Snyder v. Phelps: Will Misguided Patriotism Destroy Free Speech?

[redcliffsw]

Snyder v. Phelps:  Will Misguided Patriotism Destroy Free Speech?

http://www.rutherford.org/articles_db/commentary.asp?record_id=665

[Varmit]

I understand what the author is saying but at the same time it makes me mad.  I get so sick of hearing about how we have to defend free speech for people like the phelps, black panthers, the klan, neo-nazis, radical muslims, gays, and every other degenerate out there, but God forbid someone actually try and bring some Truth into this world.  http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/  Because as we all know we can't have those awful Christians spewing their "hate speech" all over the place (please note the extereme amount of sarcasm). 

I mean honestly, lets just forget the fact that it was CHRISTIANS that orginally founded this nation.  And for those of you who time and again tout the line of Seperation of Church and State I challenge you to find that in the Constitution!  Guess what...you won't.  It reads .."Freedom OF religion." not freedom from religion.  And for those of you who say that this country was founded in the name of all religions...you're wrong.  Read the Mayflower Compact...

"IN THE name of God, Amen.

We whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign Lord, King James, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland king, defender of the faith, etc., having undertaken, for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith, and honor of our king and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the Northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents solemnly and mutually in the presence of God, and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience.

In witness whereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape-Cod the 11 of November, in the year of the reign of our sovereign lord, King James, of England, France, and Ireland the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth. Anno Domine 1620."

Funny thing...I don't see even one mention of or use of the words "all religions", "multiple religions", "religion has no place in gov't" etc.  Huh...wonder why that is?

I know that some who read this will say things like, "America wasn't really 'founded' until after the Revolutionary War so the ideals outlined in the Compact don't apply"...really?...really?  Do you think Edmund Burke would agree with that..

"There is but one law for all, namely, that law which governs all law, the law of our Creator."

..or Patrick Henry (1736-1799), five-time Governor of Virginia, whose "Give me liberty or give me death" speech has made him immortal, said: "It cannot be emphasized too strongly, nor too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. . . ."

And did you ever stop to think why it is that Presidents, Congressmen, and countless others take their Oath of Office on the BIBLE?

Sorry to get off topic, but things like this tick me off to no end.

[Roma Jean Turner]

Good to be reminded of that again Varmint.

[Maude]

Maxine and I have watched as the Phelps use every law there is to keep doing what they do. I feel sorry for the people that live in Topeka, KS and have to live with them. We think there is a boundary when is comes to our military women and men that have died to keep us all free as to what the Phelps should beable to say and do. We have heard that old man Phelps has alzheimers and is at the stage of dying. Good riddance.  Of course you all know they get their money from over seas (Saudia Arabia) because no american in their right mind would use them here. 
It is about time we had a court  that would have the spine to use the law to stop them. 
That is all we have to say on the subject. 
Maude and Maxine

[the shadow]

Very well said Maude and Maxine. It is good to see someone with some decency and integrity speaking out on the forum. The Phelps' Church is only a Church by name. I know of no other Church that stoops to disgracing and dishonoring our military brothers and sisters.

[twirldoggy]

Here's to the heroes who do or die.

[Warph]

I understand what the author is saying but at the same time it makes me mad.  I get so sick of hearing about how we have to defend free speech for people like the phelps, black panthers, the klan, neo-nazis, radical muslims, gays, and every other degenerate out there, but God forbid someone actually try and bring some Truth into this world.  http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/  Because as we all know we can't have those awful Christians spewing their "hate speech" all over the place (please note the extereme amount of sarcasm). 

I mean honestly, lets just forget the fact that it was CHRISTIANS that orginally founded this nation.  And for those of you who time and again tout the line of Seperation of Church and State I challenge you to find that in the Constitution!  Guess what...you won't.  It reads .."Freedom OF religion." not freedom from religion.  And for those of you who say that this country was founded in the name of all religions...you're wrong.  Read the Mayflower Compact...

"IN THE name of God, Amen.

We whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign Lord, King James, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France and Ireland king, defender of the faith, etc., having undertaken, for the glory of God, and advancement of the Christian faith, and honor of our king and country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the Northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents solemnly and mutually in the presence of God, and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic, for our better ordering and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony, unto which we promise all due submission and obedience.

In witness whereof we have hereunder subscribed our names at Cape-Cod the 11 of November, in the year of the reign of our sovereign lord, King James, of England, France, and Ireland the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth. Anno Domine 1620."

Funny thing...I don't see even one mention of or use of the words "all religions", "multiple religions", "religion has no place in gov't" etc.  Huh...wonder why that is?

