Charlie Kirk - Kevin Lewis

Ok, your new deadline is Thursday 9/18 to self-ban if you don't I will impose a 125% tariff. I will also build a firewall to block you and make Mexico pay for it.

You've been warned!

Charlie Kirk's hate speech is free speech.   Charlie Kirk's critics?  Not so much.

What do you mean? Criticism of Kirk or any other public figure is free speech.

I realize that criticizing MAGA will soon carry an automatic death penalty, but we aren't there quite yet. Project 2025 has over 800 pages, and the book is being read aloud to Trump, so some of the stuff in there will take a while.

Certain organizations, and professions, rely on customers (primary school children, patients in health institutions) being able to trust that their teachers'/caregivers' political/religious/other beliefs will not affect how they perform duties to those entrusted in their care.  In my case we take a pledge at graduation, and when hired we are given the rules of conduct to that effect.  We betray our professions and the institutions that pay us if we do otherwise. 

Would you like think that a doctor or nurse responsible for treating you might feel less obligated to give you the best care regardless of, or because of YOUR beliefs?   

Freedom of speech has boundaries.

Candy

By the way, I might be here illegally. I've overstayed my subscription; it was supposed to expire yesterday. 

I will try to make contact from Venezuela if necessary. 

Keep me in your thoughts and prayers.

A NJ doctor was fired today for that reason. 

When one is working free speech is limited because at that time they are representing their organization. 

Teachers can't berate students, students can't tell their teachers off, nor can employees tell off their bosses.  Players and coaches can't berate officials. The list goes on and on. 

Most websites monitor their postings and can delete a post or terminate the poster if they violate the rules. 

That's funny, MAGA would have been yelling, "cancel culture!!"  if it were the libs that did it. 

I'm good with the actions that the organization took, but where's MAGA yelling cancel culture? Oh, yeah MAGA is the President, got it.

Jesus, Candy, who ever said that free speech is unlimited?

You are, though, conflating speech that is under contract and general free speech. The First Amendment only guarantees that the GOVERNMENT won't prosecute you for what you say (or publish, etc.). What happens PRIVATELY is another matter. You could have myriad contracts and job obligations that limit what you can say while on the job, and in some cases off the job as well.

Also, harmful free speech is NOT protected. I'm sure you know about the "shouting FIRE! in a crowded theater" SCOTUS ruling. But we've heard MAGA preach for the persecution, and sometimes murder, of various groups. They are in no danger of prosecution. But it is possible to sue someone for their speech, even as the representative of a class/group. My take is that the government is very, very reluctant to censor or restrict free speech--or at least it was, until the Turd came along.

And Candy, yes, I DO think that the quality of care I receive might vary according to my and my caregivers' beliefs. That's why I don't tell them what my beliefs are; there could an unconscious clash, or, despite professionalism and all that, a quite conscious clash that causes oh, say, the nurse to stop at a given patient's room before mine, or delay getting my medication until they get another task done, etc. etc. Nurses and doctors are human, and whether they like or dislike someone maybe shouldn't, but definitely does, affect how they perform their jobs.

You're confused.

Free speech per the First Amendment is free from GOVERNMENT interference or prosecution. The examples you gave are of CONTRACTS with PRIVATE organizations. An employee can still say whatever he wants in the workplace with no fear of GOVERNMENT prosecution. The First Amendment has nothing whatsoever to do with employment contracts, workplace behavior, etc. 

I'm constantly surprised by how people misread the very simple and clear language of the First and Second Amendments. The latter grants the PEOPLE the right to raise a militia--PERIOD. But idiot Americans have twisted it to mean that you can strut around with enough weaponry to slaughter 500 people.

Kevin, I'm not confused and neither was tom in his post.  We know about speech being protected by the 1st Amendment, while we also know, unless we are so narcissistic or just don't care, that there are legitimate restrictions on utterances inside and outside the workplace.   There is also the fact of, again, careless utterances by humans following explosive events that made big news and momentarily loosen tongues.  CEOs are subject to reaction, maybe overreaction should they become aware of an episode.   It has to be a terrible thing to lose a job over a slip of the tongue.

Please don't throw me in with the notion of nurses basing care priorities on competing ideologies.  I never saw it, never heard of it happening, in all the thousands of hours, thousands of patients, thousands of co-workers I was exposed to. 

The best prevention was to never, never ever, bring it up with a patient or coworker even in a break room, since you don't know the co-worker's beliefs either. 

Candy