Free Speech and Winds of Treason
In 21st-Century America

The greats of America’s jurists and legal thinkers have long propounded on definitions of free speech, its protections and its limits – with dismal results. The reason for their failure is because they’ve been uniformly incapable of thinking outside of the box.

There is no way to define a line that differentiates between a complaint against one’s own government, on the one hand, and siding with a power unfriendly to the United States who advocates an identical position. Clearly, however, the former must be protected while the latter must be proscribed.

There is no difference in the speech itself. Therefore, the line must be drawn elsewhere, specifically when that speech involves cooperation or coordination with an unfriendly power andor funding by an unfriendly power, including via third parties.

Case in point. A Fox News report on 2003.03.12 revealed that the protests against the war in Iraq are coordinated and funded by enemies of the United States, and American protestors are mostly dupes of those enemies who sponsor and direct the protests. The Fox reporter documented that the protests are funded by two main sponsors: A.N.S.W.E.R. and ‘Not In Our Name.’

According to the Fox reporter, ‘Not In Our Name’ is backed by I.F.C.O. – otherwise known as ‘Pastors for Peace,’ which raises over $1 million each year to fund trips supporting Cuba, legal support for convicted cop-killer Munio Abba Jamal and even funding a group with suspected ties to middle east terrorists – funneling money to terrorists. A group headed by recently arrested Florida professor and head of a major Muslim terrorist group in America, Sami al-Arian – who funneled the money to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, was getting financial support from I.F.C.O. These are the people sponsoring and hyping the "anti-war" protests that are, more accurately, anti-America protests.

Again according to the Fox reporter, A.N.S.W.E.R. is backed by the ‘International Action Center,’ which is, in turn, backed by the ‘Workers’ World Party.’ The ‘Workers’ World Party’ supports every communist regime – including North Korea! In fact, some officials suspect that North Korea is footing the bill for many of these protests, which, if true, is a violation of U.S. law! Sponsorship by an unfriendly power defines the protests not as anti-war, but as anti-American – and treason!

Freedom to disagree with our government must be rigidly protected. But freedom to be an ignorant dupe of an unfriendly power cannot be protected speech (much less a dupe who supports an unfriendly power in the unfriendly country or in its paramilitary group wielding a Kalashnikov against Americans). Freedom, including free speech, comes with a pricetag: responsibility.

Rigid laws with iron teeth should be enacted proscribing involvement of American citizens in activities coordinated by, funded by or in cooperation with any power unfriendly to the United States. This would make it incumbent upon the U.S. government to maintain an up-to-date list of unfriendly powers as defined under such law. The onus would then be upon each citizen, as part of protecting his or her own freedom, to exercise the personal responsibility to make a "reasonable and prudent" effort to ensure that activities aren’t anti-American before becoming involved. American citizens who oppose the war would remain free to assemble themselves in protest against the war, but would be constrained to fund it themselves, coordinate it themselves and direct it themselves independent of the influence of any unfriendly powers. Negligence can be a crime. It’s called criminal negligence. Citizens who are really more interested in free drugs, being on TV and are negligent about verifying what groups they’re involving themselvs with, or who simply hate America, should be held fully accountable for their treasonous irresponsibility. Moreover, those who travel to an unfriendly country to support that unfriendly country should be prevented from returning to America. America includes immigrants. My ancestors were immigrants too, even though it was back in 1647 before the United States came into existence. But America is for Americans. America isn’t for the enemies of America. If they like Baghdad, make them live there or find some other country than America.

In particular, those who choose to fight with America’s enemies against America should be classified as enemies of America, their citizenship revoked and punished like any other enemy of America. The human shields who volunteered to sit in Iraq’s TV studios for Saddam so America couldn’t bomb Iraqi TV propagandists off the air are a prime example of the colossal damage traitors, sponsored by America’s enemies, do to America’s image, and consequently our security, in the world. Those who volunteer as human shields for America’s enemies against an American war effort should be classified as traitors, their citizenship revoked, and tried and punished for treason against the United States of America. In time of war, as this is, the penalty for treason is capital punishment. These traitors are responsible for the deaths of American soldiers who wouldn’t have died if Iraq hadn’t enjoyed the fruits of the propaganda that resulted from the "human shield" traitors. Such treason isn’t harmless, it isn’t noble, it isn’t free speech and it must not be dismissed as such. The death punishment should be meted out to all such traitorous acts committed in time of war. Free speech can be protected fully without American soldiers ever having to die as a result of America’s coddling of traitors.