July 4th weekend, Independence Day, is upon us; a day to commemorate the Declaration of Independence from foreign powers, adopted by the Continental Congress in 1776. It took this new nation eleven more years to come up with the United States Constitution, ratified in 1787, and another four years to realize some of the things they left out of the original constitution. Hence, the Bill of Rights, or the first ten Amendments to the Constitution, was ratified. Our founding fathers were not infallible, but they were pretty darn smart. The very first amendment they drafted prohibited the government from messing with religion, either for or against, (Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof); it also contained what we now call “freedom of speech,” (Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press); as well as “the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” Now, there’s a lot of fodder for discussion, mostly heated discussion, in just that First Amendment, but it is the freedom of speech I want to address.

Whether you agree with the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) or not, their function is to be the watchdog of the Constitution, insuring your rights as an American citizen as guaranteed by that Constitution. “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it,” penned by Evelyn Beatrice Hall describing Voltaire’s attitude, sums up how I feel about a some of our “civil liberties.”

I do not agree with some of my friends and acquaintances politically. I do not agree with some of my relatives regarding religion. But I fully believe they have a right to believe, and express those beliefs, as they see fit. What bothers me is some people want to take that right away from me. In so saying “congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech” the government of my country has afforded me the right to believe as I will, and to express those beliefs.
Let me be clear. Having the right to do something and exercising that right is a matter of discretion. I am as guilty as anyone of speaking out when I should have kept my mouth shut. In fact, I’m probably more guilty than some. I’m sorry, it’s in my nature. But there is an expression of freedom of speech that I totally abhor; foul language. Call it cussing, cursing, swearing or whatever you will, it offends me. I suppose those people who use excessively foul language in public do it unconsciously. They are so immured in their own little worlds, they fail to see or care that people around them may be offended by their language. For instance, I was in the local hardware store the other day. While waiting my turn, there were two young men talking to the clerk about some parts they wanted. Every second or third word out of their mouths was a foul expletive. I’m not sure why some people feel it necessary to punctuate their speech with offensive language. To me it only shows lack of intelligence and self respect; say nothing of respecting others around them. I know some of the language I routinely hear from the younger generation comes from culturally accepted norms of movies and television. I’m not sure how that came about, but it has.

I will defend your right to say what you will, but please, temper it with discretion, courtesy and self respect.