Registered: Feb 2004
Location: Boston
Posts: 282

While watching I saw something that was brought up in the Practice (which ironically is based on Boston) that I thought I would share with you.

I padded the season finale of the Practice because I thought that basketball was gonna run long. It didn't so I ended up getting about 10 minutes of the local news after the show ended. I live in Boston so of course it was about the same sex marriages that are now legal today.

Anyways..... Just like an episode a month or so back, Boston officials set up a "1st Amendment" area for anti-gay protesters.

If you recall there was a case where a woman decked a cop bcuz she didn't want to be moved to a "free speech" area to protest Pres. Bush.

I saw that I was like 'Holy S--T!'

I know that episode of the Practice brought on alot of talk. The fact that they actually did it in real life is unbelievable.

To quote that episode: "I thought the whole country was a free speech area".


I don't want this to turn into a political post but I thought I would share that little story with the rest of you.

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«If you STAND for nothing you will FALL for everyting! ~ I'd rather DIE on my feet than LIVE on my knees!»

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Registered: Sep 2003
Location:
Posts: 113

I think you should post this in the off topic forum.

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-v...hp?s=&forumid=5

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Christopher Brian Dudek
http://www.nightfall.net

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Registered: Jun 2003
Location: Dallas, Nation of Texas
Posts: 1025

When the news media fails us, always employ google after seeing something on a topical news program. I too had NO IDEA that we had such a thing as "free speech zones" and regardless of which side of the issue you're on, it's both embarassing and alarming that we didn't even know about it.

I believe it would violate the forum's policy for me to take a side on a political issue, but I would like to confirm that yes, this episode of The Practice was very much grounded in real world events.

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Hughes HD-DVR250 / b&w comics and time travel piss me off

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Registered: Nov 2000
Location: New Orleans
Posts: 3104

The whole country has never been one big free speech zone. There has always been limits. Try walking into a city hall while there is a meeting taking place, and try to just talk at will. You'll be forced to stop. Try to protest something inside of a public library, or on a military base, etc. Or the cliche of shouting fire in a theater.

Now, if you're outside on a public street, and they force one group of protestors to go a mile away, while the opposing side of protestors/demonstrators stay put (that was the basic plot of the episode, IIRC), then that is not cool. They should just split up the two sides on different sides of the same street, without allowing either or both sides from interfering with traffic, safetly, etc. The government's argument in that episode was pretty stupid... they said the anti-Bush protestors had to be far away because of security concerns. How smart would a would-be asassin have to be to realize that he/she just needs to make a pro-Bush sign to get closer?

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Brett

I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous.

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