Leonard Clark: Freedom of Speech
Freedom of Speech can be a tricky commodity to govern, or so it seems. In a story just now unfolding from Iraq, an American soldier has been arrested for exercising his right to freely express his opinion about the war in Iraq as he sees it. Leonard Clark is a blogger who has apparently found the limit of his freedom to dissent. You can visit Leonard's blog here. His modest blogroll makes interesting reading on the side.
Armando (via Daily Kos) sets the facts of this story in context with President Bush's recent comments regarding soldiers who blog. You can read his report here.
Claire Krulikowski, a freelance writer blogging at Radical Peace, rounds out my read of this event with an overview of her recent interview with Robert Kennedy Jr. addressing concerns about the "liberal press," the entertainment factor now clouding the fair and effective coverage of news, and his view on the current state of professional journalism. Kennedy's mini history lesson (included here with Claire's report of the interview) makes her post well worth the time invested to read. I wonder if and how Leonard's story will be told?
technorati tags: LeonardClark, Iraq, freepress
posted by Mary Godwin @ Wednesday, July 13, 2005
2 comments
2 Comments:
During my college days I learned that many voices can force a change, but change can start with a single voice. I also learned to be skeptical of those who use patriotism to pursue their own ends. I was sorry I learned that freedom is too often a relative term dependent on time and circumstances because I had always believed in the freedom of an individual to speak her/his mind. Bush will shut down dissent and will hide behind patriotism. He will flag wave and use it to denounce any American who dares to ask questions. Keep writing, Mary. Continue to be one of the voices.
My take on this is that the law is being applied very selectively to people who say the wrong thing and have the audacity to criticize the war. Would a blogger with flags covering his site heaping praises on Bush and the latest crusade have been targetted. I doubt it very much.
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