for this last, excellent point)
Okay. I think that’s it. THE END
Okay. I think that’s it. THE END
