General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: An incident at my gym today... [View all]DeschutesRiver
(2,354 posts)that was somehow interfering with this old guy's desire to express himself?
No. His freaking 1st amendment right to freedom of speech is the right to express ideas and beliefs, etc, free of GOVERNMENT RESTRICTION.
So yes, he has "freedom of speech" and no, your wearing an Obama t-shirt can not possibly interfere with his freedom of speech since there is no government action involved. I'd be wearing my Obama shirt to the gym every day, and the next time he opened his mouth, I'd have a handout ready for him that explains free speech - I'd pull it together at about an 8th grade reading/comprehension level. I'd tell him I'd be glad to school him on anything else he missed out on learning during his education process over the years (because he is really old enough to freaking know this stuff - if he is going to quote the constitution, get it right).
There is simply a wave of people who seem to believe that the 1st amendment is their right to shut down ordinary people from expressing their views, if they find them unpleasant or contrary to their beliefs. And it has nothing to do with that at all.