Jon's Articles
Contact Jon

Auditions and interviews

Where have all the manners gone?

Charlotte and The Bobcats

Auditions and interviews

Not just any old photographs

Where have all the manners gone?
15 September 2009

As Americans we treasure and protect our Right of Free Speech. Even if means allowing hate groups to gather and march down Main Street while the good citizens watch behind police barricades. This freedom to speak one’s mind has been defended and debated since the Revolutionary War. It was one of the main reasons the Colonists broke away from England.

But how you define and explain the actual concepts and examples of Free Speech has dogged us ever since, right up to the Supreme Court. If you give American Nazis and the KKK parade permits to march up New York’s Fifth Avenue (as happened in the 1940s) then does everyone with a “cause” get their chance to demonstrate too?

We’ve had some recent examples of what some might call just plain bad manners vs. the right to express yourself freely in public. First, Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) shouting out a disrespectful phrase while President Obama was speaking to Congress. Was he expressing his “opinion” or just acting in bad taste, lacking the respect usually accorded to the President?

Next, during a critical women’s tennis match Serena Williams not only acts badly but verbally abuses an official over a disputed call. Was Ms Williams freely expressing her “opinion” while disrespecting the official, her opponent and the crowd in general?

Finally, the so-called town hall meetings held in August across the country to debate, pro and con, the recent healthcare plans proposed by the President and his advisers. I quite frankly was appalled at the actions and verbal abuses heaped on public officials and audiences during these debates. Is it OK to bring a firearm to a public forum where words and attitudes heat up to the boiling point? Where do we draw the line between free speech and dangerous actions?

What we as Americans cannot lose sight of is the fact that our cherished freedoms should be taken for granted. We have witnessed countless abuses lately. Everyone has the right to their opinion and this should be respected, no matter how much we disagree. But murdering someone for their opinion isn’t right. Showing no respect for a U.S. Senator or Representative isn’t right. Interrupting a speech at an awards program because you don’t like the recipient of the award isn’t right. Lack of manners and respect for your fellow citizens is not covered by the Bill of Rights.