Week 6: Free Expression and Social Media

 Free Expression and Social Media

    In the Eight Values of Free Expression, number Six is one I believe we as a society need to take a long, hard look at right now. Value Six is "Promote Tolerance". One of the reasons we do not have laws against things such as "hate speech", is to promote greater tolerance for such things among the people of our society. Not having specific laws against such things encourages us to collectively decide what is acceptable and what is not acceptable, without going beyond the reasonable limit for "punishment". Aside from a few exception which are relatively clear (shouting "fire" in a crowded theatre being the prime example), one cannot be thrown in jail simply for saying something. Because of this, it more or less forces us to all grow thicker skin and either outright ignore what was said, or in blunt terms, "teach them a lesson". However, things like this have been taken way too far on social media platforms. Nowadays people's entire lives can be ruined for the smallest things. It can range from something stupid they said 10-20 years ago and even to simply disagreeing with someone. both of these have been deemed worthy of "burning" one's name, career, and all other aspects of social life. This is incredibly dangerous to the very foundation of how we function as a society. If everything we say has the potential to offend someone and destroy our life, then why would we ever both to speak at all. Why bother trying to introduce a new perspective or idea if all it is going to lead to is our life being ruined forever. One of the reasons we have the first amendment, is to allow the spread of ideas, even the bad. So again, we can collectively decide as a society, and even on the individual level, decide which are the good ideas and which are the bad. But even then, more often than not, just because someone has a bad idea or at least seems to, that does not warrant total destruction. If we can't spread new ideas, discuss said ideas, or eve make jokes anymore for fear of someone ruining us, then we have no hope for the future. As great as social media is, for allowing us to easily connect with others, it has brought with it numerous problems that need to be solved.

http://medlawlit.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_9.html

Week 4: F.A. and BLM

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrxwTUWZ6Xc

        With all the chaos that is going on in the world right now, the First Amendment has been one of the biggest points of discussion in the U.S. as of the past few months. The First Amendment lists 6 specific freedoms: From and Of religion, of press, of speech, of petition, and of peaceful assembly. Whenever the riots begin and buildings start being burned to the ground, "First Amendment!" is what is claimed by those committing these crimes. They primarily argue about their right to assemble, however, many seem to forget that it specifically lists "peaceful" assembly. The second an assembly starts endangering others, it is not protected by the First Amendment. To be even more specific, doing something like burning someone's business down, is infringing on their rights of life, liberty, and property. The First Amendment's protection end once another's rights begin to be infringed upon. Even if one were to look beyond the First Amendment, arson and looting are pretty clearly under the classification of crime. So, committing such acts are not even a concerned with the First Amendments and personal rights anymore. it is simply committing crimes and putting others in danger, which is not protected by the First Amendment and certainly not legal in any sense of the word. As was said so accurately by Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.: “Your right to swing your fist ends where the other guy's nose begins.” You do not have the right to infringe on another's rights without due process of law and due cause.

Week 3: SCOTUS

     SCOTUS, The Supreme Court of the United States. Despite its extravagant name, it did not start out so powerful. When it was initially formed, not only were there only a few judges, but there were no worthwhile cases. In fact, during its first term, the court did not preside over any cases, it was all to work out the logistics of official proceeding and workings of the court. Also, not until a while after its establishment, did it actually acquire any power to put important laws into effect. However, once everything involving the Supreme Court's power and logistics, it became an extremely important part of the federal government. Not only was it another layer to the checks and balances system, as to help keep the other branches of government in check, but it would become the final deciding factor concerning many influential issues and cases. Some of those cases would shape the future working and interpretations of the laws and constitution, shaping the entire country as we knew it. The Supreme Court eventually became the branch of government that the public would turn to whenever it was totally divided on issues from lower courts. Issues that no lower court could solve, and they needed to invoke the ultimate interpreting authority of the Supreme Court. So, from a small room with only a few people talking about how they should interpret the laws of a new country, to an extremely important court that must delicately interpret what the laws mean in relation to the constitution, and apply them to cases that reach it. 

https://www.supremecourt.gov/about/historyandtraditions.aspx

Week 2: 5 News Sources

5 News Sources

1. Louder with Crowder (https://www.youtube.com/user/StevenCrowder) - This is by far my favorite place to get informed about the news. Not only do they list every single source that they get their statistics from, but they make the show funny. It's a perfect balance of hard news and comedy.

2. Officer Tatum (https://www.youtube.com/user/btcruiser34) - This guy is a lot like the Louder with Crowder Show. The only big difference is that he does not throw in as many jokes, but he still lists all his sources. The other thing I like about Officer Tatum, is that he reports on what is happening, with evidence, first and then gives his opinion afterwards about the situation.

3. The Daily Wire (https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDailyWire/videos) - This is the source I go to when I want to hear about everything that is happening in the news, both big and small. Louder with Crowder and Officer Tatum usually talk about the big events, but I will sometimes watch the Daily Wire if I want to hear more extensive coverage.

4. FOX News (https://www.foxnews.com/) - I more or less only watch FOX for Tucker Carlson. I really enjoy his news reporting, but I also find it very funny watching him interview others. I think he makes compelling arguments, but I also find the interviews very humorous.

5. CNN (https://www.cnn.com/) - Finally, my watching of CNN is usually second-hand, whenever the other sources I listed talk about it. But I make sure I pay attention when I do hear from their reports, so I at least get some information from a source like them.