Contributed by: filbert Monday, August 15 2005 @ 06:48 AM CST
Absolutist interpretation of free-speech rights, with no injunction against “shouting fire in a crowded theater,” has protected extremists such as Mr. Qatada and Omar Bakri Mohammed, who recently fled Britain after two decades of preaching hatred and violence. Allowing Muslims to practice their religion freely is the act of a free society. But looking the other way while radical clerics praise suicide bombers in Israel and America and encourage their acolytes to attack their neighbors is an abdication of governmental responsibility.
For every right there is a responsibility. If you want to preach hatred, do not be surprised when the mob with torches and pitchforks (or, in Texas, shotguns) arrive at your doorstep telling you to shut up.