as i recall, you are free to advocate almost anything, as long as you don't advocate it by violent means. -paul
From cypherpunks-errors@toad.com Thu Aug 22 03:09:01 1996 Date: Wed, 21 Aug 1996 14:58:32 -0700 (PDT) From: Michelle KC5KYO <mthompso@qualcomm.com> To: cypherpunks@toad.com Subject: Re: [Noise] RE: Canada Imprisons People For Human Rights Acti... Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type> : > TEXT/PLAIN> ; > charset=US-ASCII> Sender: owner-cypherpunks@toad.com Content-Length: 1141
I do not believe that freedom of speech in the U.S.A. extends to actively agitating for secession or the overthrow of the federal government.
The right to discuss revolt or secession or the overthrow of the federal government, it seems to me, is given below:
"We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness - That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. ... "
Now this is the Declaration of Independence, and not the Constitution, but it seems to me that the right to discuss "agitating for secession or the overthrow of the federal government" is protected.
Michelle