Freedom of Speech

People throw the term freedom of speech around a lot. They have the misconception that they can say whatever they want without repercussion because of the First Amendment. While I believe that anyone should be able to say anything they like, I also believe that they must accept the consequences for their opinions. The government should never punish, imprison, or judge a person for his or her beliefs, but that does not give the person the ability to espouse hate (or love for that matter) without consequences.

A Sacramento radio show, Rob, Arnie & Dawn in the Morning, has come under attack from several advocacy groups over a particular broadcast. The two male broadcasters made a violent, hateful rant against transgender children. Rob called a young boy wanting to transition from male to female "a weird person who is demanding attention" and advised his mother to tell him that wearing a dress is "not what we're doing in this culture." Arnie said he would hit his son if he ever put on high heels, saying, "You got a boy saying, 'I wanna wear dresses.' I'm going to look at him and go, 'You know what? You're a little idiot! You little dumb ass! Look, you are a boy! Boys don't wear dresses."

Now, personally, I find their comments hateful, offensive and immature. It's, while unfortunate, common for children to tease and torment each other. It's a little different when the two bullies are two grown men. Arnie's claim that he would throw shoes at his own son if the child were transgender is horrible. I don't understand the psyche of someone who is transgender. I love being a man. But, that's me! I cannot begin to understand the internal pain that someone feels when he or she feels they were born in the wrong body.

But, I digress...

These two broadcasters have come under heavy criticism. Their rebuttal was to say that they were joking and would never actually hurt a child. Many of their supporters argue that it's free speech. They should not be punished for their opinions. True! The government should not / cannot punish them for their opinions. The rest of us though, can punish them all we want. I wrote a letter to the station manager and several sponsors have pulled ads from the radio station. People believe this is wrong. Is it?

As a child, I was taught that everything has a consequence. The consequence for not eating my vegetables was to not get dessert. The consequence for not doing my chores was not being allowed to watch TV. The consequence for not cleaning my room was having my toys taken away. Everything has a consequence.

Sure, Rob and Arnie can espouse their message of intolerance, but they need to accept that there will be consequences. The backlash against the radio show is not a violation of free speech, but rather the consequence for expressing an opinion.