Controversy Over Marge Schott
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A lot of fine people died putting Hitler into his grave. Those same fine people died to preserve the American Constitution, the First Amendment to which prohibits the government from interfering with the individual right of free speech.
None of those people who are tromping on Schott want to live under a dictatorial government; that’s precisely why they are tromping on her. Unfortunately, it is precisely their attempt to muzzle her that can bring about the very situation that they deplore.
Some speech is hateful. So what? It’s far better that the government be prohibited from determining the definition of hateful speech than it is that hateful speech be punished. Why? If a bad guy gets into power, then good speech is defined as hateful, punishment is applied to good people, and another Hitler blossoms forth.
The whole idea of the First Amendment is to generate controversy, good against bad, so that the electorate will never forget what bad is. Let Schott dig her own grave.
WILLIAM O. FELSMAN, Woodland Hills
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