Wednesday, February 08, 2006

Free Speech & Leaks...

Freedom of speech is one of our most treasured rights. The current turmoil over the Muhammed cartoons only underscores how critical a right that is.

But there are members of our society, indeed, citizens, whose rights to free speech are, and must be, constrained. Many people might find that statement curious, or even abhorrent, but it is logical and correct.

Members of our military are necessarily constrained by military regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Obviously, men and women in the field in a war zone must not exercise free speech, lest their "loose lips sink ships."

But what should be equally apparent is that our elected Representatives and Senators must also be constrained. When a Senator, for example, leaks intelligence information in a time of war, that Senator should, at the very least, be censured, but in truth, should be considered as a possible traitor.

I have heard some rather strange rationalizations about how narrowly the charge of treason should be applied, but the Constitution makes clear that giving aid and comfort to the enemy is a treasonous offense. Now surely, a leak that makes plain our methods of surveiling known or suspected agents of al Qaeda rises to that standard. Why then, do we not hear any great hue and cry about the continuing indiscretion of Senator Leahy, a.k.a. Leaky?

There are many ways in which our elected leaders bypas the Constitution on an almost daily basis, but surely this is among the most offensive.

1 Comments:

At 9:54 AM, Blogger Stacy said...

Hey Bill, I'm back.

 

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