Irony Alert! BJU Defends "Freedom of Speech"

[Chuck Travels]

"Military members should be able to exercise free political speech

By The Collegian Staff

Over the past several weeks, the free speech spotlight has been increasingly focused on one Marine: Sgt. Gary Stein.

The man has sparked quite a controversy over whether soldiers should be allowed to express political opinions freely on social media. His personal Facebook page has been littered with inflammatory statements and images about the government and about President Barack Obama in particular, urging citizens not to vote for him in the upcoming election. He also set up a group called “Armed Forces Tea Party” with similar anti-Obama messages, which has close to 30,000 likes.

As a result, he was put under investigation in March, and recently a Marine administrative panel recommended that he be discharged under “other than honorable conditions.”

Those who support his discharge argue that a member of the Armed Forces can’t question his commander-in-chief and that the military must stay neutral politically. They also point to a 2008 Department of Defense edict forbidding active-duty personnel from allowing or causing the publishing of “partisan political articles, letters or endorsements signed or written by the member that solicits votes for or against a partisan political party, candidate or cause.” The rule exempts letters to the editor and personal bumper stickers, though.

Stein’s posts were highly inappropriate and unnecessarily provocative—to call the president the enemy and refuse to follow his orders as commander-in-chief is clear insubordination. (He later rescinded his comment about refusing to obey the president by saying that he would oppose only unlawful orders).

He should be penalized for that insubordination, but not simply for the fact that he has a partisan opinion. The Department of Defense directive completely flouts the First Amendment’s assertion that no law can be made abridging the freedom of speech. The policy denies service members basic American rights to political speech, the most protected form of speech next to religious speech in America. To forbid those rights to any American is to disregard the Constitution as the supreme law of the land.

Military members can’t have the liberty to say whatever they please. They can’t divulge anything that would compromise the security of the United States or the success of its Armed Forces. As with anybody with access to confidential information, they have limitations on what they can communicate.

But that does not mean their rights as citizens should be revoked. If anything, those rights should be exercised and enjoyed more fully by those who are giving of themselves to protect them."

I copied and pasted this from the Bob Jones University Collegian. BJU has a way of making things disappear down its very own very special 'memory hole.'

Isn't it a wee bit ironic that this piece was published April 20, 2012. Yet, Chris Peterman was expelled only days later on Tuesday, April 24, 2012 for daring to speak out against abuse?

[Tiarali]

Wow. I'm not sure anything else can be added to that.

[myotch]

Um.

Like many other rights that are "abridged" when under contracted military service, "free speech" issues are a matter of regulation. Some forms of speech are a matter of military law. Therein lies the "abridgment" - the simple matter of the rule of law.

Sgt Stein's speech was not a simple matter of political opinion and participation, but one of insubordination and contempt for the chain of command.

FTR, a military service member can be involved politically, volunteering his or her free time for any political party, even sharing the stage with a political candidate and speaking in support of that candidate, providing that the soldier, sailor, or airman is not in uniform. "Political articles" and "written endorsements" might be verboten because of the seeming conflict between one's personal and military roles (using, say, rank or award gained from ongoing military duty to endorse a candidate), and that's part of the rule of military law. Stein signed a contract and took an oath.

What an odd, and ironic, position BJU has taken.

[lucrezaborgia]

I can be fired for talking smack about my employer. How is this different?

[lucrezaborgia]

I can be fired for talking smack about my employer. How is this different?