Fascism in America

Pretty please, watch this. It seems that perhaps Democrats and Republicans have traded places, as the "Conservative" Bob Novak almost actually supported his fellow conservative, Frank Zappa, in the piece, and now Republicans would not support free speech whatsoever, especially when talking about The War in Iraq.

But, I'm so glad that the country did not continue down the path of censorship. It's not everyday that I think of how free I truly am to say whatever I want without fear of repercussions. Thank your lucky stars that the Dems didn't win that battle in 1986.

Frank Zappa supports - or supported - an absolutist take on free speech, especially in the media. And why not? In America, doesn't the fabled "Marketplace of Ideas" really win? Do really unpopular ideas win? Did the morons on the show, especially Bob Novak, not realize how unConstitutional it was to say that it should be limited? Is incest hatespeech?

I understand that not all speech is protected, but I think that defending those positions is a very slippery slope. How far can one go before speech becomes libel? Or Slander? Penn Jillette can call people motherfuckers or assholes as often as he pleases on his show, but to call them "lying assholes" is crossing the line somehow?

I guess, though in some instances I can agree that speech can be rightfully limited. That is, in very limited instances can speech itself be prohibited, though I find it hard to believe that anyone has a definite, clear idea of when speech becomes unconstitutional.

What are your thoughts on this?

I found a website called The Real First Amendment?, in which the limitations are explained "with fine print." It fits somewhere in this argument, but doesn't fine print lead to some kinds of activism on the parts of lawmakers and judges?