Archive for 2016

WAPO: GOP MUST DESTROY ITSELF TO SAVE ITS SOUL.

Well, that’s been a perennial fever swamp dream at the Washington Post, ever since the paper’s heyday under the Grahams and Ben Bradlee.

COMING FULL CIRCLE PART II: Howard Kurtz: Liberal pundits experiencing Hillary buyer’s remorse.

Earlier this week: ANOTHER RUBE SELF-IDENTIFIES: “Bill Press, a liberal radio and television host, has authored ‘Buyer’s Remorse,’ a distillation of the Obama years that comes down to ‘yes, but’…‘The transformative new era of leadership Obama promised never happened,’ Press laments. ‘His presidency looms as a huge opportunity wasted.’”

What policies would a president who didn’t disappoint his far left backers implement?

[vimeo 2058075]

ANDREW KLAVAN: Good News! Hollywood is Fair to Us Now! “Through the miracle of Donald Trump, left wing Hollywood can no longer insult or debase us enough to actually describe us. Our long battle against Hollywood bias is over! We have defeated them by becoming exactly what they said we were.”

Read the whole thing.

SO OPPONENTS OF CAMPUS FREE SPEECH ARE TRYING TO SUGGEST THAT TENNESSEE STATE REP. MARTIN DANIEL IS PRO-ISIS OR SOMETHING. Funny, I remember when that sort of thing was called “McCarthyism,” and was bad. But anyway, he sends this statement, which he’s circulating to the media:

I would like to clarify comments made on Wednesday before the House Education Administration Committee.

I fundamentally disagree with ISIS’s philosophy and I unequivocally condemn their abhorrent, cruel, inhuman acts of terror and violence. That said, the unavoidable fact is that the First Amendment guarantees us the right to express any opinion, including opinions that most of us find repugnant and fundamentally wrong, so long as they don’t cause an imminent risk of harm. To make it clear, there’s a big difference between saying that someone has a right to speak, and agreeing or disagreeing with the content of that speech. Frankly, simple recruitment efforts by any organization, standing alone, might be protected by the First Amendment. However, offering material support, including one’s service, to a terrorist organization is forbidden by the United States Patriot Act of 2001. Joining ISIS (offering one’s service to a terrorist organization) is illegal, on college campuses or anywhere else in the United States.

Furthermore, although clearly I believe that free speech should generally be protected, if such speech should cross the line so that it becomes an imminent threat to someone, including our country, that would NOT be protected speech (see Brandenburg v Ohio, a Supreme Court opinion from 1969, in which the Supreme Court held that only speech that presents a “clear and present danger” is prohibitable).

I realize these comments may not be satisfactory to some, who may question how I could defend the right to free speech of supporters of a cruel and evil organization like ISIS. Granted, I firmly believe that ISIS is despicable and evil, and I am confident that the vast majority of people with any sense of human decency will agree as well.

I am sure that each of us holds many opinions that someone, somewhere, would find wrong or offensive. My point is that if we weaken the First Amendment by making its protection selective, based on what is currently viewed as evil or inappropriate, we are weakening its ability to protect us all.

Opponents of my Tennessee Student Free Speech Protection Act, by bringing up an unrelated hypothetical situation of ISIS recruiting on campus, have intentionally distracted from the point of my bill, which is to guarantee all students the right to express themselves on college campuses, whether their opinions are considered open-minded, closed-minded, religious, non-religious, anti-religious, brilliant, stupid, progressive, or offensive. I am seeing liberal college administrators impose their views of what is right and proper speech on conservative students who feel uncomfortable in disagreement. I am trying to remedy that problem. ALL students should have the right to express their opinions, and that is what this bill is about.

In conclusion, speech advocating violence is not and should not be legally protected. The remedy for objectionable, disagreeable non-violent speech is not silence or suppression of speech – it is more speech.

The text of the Tennessee Student Free Speech Protection Act (HB 2063) can be found at the following link.

I think it’s a good bill, and I wish certain members of the legislature took it seriously, instead of engaging in unfortunate theatrics.

THEY PROBABLY HAD IT COMING: How Donald Trump Bent Television To His Will.

Two network sources also confirmed the unprecedented control the television networks have surrendered to Trump in a series of private negotiations, allowing him to dictate specific details about placement of cameras at his event, to ensure coverage consists primarily of a single shot of his face.

Network officials say the ratings have born out commercial incentives to devote their campaign coverage to largely unfiltered streams of Trump talking. CBS CEO Les Moonves quipped that Trump “may not be good for America, but it’s damn good for CBS, that’s all I got to say.”

But many inside the networks are growing increasingly disturbed with what they’ve helped create.

“As a programmer, it’s an easy decision, people watch it,” said one producer. “As an American, I’m sort of troubled by it, because I feel like we contribute it.”

And this:

According to two sources familiar with the call, the Trump campaign, citing security concerns from Secret Service, dictated to the networks that their camera crews can only shoot Trump head-on from a fenced-in press pen.

Under the Trump campaign’s conditions, camera crews would not be able to leave the press pen during Trump’s rallies to capture video of audience reactions, known in the industry as “cutaway shots” or “cuts.” Networks would also not be able to use a separate riser set up to get cutaway shots.

The terms, which limit the access journalists have to supporters and protesters while Trump is speaking, are unprecedented, and are more restrictive than those put on the networks by the White House or Hillary Clinton’s campaign, which has had Secret Service protection for its duration.

You don’t have to be enthusiastic about Trump to enjoy watching him beat Clinton at her own media game.