Mining Our Heritage

Apropos of nothing in particular, I happened to be reading the Supreme Court's decision in Whitney v. California, from 1927. [link] The opinion of the Court is muddled, to say the least, but fortunately, Justice Brandeis gave a concise statement of the case in his concurring opinion:

Miss Whitney was convicted of the felony of assisting in organizing, in the year 1919, the Communist Labor Party of California, of being a member of it, and of assembling with it. These acts are held to constitute a crime, because the party was formed to teach criminal syndicalism. The statute which made these acts a crime restricted the right of free speech and of assembly theretofore existing. The claim is that the statute, as applied, denied to Miss Whitney the liberty guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment.

The case is remembered today because it contains a quotable quote from Brandeis ("Men feared witches and burnt women. It is the function of speech to free men from the bondage of irrational fears."). The quote is often recited out of context, however. Oddly enough, when it is read In context, what stands out is not the quote itself (in some ways, it has a ring of non-sequitor to it), but the overall fervor of Brandeis's defense of liberty, which has a power all its own:

This court has not yet fixed the standard by which to determine when a danger shall be deemed clear; how remote the danger may be and yet be deemed present; and what degree of evil shall be deemed sufficiently substantial to justify resort to abridgment of free speech and assembly as the means of protection. To reach sound conclusions on these matters, we must bear in mind why a state is, ordinarily, denied the power to prohibit dissemination of social, economic and political doctrine which a vast majority of its citizens believes to be false and fraught with evil consequence. [274 U.S. 357, 375]   Those who won our independence believed that the final end of the state was to make men free to develop their faculties, and that in its government the deliberative forces should prevail over the arbitrary. They valued liberty both as an end and as a means. They believed liberty to the secret of happiness and courage to be the secret of liberty. They believed that freedom to think as you will and to speak as you think are means indispensable to the discovery and spread of political truth; that without free speech and assembly discussion would be futile; that with them, discussion affords ordinarily adequate protection against the dissemination of noxious doctrine; that the greatest menace to freedom is an inert people; that public discussion is a political duty; and that this should be a fundamental principle of the American government. 3 They recognized the risks to which all human institutions are subject. But they knew that order cannot be secured merely through fear of punishment for its infraction; that it is hazardous to discourage thought, hope and imagination; that fear breeds repression; that repression breeds hate; that hate menaces stable government; that the path of safety lies in the opportunity to discuss freely supposed grievances and proposed remedies; and that the fitting remedy for evil counsels is good ones. Believing in the power of reason as applied through public discussion, they eschewed silence [274 U.S. 357, 376]   coerced by law-the argument of force in its worst form. Recognizing the occasional tyrannies of governing majorities, they amended the Constitution so that free speech and assembly should be guaranteed.

Fear of serious injury cannot alone justify suppression of free speech and assembly. Men feared witches and burnt women. It is the function of speech to free men from the bondage of irrational fears. To justify suppression of free speech there must be reasonable ground to fear that serious evil will result if free speech is practiced. There must be reasonable ground to believe that the danger apprehended is imminent. There must be reasonable ground to believe that the evil to be prevented is a serious one. Every denunciation of existing law tends in some measure to increase the probability that there will be violation of it. 4 Condonation of a breach enhances the probability. Expressions of approval add to the probability. Propagation of the criminal state of mind by teaching syndicalism increases it. Advocacy of lawbreaking heightens it still further. But even advocacy of violation, however reprehensible morally, is not a justification for denying free speech where the advocacy falls short of incitement and there is nothing to indicate that the advocacy would be immediately acted on. The wide difference between advocacy and incitement, between preparation and attempt, between assembling and conspiracy, must be borne in mind. In order to support a finding of clear and present danger it must be shown either that immediate serious violence was to be expected or was advocated, or that the past conduct furnished reason to believe that such advocacy was then contemplated. [274 U.S. 357, 377]   Those who won our independence by revolution were not cowards. They did not fear political change. They did not exalt order at the cost of liberty. To courageous, selfreliant men, with confidence in the power of free and fearless reasoning applied through the processes of popular government, no danger flowing from speech can be deemed clear and present, unless the incidence of the evil apprehended is so imminent that it may befall before there is opportunity for full discussion. If there be time to expose through discussion the falsehood and fallacies, to avert the evil by the processes of education, the remedy to be applied is more speech, not enforced silence. Only an emergency can justify repression. Such must be the rule if authority is to be reconciled with freedom. 5 Such, in my opinion, is the command of the Constitution. It is therefore always open to Americans to challenge a law abridging free speech and assembly by showing that there was no emergency justifying it.

Read and enjoy.

We are thankful for

My wife's family has a tradition of writing "We are thankful for ..." on small post-it notes and then listing all of things that we are thankful for. Certainly this year, we have more than our fair share of things to be thankful for. Sam is growing into more and more of a little boy every day, doing all of the things that a three-year old does, and every day with him is all about discovery. We're all relatively healthy -- Mom's brain cancer hasn't recurred, and she's survived far longer than the statistics said she should; Dad's training for a half marathon at the age of 65; Mimi is going strong at 83, and although Grandmom Gi passed away this summer, it's hard to say she hadn't lived a full life in her 94 years on this Earth.

