PROPOSED BILL BANS “UNCIVIL” CRITICISM
OF POLITICIANS
By Rev. Ted Pike
12 Jan 11
Accused Arizona shooter Jared Loughner is clearly deranged. But
Jewish attack groups and liberal Democrats are demanding laws that
limit the "incivility" of the political right—which
they claim motivated his violence.
Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), third-ranking Democrat in Congress, wants
legislation enforcing balanced media coverage: reinstatement of the
Fairness Doctrine. This will require conservative media to simultaneously
present the liberal point of view. Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY) is
looking at legislative "ways to better police language on the
airwaves."
Most threateningly, Rep. Robert Brady (D-PA) is crafting a bill which
will give members of Congress special protection from criticism. Then
it will be not just homosexuals and racial minorities with special
rights and privileges, but also beleaguered Democrats.
Rep. Robert Brady, D-Pennsylvania, said he will introduce legislation
making it a federal crime for a person to use language or symbols that
could be perceived as threatening or inciting violence against a member
of Congress or federal official... Brady is particularly incensed over
a web posting by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin during the 2010 election
in which she targeted 20 House Democrats, including Giffords, for political
defeat. The posting showed a map of the United States in the 20 Democratic
districts identified by cross-hairs... 'You can't put bulls-eyes or
cross-hairs on a congressman or federal official...' Brady said...
it is now time to put an end to the hyper-charged language. 'The rhetoric
is just ramped up so negatively, so high, that we have got to shut
this down,'... Brady noted that he wanted to have it ready as soon
as possible. (CNN)
Whose perceptions will determine if a word or image might incite
others to violence? Will it be ADL or its lackeys, such as US Attorney
General Eric Holder? Or perhaps the FBI, working in close communication
with such "thought police?"
Brady's legislation leads us into the mists of "thought crime" subjectivity. Such
a national law would no longer uphold our First Amendment free speech
rights but dedicate itself to avoidance of agitating the insane. Communicative
tools of language and imagery with no serious suggestion of violence
(such as Palin’s crosshairs) will become criminal. Use of an
ever-longer list of forbidden words and images will become an offense
against the state.
Scripture condemns those like Rep. Brady who “make a man an offender
for a word.” (Isaiah 29:21) Christian civilized ethics judge us in general
by the definable actions, legal or illegal, which accompany our words. Outlawing
a list of politically incorrect words is medieval.
Under Brady’s bill, much of our free speech would be taken
in order to keep the crazies calm. There are better, more proven ways
society has found to deal with the insane. They include psychiatric
drugs and mental hospitals, not federal speech crime laws that strip
the majority of freedom.
Rev. Ted Pike is director of the National Prayer Network, a Christian/conservative
watchdog organization.
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