Free to say... whatever?

Freedom of speech is a basic right, simply because... Well, let’s just face it... no matter what democracy means to you, no one wants to give up their freedom to speak. Should we ever give it up or have it taken from us, we will know then what it means to be without democracy. We run into problems with freedom of speech, but only when someone else says something that offends us. Whether we like it or not, that is going to happen. To do away with someone else’s right is to do away with your own. There are laws against defaming one’s character, but the legal expense can easily reach tens of thousands of dollars. The average person cannot afford such a defense. So, instead of helping; this defamatory law works against the majority of people who fall into the category of not being rich. How does it hurt? When “big money,” knows it can do what it wants and get away with it, because you cannot point out any wrong doing without being accused of defamation, then that law serves tyranny. I don’t want to leave you thinking that you don’t have freedom of speech. There are clever ways to say what you mean to say, while protecting yourself and your freedoms at the same time. Please visit the site: (Defamation law and free speech) for more information about how to protect yourself from lawsuits and keep your freedom. Currently, there are (and there always will be) issues that cause concern and even a great deal of pain to so many. One particular freedom of speech court case has made its way to the Supreme Court after a U.S. appeals court overturned a five million dollar award because the award violated the First Amendment’s free speech rights. I do not see that a decision has come back from the Supreme Court, as of yet, but I suspect that they will uphold the appeal court’s decision. I am of course, speaking of the case against the pastor, Fred Phelps, of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas, for protesting at private funerals held for service men because of "America's tolerance for gays and lesbians" in the U.S. military. Talk about kicking someone while he's down! Personally, I find it sickening how we treat one another so badly. One might suggest that the problem here is that these people of faith have lost their way and do not represent the true religious ways. I can’t even go there... I do not believe that religion can provide the answer in this case. Live and let live. My answer; I have to go back to my original plea... that we simply treat others the way we want to be treated. Is that just too simple to understand? I hope not.