Free speech (was Dancin' oldies sends Sebastian to the beach)

[Dib9@aol.com]

As I have said here before I am a First Amendment extremist.  I don' t think 
there should be any government controls on the content of broadcasts.  The 
market will eliminate the more extreme elements.  The FCC's authority should 
be limited to technical issues and licensing the limited spectrum.  I know my 
views are out of the mainstream on this but it is what I believe.

On the current discussion, I agree that Stern and the like should be free to 
do what they do as long as the owners of the stations want them to do it.  I 
also think anyone is free to criticize them, organize boycotts and contact 
advertisers.  That's how an open society should work.  Just don't ask the 
government to fine them or shut them down.

The thing that concerns me is that the right and the left of the political 
spectrum both seem to have lost respect for free speech.  In the good old 
days, it was just my friends on the right we were quick to dismiss the First 
Amendment but we could depend on the liberals to defend it.  Now un 
discussions on popular culture, radio, pornography, campaign finance reform, 
etc., people on both sides of the political spectrum are quick to dismiss 
free speech if it is something they don't like.  

Dan Billings
Bowdoinham, Maine

------------------------------