But somehow, all of the celebration is still tinged with some sorrow. On the one hand, Tasha was elected to the partnership at an AmLaw 20 law firm, the culmination of nine long and hard years of working and striving and stressing, and ultimately, excelling. The fact that 200 associates started at the same time Tasha did, and she was the only one to be elected partner, says something about how much of an achievement this is. But at the same time, one of our best friends, who deserved to be made partner at the same time, was passed over. And more devastating than that, Tasha's mentor and friend, who had worked tirelessly to make her a partner, died unexpectedly the day after the official announcement. It's hard to imagine a bigger devastation to his family, to the Firm, and to Tasha. The fact is, Conor was larger than life, and had an unparalleled ability to make whomever he focused his attention on feel like the singularly most important person in the world. It was a stunning blow at a time when, by all rights, we ought to have been celebrating. But somehow, without him, any celebration would have been hollow.

And yet, it's still Thanksgiving, and we're in Santa Fe with eight inches of snow on the ground and the desert is achingly beautiful. The turkey is in the oven after five of us worked all morning on stuffing and cranberry sauce and sweet potatoes and mashed potatoes and beans and carrots and the rest of our feast. This afternoon, 16 of us will sit down around a table and laugh, and drink some wine, and share stories, and revel in each other. Even with everything going on in our lives, it's hard not to be thankful for that.

A Thought Exercise

Would you recognize radical fundamentalism if you saw it? Here it is in "recognizable" form, if you'll excuse the stereotype for a moment:

Dear Mr. President:

The glory of Allah be upon you! The media tells us that you have received the largest number of popular votes of any president in America's history. Congratulations!

In your election, Allah has graciously granted America—though she doesn't deserve it—a reprieve from the agenda of paganism. You have been given a mandate. We the people expect your voice to be like the clear and certain sound of a trumpet. Because you seek the Prophet daily, we who know Allah will follow that kind of voice eagerly.

Don't equivocate. Put your agenda on the front burner and let it boil. You owe the infidels nothing. They despise you because they despise Allah. Honor the prophet, and he will honor you.

Had your opponent won, I would have still given thanks, because the Koran says I must (Shura 11.123). It would have been hard, but because Allah lifts up whom he will and pulls down whom he will, I would have done it. It is easy to rejoice today, because Allah has allowed you to be his servant in this nation for another presidential term. Undoubtedly, you will have opportunity to appoint many judges who are faithful to the will of Allah and exercise forceful leadership with the Congress in passing legislation that follows the Koran regarding the family, sexuality, sanctity of life, religious freedom, and freedom of speech. You have four years—a brief time only—to leave an imprint for righteousness upon this nation that brings with it the blessings of Allah himself.

As it is said in the holy Koran, "O men! serve your Lord Who created you and those before you so that you may guard against evil." (Shura 2.21) The student body, faculty, and staff at Al Ibrahim Madrasa commit ourselves to pray for you—that you would do right and honor Allah. Pull out all the stops and make a difference. If you have weaklings around you who do not share the values of the Prophet Muhammed, shed yourself of them as it is commanded in the Koran, "O Prophet! Make war against the unbelievers and the hypocrites and be merciless against them." (Shura 9.73). Muslims Americans who are true believers in the way of the Prophet would love to see one president who doesn't care whether he is liked, but cares infinitely that he does right.

Best wishes.
Sincerely your friend,
Azam ibn Said,
Imam

PS: A few moments ago I read this letter to the students in the mosque. They applauded loudly their approval.

On occasion, Muslims have not agreed with things you said during your first term. Nonetheless, we could not be more thankful that Allah has given you four more years to serve Him as President, never taking off your faith and laying it aside as a man takes off a jacket, but living, speaking, and making decisions as one who knows the word of the Prophet to be eternally true.

Now consider that the letter was actually written and delivered to the President by a leader of the Christian right (though, obviously, with quotes from the New Testament instead of similar quotes from the Koran)? Would you still recognize it as fundamentalism?

It happened. Here's the link to the letter, by Bob Jones III, president of Bob Jones University. [http://www.bju.edu/letter]

* * *

By the way, the Republicans are fond of paying homage to Barry Goldwater, and the impact that he had on the party's current dominance. But here's what Goldwater had to say about the Christian right's role in all this:

When you say 'radical right' today, I think of these moneymaking ventures by fellows like Pat Robertson and others who are trying to take the Republican Party away from the Republican Party, and make a religious organization out of it. If that ever happens, kiss politics goodbye. (Washington Post, July 28, 1994) [sorry, no link to the WaPo, only to Wikipedia

[In conclusion, I should note that I chose to use a "Muslim fundamentalist" as the example because the American media, and frankly, the Bush Administration, has for years portrayed a black and white vision of Islam. In order for the thought exercise to work, it had to play to that prejudice. I had no intention of offending anyone (other than Republican extremists, of course), and apologize if I did offend the non-extremists among us. In point of fact, in the course of researching some of the quotes from the Koran, I found a number of verses and Shuras that I want to go back and reread for their humanist and literary value. I freely acknowledge, by the way, that I may have taken the Koran quotes out of context, but I was trying to make a point.]

If I've Said It Once...

You get the government you deserve.

If you think you deserve better than lying, voter intimidation, crippling budget deficits, callous disregard for human life, disdain for the basic rules of our democracy, snobbish evangelism, and an inability to see, let alone admit, errors, then you deserve better than four more years of George W. Bush.

While we here at Laboville have been reluctant supporters of John Kerry, the fact is that Senator Kerry on his worst day -- the day when he is feeble, unsure, trying to play both ends against the middle -- Kerry will be infinitely more competent then the President is on his best day, and therefore is the clear and obvious choice tomorrow.

We deserve better.