Westboro Baptist ordered to pay 11mil!

nope, it is a tort. Under our system slander is protected if 1 the victim is a celebrity or public figure, 2 it's satire, or 3 "absence of malice" or basically it's the truth. Even then it's subject to a court ruling to determine.

You're talking to somebody who took Journalism in school, I understand liable and slander inside and out. Maybe it's not a tort under your interpretation of the Constitution, but it is under the courts and that's where justice is handed out.

well sorry, it still is

well I alrady provided a court ruling, that's good enough for me

But if the defendents kept with their usual line, then they would have said things along the line of- "Your son died because he was a fag" and "Your son is burning in hell because he is a fag" and don't forget the family to "You raised a demon fag son" "Your a whore and now your fag son is burning in hell". Now if Snyder was not a homosexual, this could be interpreted as spreading untruths.

My son and I showed up at a military funeral in the area they decided to protest, (as human buffers for the family). It was one of the sickest things ever, These people were screaming at a child, couldn't have been more than 8. Saying things like "Your *** dad's burning in hell" "Cling to your whore mother so she can send your *** ass to hell to" These are hurtful lies, not protected speech. I was appalled my teenaged son had to hear these things, much less a young child who has just lost his family.

It's still not slander because:

a) Homosexuality does not have a negative connotation, and so even if the deceased was straight, it's not a defamation.

b) "Going to hell" is an opinion and belief-based statement, and thus cannot be called slander.

"Protected speech"? ALL speech is protected, but even if we agree that certain speech is unlawful, the SCOTUS has sided in favor of legal restraint on this issue.

In order for a lawsuit to be legally valid a tort must have been committed. "Tort" is defined as "a wrongful act, not including a breach of contract or trust, that results in injury to another's person, property, reputation, or the like, and for which the injured party is entitled to compensation. "

In the common law system alone, you're right, slander would be a civil wrong and thus be considered a tort, but we live under a constitutional common law system in which judicial action is restrained by formal boundaries. I was wrong when I said SCOTUS was against me here, as in 1974 in Gertz v. Robert Welch Inc., SCOTUS found that negative opinions could not be considered libel, only falsified facts. Since slander is the spoken version of libel, we can conclude that the OPINIONS of the demonstrators, while demented, are not slander, and therefore, no tort exists. They claim that God hates America and is punishing us for our sins with the Iraq war, and they also hate gays. These are OPINIONS. Had they said, "Soldier X used to eat puppies, hiissssss", then there'd be a case, but they didn't.

This case was decided based on emotions rather than legal reasoning, and will almost certainly be appealed and overturned. Freedom of expression is non-negotiable in a free society, especially when the opinions being expressed are unpopular.

You just don't know how to be civil do you? I've been trying REALLY hard, maybe you could do the same?

Read my response to Silver's post and you'll see how justice was NOT served in this case.

ONLY if it states falsified facts, which the defendants did not do. SCOTUS ruled on the matter, and much to my own surprise they came down in my favor.

You took journalism, I took Constitutional Law (back when Law School seemed like a fun idea). The Constitution trumps ALL federal and state laws that countermand it (as you know), and in this particular case, SCOTUS, the body which tells us what the Constitution means (despite not having the right to do so), has told us that opinions cannot be called slander.

wrong, offense is measured by the offended. Not the offender. And they didn't say he was a homosexual, they said he was a "FAG" who "GOD HATES" anybody who does not see this as offensive needs to rehash what they know about the english language

just because it's the law, doesn't guarantee that it's right.

And what do you think Roe V. Wade was about, if not "emotions rather than legal reasoning (read: a woman's choice)....and that last sentence works both ways, buddy.

It's still not slander because:

a) Homosexuality does not have a negative connotation, and so even if the deceased was straight, it's not a defamation.

b) "Going to hell" is an opinion and belief-based statement, and thus cannot be called slander.

"Protected speech"? ALL speech is protected, but even if we agree that certain speech is unlawful, the SCOTUS has sided in favor of legal restraint on this issue.

What kind of kool-aid are you drinking? Homosexuality doesn't have a negative connotation>???? Then, if that's the case, why is the religious right able to score points using it as a flag waving issue????

Do you hate yourself because you are gay? I have a feeling the answer is no, you do not.

I do not believe this is covered by the Consitution, at least not under the 1st...

Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

There is nothing peaceable about shouting down people trying to mourn the lost family members with obscenities. It is at the very least antagonistic.

What kind of kool-aid are you drinking? Homosexuality doesn't have a negative connotation>???? Then, if that's the case, why is the religious right able to score points using it as a flag waving issue????

Going to hell??? If I told you to "go to hell", technically, I could be banned, according to the rules and regulations...so what are you talking about....you want to have it both ways.

SCOTUS may have sided in favor, but a lawsuit is still looming.

Are you sane....I am for the mourners, and the family of the soldier. Earth to you. And do spell check before you send out your posts, you'd seem less "lacking".