I’m a firm believer in the notion that free speech is in trouble here in America. To fix it, a lot of our ridiculous, increasingly stifling laws and attitudes need to be challenged. Unfortunately, they always end up being challenged by idiots.
In this case the idiot in question is a 14-year-old kid who decided to display a 14-foot-sign in front of his school. On the sign were written the words “Bong Hits 4 Jesus”. His school principal felt that the sign promoted drug use and the principal suspended him for 10 days. The kid and his activist father took the school to court on the basis of First Amendment issues, and lost in a split decision. Along the way dear old Dad was fired from his job for refusing to drop the case, and presumably the kid really slacked off on learning important things like, oh I don’t know, US History.
Variety reports that MTV and Paramount are turning the kid’s story into a movie. Their plan is to focus on the relationship between a father and son, glossing over what a troublemaker this kid must have been to begin with. I mean, couldn’t the kid have been holding some sort of anti-war sign, or maybe a picture with President Bush sporting devil horns? Then at least he’d be making a statement. Instead, he acted like a jackass and got treated like the snot-nosed jerk he probably was. Somehow, MTV thinks this will be their Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Sorry, Jimmy Stewart would have grabbed a paddle and turned this kid over his knee.
To me, the more interesting part of the story is the kid’s dad being fired for exercising his civil rights on his own time. Screw the kid, kid’s shouldn’t have the right to free speech or anything else until they turn 18. Why didn’t they sue the dad’s employer instead? The right to randomly sue people for profit is as American as voting or apple pie. If we’re not going to protect free speech, can’t we at least protect people’s right to be greedy and litigious?
