Enjoying my usual Sunday paper, I came across the column by George Will (who I hope won't mind if I quote a paragraph or two from his offering today.)  He titled this piece, "Bong hits and court rulings." He wrote about a recent supreme court ruling which I find really disturbing. As usual, when I am really bothered by some further erosion of our liberty, I wonder, "Where is the outcrty? The indignation? Why isn't everyone else pissed off too?" (Excuse the language.) Maybe people are, and they just don't know where to direct their frustration-- mercifully, not everyone has a blog.

Mr. Will writes, "This story begins in 1965, in Des Moines, Iowa, when three teenagers wore to school black armbands to protest the Vietnam War. Their school said the bands or the students must go. The students kept the bands, were suspended, sued and won a 7-2 Supreme Court victory in 1969. The court said that students do not 'shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate."

How logical that seems! How full of common sense! And, by the way, how innocent the statement the students made by comparision of what goes on in schools today.

Fast forward to 2002, when some moron holds up a "Bong Hits for Jesus" banner at a school function, held during school hours, but as I understand it, off campus. When the student refused the principal's order to take down the offensive banner, he was suspended. Last week, the Supreme Court overturned a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that the principal's action infringed on the student's freedom of speech.

Kids say stupid things. They push the limits. It is unpleasant, but it happens to be their constitutional right to do so.

Here's the REALLY scary part: Justice Thomas said that (quoting from Mr. Will here): "...nothing in the history of public education or the original understanding of the First Amendment suggests that students have any justifiable First Amendment rights. To confer constitutional protection on (the student's)  impertinence would be farcical."

Let's just read that again: nothing in the history of public education... suggests that students have any justifiable First Amendment rights.

Wow. So, sending your child to school is mandatory in the eyes of the system (if those pesky homeschoolers would just keep their mouths shut, that is!) and the act of going to school is a forfiture of your 1st Amendment rights. Why stop there? There are other amendments and constitutional protections... let's just chuck the whole lot of 'em! They're just kids, after all...

Don't misunderstand me, I'm not a big fan of blasphemy. However, the principal had no right to expel the student from a public school for a non-violent action, which threatened no one's safety or well-being. (A private school would be a different matter.) Remember, students wear t-shirts in support of the "lesbian/gay/bi-sexual/transgender community" in public schools every day, even hold noisy rallies in support of "gay/striaght alliance" clubs and aren't expelled. Only the kids wearing t-shirts saying "sodomy is sin" get punished. My point is that the 1st Amendment, when applied equally to every citizen regardless of their status as a public school student, prevents people with a government approved/politically correct agenda from being the only ones allowed to speak out, as is happening, at least locally, in the case of the LGBT organizations which I just mentioned.

Fortunately, there were other justices who disagreed, only not enough of them. The only real choice here is to minimize government bullying and intrusion into your children's lives by not handing them over for 30+ hours ever week. What other option is there?

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