I know that some who read this will say things like, "America wasn't really 'founded' until after the Revolutionary War so the ideals outlined in the Compact don't apply"...really?...really?  Do you think Edmund Burke would agree with that..

"There is but one law for all, namely, that law which governs all law, the law of our Creator."

..or Patrick Henry (1736-1799), five-time Governor of Virginia, whose "Give me liberty or give me death" speech has made him immortal, said: "It cannot be emphasized too strongly, nor too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. . . ."

And did you ever stop to think why it is that Presidents, Congressmen, and countless others take their Oath of Office on the BIBLE?

Sorry to get off topic, but things like this tick me off to no end.

You should be ticked, Varmit... don't blame you.  Again, this is off topic, but try a little PC on for size:


Political Correctness Is Cultural Marxism
By Brannon Howse

Political Correctness, which is Cultural Marxism, pagan spirituality, and what Brannon calls One World Spirituality. 
Many of those who follow One-World Spirituality and pagan spirituality are committed to the economic policies of socialism, and the economic system that is based not only on the re-distribution of wealth but on the confiscation of private property as well. The author of the Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx called for a powerful central government, a punitive progressive income tax system, the merging of education with industrial production, the elimination of a free press, and much more. Sadly, Marxism is alive and well in America , but this destructive worldview has been hidden from most Americans under terms that mask the reality of what is going on. 

When you hear "political correctness," what comes to mind?  Informed, discerning, and insightful individuals immediately think of such PC words as tolerance, diversity, multiculturalism, and feminism. But what do these words really mean?

Tolerance means that one person never expresses a judgment about someone else's ideas, beliefs, and values from a worldview of absolute truth. Tolerance demands that you not only accept the other worldview but that you value their worldview-unless, of course, their worldview is Biblical Christianity. Tolerance is very intolerant of Bible-minded Christians.

Diversity or sensitivity training is about the normalization of the homosexual lifestyle.

Multiculturalism is not the study of many cultures but the criticism of the Western Culture and its founding worldview of Christianity. Multiculturalism also desires to destroy patriotism.

Feminism is not about equal rights for women but about the destruction of a patriarchal society in favor of a matriarchal society. In other words, the goal of feminism is the destruction of the family by eliminating the husband and father as the provider, protector, and principled leader of his home. Think of fathers like Charles Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie, John Walton from The Waltons, and Ward Cleaver from Leave It to Beaver. Each of these television programs presented the father in an accurate portrayal of what American society at one time expected and loved about the patriarch of the family. A father who did not shape and encourage his children to embrace and live out a Christian worldview through their characters and life choices was looked down upon by society as being a dead-beat, a drunkard, an immoral reprobate, or slothful.

Today, society no longer has these high expectations or the shunning of men who are not principled and present fathers. Look at today's television programs where the father is often not even in the picture, and, if he is, he is not a principled leader of his home who seeks to disciple his children in truth and right living. Often the father is the whipping boy of the program, the stooge that the children treat with extreme disrespect.

Feminism has accomplished its ultimate goal-the destruction of the American family through the destruction of the father and, thus, the rise of the welfare state.

Political correctness is all about creating chaos by destroying the American family, replacing the role of the father with the role of the state, normalizing sexual perversion, and ridiculing traditional morals and virtues that stem from Christianity.

The PC crowd uses this chaos to justify more government. Political correctness is really a masking term for cultural Marxism. An all-powerful and intrusive government that robs you of your freedoms is the ultimate goal of what you may know only as political correctness.

People laugh about political correctness as if it is some kind of joke, but losing your freedom of religion, freedom of speech, property rights, and parental authority is no laughing matter. Thought control is not funny, and many Christians have been prosecuted under state hate-crime laws for sharing the gospel and for publicly speaking out against homosexuality.

Marxists have used the term political correctness for at least 80 years to hide the worldview of cultural Marxism. In 1923, a group of German intellectuals started what has become known as the Frankfurt School . The writings of the Frankfurt School faculty and their disciples are abundant, and their goal could be summed up as the eradication of Christianity from the culture.

By eradicating Christianity not only would the family fall and the church become impotent, but capitalism and the free enterprise system that was birthed out of the Protestant Reformation would be destroyed.

In 1933, when the Nazis came to power in Germany , many members of the Frankfurt School conveniently found refuge in America at the invitation of Secular Humanist John Dewey, who was on staff at Columbia University in New York . Dewey is best known as the father of modern education in America , honorary president of the National Education Association, and co-author of the Humanist Manifesto I.

