Chick-fil-a Support Day and Free Speech

[Greek_or_Geek?]

Originally Posted by DrPhil

Homosexuality and same-sex partnerships are by no means a "condition" but....

Would there be an (insert company) appreciation day and would the ACLU get involved if the (insert company) CEO said that her/his traditional religious views regarding the family support the notion that people with a diagnosed mental or physical condition should not be allowed to be married or have children?

Freedom of speech, indeed.

Again, like I said for me personally, it wasn't about the message at all. It was about a bunch of political goons telling a company that their company was not welcome in their fair burgs because their religious/political views differed from the powers that be there.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by Greek_or_Geek?

Again, like I said for me personally, it wasn't about the message at all. It was about a bunch of political goons telling a company that their company was not welcome in their fair burgs because their religious/political views differed from the powers that be there.

I am not talking about personally. I asked about group dynamics of whether there would even be an appreciation day and the ACLU involved.

As for personally:
I still believe that almost everyone has a viewpoint that they absolutely cannot and will not tolerate, freedom of speech be damned, and if a person or company expouses such a viewpoint they would have no problem boycotting that company and having the company banned from the vicinity if possible.

Originally Posted by MysticCat

Given that the ACLU has defended the free speech rights of Neo-Nazis and the KKK, then yeah, I can imagine them getting involved if government officials suggested that a company should stay out of that official's city based on the speech of the company's CEO, regardless of what that speech was.

Thanks for reminding me about the ACLU.

[KSig RC]

First, "Free Speech" as outlined in the First Amendment doesn't apply to this issue at all.

Second, you know who would probably love to freely express their love for their partners, shouting from the rooftops their commitment to each other through legal marriage, freely and in a manner protected from government interference?

Gay people.

[agzg]

Originally Posted by KSig RC

First, "Free Speech" as outlined in the First Amendment doesn't apply to this issue at all.

Second, you know who would probably love to freely express their love for their partners, shouting from the rooftops their commitment to each other through legal marriage, freely and in a manner protected from government interference?

Gay people.

Stop making me want to straight marry you. It's disgusting. Also Chick-fil-A will corporate person free speech me and try to get my marriage rights blocked.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by DrPhil

I still believe that almost everyone has a viewpoint that they absolutely cannot and will not tolerate, freedom of speech be damned, and if a person or company expouses such a viewpoint they would have no problem boycotting that company and having the company banned from the vicinity.

As you alluded to earlier, freedom of speech does not mean that you can say whatever you want to without criticism (or boycotts of your business). It means that, absent something like endangering people (like shouting "Fire!" in a crowded theater), the government cannot censor your speech or punish you for your speech.

People in a city signing a petition or letter to the company CEO saying we don't like your position and we don't want to see you come to our town = those people exercising their own free speech rights.

But the mayor of the city saying the same thing in his capacity as mayor (rather than his capacity as just another citizen) does get a bit too close to government censorship of speech.

[barbino]

In response to thetaj's question on how this event was Mike Huckabee-supported, Huckabee started this whole thing as a response to the boycott issue. Supposedly more than 20 million people looked at his Facebook page and people began to show support for the event even before it occured. Huckabee is quoted as saying that "the success of Chick-fil-A is a great American story that is being smeared by vicious hate speech and intolerant bigotry from the left." (newsmax)

Huckabee then suggested the Appreciation Day to support Don Cathy and the company.

[KSig RC]

Originally Posted by barbino

Huckabee is quoted as saying that "the success of Chick-fil-A is a great American story that is being smeared by vicious hate speech and intolerant bigotry from the left." (newsmax)

This is so shitty brilliant I can barely deal ... any reasonable reading of any of most of those words (especially "hate" and "bigotry") renders it completely false, yet we're loading up buses to buy fast food chicken from inordinately wealthy people. Poor, poor straight white rich guys.