"I’m speaking up for him and his 1st Amendment rights and anybody else who would wish to express their not anti-gay people sentiment, but their support of traditional marriage..."
- Sarah Palin, defending Dan Cathy, President of Chick-fil-A
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Dear Sarah:
Please study up on the Constitution. The First Amendment protects individuals from being LEGALLY punished for their speech. Last time I checked, no one from Chick-fil-A has been arrested for speaking up against gay marriage.
If anything, this is an ideal case study for what makes our democracy great. Dan Cathy can say basically whatever hateful things he wants with NO fear of government reprisal (the deal with idiot running Boston is a conversation for another day – his is the kind of over-the-top reaction that makes liberals look bad). Conversely, consumers are well within their rights to choose not to do business with a company that attempts to undermine a lifestyle they support.
Think about that. A captain of industry speaks his mind freely. Some agree with his stance, some do not. Those not in agreement campaign to boycott his business, while many who agree go out of their way to show support. Ultimately, the business will succeed or fail based not on any actions of government, but on the feelings of consumers. It’s the perfect marriage of democracy and capitalism which – if I remember my elementary school Social Studies correctly – are the two primary foundational principles upon which our Union was established.
In summary, Sarah, if you want your political views to be taken seriously by anyone outside the fringes of the Tea Party, please find yourself an old Civics textbook and start reading.
Sincerely,
All of us who apparently understand the Bill of Rights better than a former Vice Presidential candidate
