------------------
I am pleased that the court recognized that someone engaging in free speech is free speech. My concern is that the courts have taken it upon themselves to be arbiters of free speech. They do not have the authority to decide what free speech is. Government is instructed by the First Amendment to remain silent on the issue.
I am pleased that the court recognized that someone engaging in free speech is free speech. My concern is that the courts have taken it upon themselves to be arbiters of free speech. They do not have the authority to decide what free speech is. Government is instructed by the First Amendment to remain silent on the issue.
Notice what the district court said, that clicking "like" on a facebook page is "insufficient speech to merit constitutional protection." There is no way on God's green earth that any judge or other government official should be allowed the power to decide how much or what kind of speech is deemed sufficient, proper, or acceptable.
This kind of stuff is happening more and more by government officials of all types. Government needs to stay out of peoples' exercising of their rights.
--------------------------------------
Clicking “Like” on Facebook is constitutionally protected free speech and can be considered the 21st century-equivalent of a campaign yard sign, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond reversed a lower court ruling that said merely “liking” a Facebook page was insufficient speech to merit constitutional protection.
Exactly what a “like” means — if anything — played a part in a Virginia case involving six people who say Hampton Sheriff B.J. Roberts fired them for supporting an opponent in his 2009 re-election bid, which he won. The workers sued, saying their First Amendment rights were violated.
Roberts said some of the workers were let go because he wanted to replace them with sworn deputies while others were fired because of poor performance or his belief that their actions “hindered the harmony and efficiency of the office.” One of those workers, Daniel Ray Carter, had “liked” the Facebook page of Roberts’ opponent, Jim Adams.
U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson in Norfolk had ruled in April 2012 that while public employees are allowed to speak as citizens on matters of public concern, clicking the “like” button does not amount to expressive speech. In other words, it’s not the same as actually writing out a message and posting it on the site.
Clicking “Like” on Facebook is constitutionally protected free speech and can be considered the 21st century-equivalent of a campaign yard sign, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond reversed a lower court ruling that said merely “liking” a Facebook page was insufficient speech to merit constitutional protection.
Exactly what a “like” means — if anything — played a part in a Virginia case involving six people who say Hampton Sheriff B.J. Roberts fired them for supporting an opponent in his 2009 re-election bid, which he won. The workers sued, saying their First Amendment rights were violated.
Roberts said some of the workers were let go because he wanted to replace them with sworn deputies while others were fired because of poor performance or his belief that their actions “hindered the harmony and efficiency of the office.” One of those workers, Daniel Ray Carter, had “liked” the Facebook page of Roberts’ opponent, Jim Adams.
U.S. District Judge Raymond Jackson in Norfolk had ruled in April 2012 that while public employees are allowed to speak as citizens on matters of public concern, clicking the “like” button does not amount to expressive speech. In other words, it’s not the same as actually writing out a message and posting it on the site.
No comments:
Post a Comment