"I'm a veteran of the Korean War and will exercise my constitution right until I die....". Very profound, and patriotic emotion stirring..beat the drum, wave the flag.
Well spoken words, Wallymac. However, to do that, these days, can land you in a whole heap of trouble. The right of 'free speech' has been removed from ALL constitutions (if they were ever really there), or whatever stand for such, in all so called 'democratized' (what a farce)nations today.
A Brit has just been sentenced in an Austrian court to three years for exercising his, and he hadn't attempted to incite anyone, or accused any government - merely, as an historian himself expressed disagreement with someone else's interpretaion of it. Hit and run drivers who have knocked down and killed a child have got less.
I have read of a number of Americans being manhandled, brought to court, and dealt with for exercising theirs. And we have just brought a Muslim cleric to court and sentenced him to prison for exercising what he believed was his right.
The 'establishment' will always find a way to take away anything to which you thought (foolishly) you had an inalienable right - if what you are saying disagrees with the point of view they hold.
One such way, relating to free speech is to claim that you 'abused' free speech. That is a loose term, and is hard to defend when accused as you will find should you always put effect to your words.
However, here on this board, friend, the most you will get is a few nasty, cynical, words from someone who disagrees with your point of view, or at the very worst, have your post deleted.
As for having served in a war. Unfortunately they are often used to feed you with nonsense in order to get you to do, at the time, that which would normally be abhorrant.
Hundreds of thousands of men went forward in waves, often waste deep in mud to be slaughtered by machine guns, and shells
day after day for four years in the belief it was a 'war to end all wars' and that they were fighting for freedom. (both sides believed the same). Just a few years later, they were at it again.
But I understand what you are saying, and I know it is nice to cling to these beliefs, like a child clings to its pacifier. It makes reality less disagreeable.
AI