Dewey saw the opportunity to place these German Marxists at leading colleges and universities around the country. Dewey and his friends specifically targeted the institutions of education and media as the means by which to inculcate their worldview into millions of Americans and eventually into American culture.

Dewey had help from Edward R. Murrow in spreading these German Marxists around the nation. In 1934, at the age of 26, Murrow became the Assistant Secretary of the Emergency Committee in Aid of Displaced German Scholars. A few years earlier, in 1932, Murrow had become the Assistant Director of the Institute of International Education , which was established through a grant from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Murrow was hired by Stephen Duggan, the director of IIE who advised the Soviet government on issues related to their workers' colleges. Duggan was a crusader for the Communist agenda.

Murrow also joined the American Russian Institute, which had been founded with the help of John Dewey. The Institute sponsored lectures from individuals such as Anna Louise Strong, a well-known journalist who wrote books defending the Soviet system.

Murrow eventually went to work for CBS, where he became the famed newscaster. Murrow is perhaps best known for using his broadcasts to destroy U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy, who was investigating the infiltration of Communists into education, media, and Hollywood . McCarthy had personality quirks that made him an easy target for marginalization, yet many experts now admit that McCarthy was correct in his view that Communists had infiltrated American education and the media. Of course, Murrow knew this to be true because he assisted in bringing many of these Marxists to America and dropping them into influential positions. To the discerning and informed American it becomes clear why Murrow was out to destroy McCarthy before he could uncover the anti-American agenda of Dewey, Murrow, and their friends.

One of the men whom Murrow brought to America from the Frankfurt School was Herbert Marcuse. The phrase "make love, not war" that was shouted during the counter-culture revolution of the 1960s was coined by Marcuse. The student rebels of the 1960s implemented the strategies laid out by Marcuse in his writings. Marcuse was greatly influenced by the writings of Italian Communist Antonio Gramsci.

The student leaders of the 1960s were encouraged by Marcuse's cultural revolution statements such as:

One can rightfully speak of a cultural revolution, since the protest is directed toward the whole cultural establishment; including the morality of existing society....there is one thing we can say with complete assurance. The traditional idea of revolution and the traditional strategy of revolution has ended. These ideas are old-fashioned...what we must undertake is a type of diffuse and dispersed disintegration of the system."

Many of the anti-American, flag burning, pot-smoking, pagan spiritualists of the counter cultural revolution are now college and university presidents, professors, and American textbook authors.

T. Kenneth Cribb, Jr. wrote in a research paper entitled "Political Correctness in Higher Education" that:

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the Politically Correct assault on the curriculum is that it has occurred at many of America 's elite universities. Take, for example, the case of Stanford University , an institution that has long played a leadership role in American higher education. Stanford eliminated its long-standing Western civilization requirement in 1988 and replaced it with a multicultural program known as "Cultures, Ideas, and Values." Under this new program, freshman at Stanford can just as easily study Marxist revolutionaries in Central America as they can Plato, Shakespeare or Newton. Because elite institutions such as Stanford set an example for the rest of American higher education, other universities eagerly adopt these devastating assaults on the curriculum. This "trickle-down" effect will have a long-lasting impact on the way future generations of Americans will be educated. One distinguished scholar recently lamented that "higher education is increasingly about acquiring attitudes and opinions that one puts on like a uniform." 

The best way to combat political correctness is to expose it for what it really is-Cultural Marxism. Equally important in defeating this anti-Christian, anti-American worldview is to not comply with its mandates. Call homosexuality what it is-sin. Expose feminism for what it is-anti-family, anti-father. Expose tolerance as moral relativism and intolerance toward those who don't conform to their dictates of tolerance. Expose sensitivity training as an attempt to destroy freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Point out to your family and friends the consequences that cultural Marxism has had and is having on our faith, families, and freedoms.

Unless you desire to live in a country where the middle class has been destroyed and we are under the tyrannical thumb of a small group of cultural elitists who control every aspect of your life, then you had better speak up. Nothing is more powerful than the truth, and nothing scares the elitists more than their worldview and agenda being exposed for what it really seeks to accomplish. 

[Warph]

This is a civil case and not criminal, which means the state is not a party to the suit, and that it won't create any so-called "case law" that would prevent people from protesting in the future.  And as for Patriotism..... real Patriotism.... in its purest form, binds us together to achieve greatness as a whole that would never be attainable simply as individuals.  Patriotism makes us a better people and a better nation.  To sum it up, patriotism is wanting our country to be the best it can be, even if we differ on exactly what that means.