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Politics : View from the Center and Left -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Steve Lokness who wrote (129306)	1/26/2010 12:23:43 PM
From: Travis_Bickle	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 542008

It seems to me that if you and I enjoy freedom of speech, and you and I enjoy freedom of association, then if we do choose to associate, the association should also enjoy freedom of speech ... otherwise there could be no collective speech. It's a very big world and there really aren't many individuals who get heard. If you happen to be one of the individuals who "don't count" that is especially true. In the first half of the century what hope could a black person have to be heard as an individual? Without the ability to express themselves collectively they may as well not have existed. Where would gays and lesbians be today if they had to express their voices only as individuals? A lot of them aren't even out. If the rules are: 1. You as an individual have freedom of speech; but 2. If you associate with other like-minded individuals, the government has the right to stifle your collective speech then I don't think our freedom of speech is worth all that much ... sure you can post a diary at Daily Kos and a few hundred people (or maybe six people) will read it but it won't accomplish anything.

To: Steve Lokness who wrote (129306)	1/26/2010 4:49:09 PM
From: Katelew	Respond to of 542008

I don't disagree with these observations and won't say I'm pleased with the court decision. Even though I see the logic to the decision, the potential for blowback is real and there surely will be some. I suspect, though, that the typical business corporation will not want itself easily identified and will direct money to the 527s as they do now surreptitiously. This will be interesting to see how it plays out in the next election. My disappointment is mainly that it will allow a group like the hatefilled Citizens United to release the kinds of so-called documentaries that it wanted to release on Hillary Clinton. These are the same people that dogged Bill Clinton with accusations of murder, rape, etc.