Saturday, November 20, 2004

Message on a T-Shirt

A thirteen year old in Middletown has been ordered to cover up his T-Shirt because of a political statement on it.

The front of the shirt reads 'The Real Terrorist Is In The White House', and has been called a distraction by school officials.

Free speech can be a distraction. It's a burden that living in a society where people can express their opinions brings us.

Seems like the display of this garment in public presents an opportunity to talk about topics such as democracy, free speech, political power, the processes of government, and many more.

Or the squelching of intellectual curiosity, and the drowning of rational debate and discourse.

The T-Shirt doesn't sound like the type of harmful distraction that maliciously yelling "Fire" in a theatre would be, but rather that of a young mind trying to understand.

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