There can hardly be a more contentious and consequential issue than one involving the First Amendment.
Just such an issue, the Snyder v. Phelps case, has now arrived at the U.S. Supreme Court.
It is the kind of case that, in my estimation, has divided American opinion right down the middle.
What is even more significant, it is an issue where one can find the brightest legal and Constitutional minds taking positions on either side of the issue.
In his “Privacy Or Free Speech: Snyder v. Phelps Argued Today,” our colleague and legal scholar Elijah Sweete takes a nuanced and informed approach to the subject. Many of our readers have commented equally informed, albeit not always “nuanced.”
As a layman wading into such a high-talent, high-stakes issue and not constrained by relevant credentials and titles, I feel like a babe in the woods and a babe in toyland—all at the same time. Could be good or could be dangerous!
While I have strong opinions on this issue, I can understand why others have totally opposite convictions. Regardless of which way SCOTUS decides, I and those “others” will have had plenty of good company along the way.
Crossposted from The Huffington Post.
The author is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a writer.