I've been hearing alot of stuff from Carrie about her free speech rights...

[pepperbear]

...and I'm trying to figure out at what point they were actually violated.

She didn't exactly get arrested, which is what one would expect when someone evokes the Constitution in their defense. In fact, all that happened was that she didn't get the Miss USA crown. Of course, this was alleged by her, except she made these allegations the very next day after the pageant to every RW pundit with a mic.

It angers me that, if that were the case, the pageant didn't come right out and say "Miss USA must represent all Americans. We did not agree with the substance of her answer and it did influence our decision to deny her the crown." Do they not have that right? Instead, they had to resort to tawdry tabloid naughtiness, so of course she gets to keep her Miss CA crown.

It angers me that it was Perez Hilton, as worthless a "journalist" as there ever was, who got to be the poster boy for her opposition, and by default the poster boy for Gay America. The very next day, he fed fuel to the fire by calling her a bitch on his blog. Of course the right rushed to her defense, and even middle of the road people thought that the "Queer went to far". The guy's got more libel suits against him than brain cells. Jesus! Why not Carson Kressley or Ellen?

It angers me that she can keep the crown and STILL shill for this anti-gay group. The crown means nothing, except that "they" won this round.

It angers me that she went to the press the very next morning and complained about being exploited because of her beliefs, thereby eclipsing the actual Miss USA....and exploiting her own beliefs in the process. When my imagination runs away with me, I can see a dark car parked in the alley right after the pageant, and Rove rolling down the window for a secret conference.....

It angers me that we as a country still hold her kind of beauty in such high regard that her lies and distorted victimization angle might just work, thereby setting back by a decade all kinds of progress.

It angers me that it's Anita Bryant all over again.

It angers me that I have yet to see HIDE NOR HAIR of Miss NJ, AKA the reigning Miss USA, and I NEVER heard anyone compare her winning answer to Prejean's losing answer. I can't find Miss NJ's response anywhere on youtube. I don't even know if Miss NJ wasn't simply BETTER than Miss CA. I DON'T EVEN REMEMBER HER NAME.

It angers me that this was her answer:

“Well I think its great that Americans are able to choose one or the other. We live in a land where you can choose same-sex marriage or opposite marriage. And you know what? in MY country, and...uhm... in my family, I think that I believe that a marriage should be between a man and a woman. No offense to anybody out there, but that’s how I was raised and that’s how I think it should be, between a man and a woman. Thank you very much.”

The press doesn't seem to care how egregiously WRONG this is. Well, firstly, we live in a land where you can choose IN A HANDFUL OF STATES. And what's with "In HER country"? HER COUNTRY? And what's with the "No offense to anyone out there"? Like you give a shit, honey.

It's amateur, poorly phrased, like the proverbial "dumb blonde with fake boobs" said it. And yet no one thinks she lost because her answer was delivered badly. Again, haven't been able to find Miss NJ's to compare, but it wouldn't surprise me to discover it was poised and confident.

These are but a few things that anger me about the whole Prejean affair, and why I don't buy the "she's entitled to her opinion" argument or the lie that her 1st amendment rights are somehow being violated because she didn't win MISS USA.

It's also why I take her more seriously than most.

This woman talked with someone that night after she lost and she was practically offered a seat at the big Conservatives table, just like Palin. There's no substance there, yet she is revered by the right, probably sympathized with by a majority in the middle, and vilified by the Left. However, American history tells us that for the most part, no one cares what the Left thinks, because Mr. and Mrs. Uptight America still thinks the Left is Perez Hilton.

:rant:

[Kievan Rus]

1. What she said is not any different than...

if a contestant were to say how they thought whites were superior to blacks, or more precisely, that white men should only marry white women, and black men should only marry black women.

Homophobia is not any different from racism in my mind.

[ShadowLiberal]

6. Exactly, you'd think they'd want to avoid having their Miss *'s saying stuff like that

I've been of the opinion that she shouldn't have lost her crown from the photos, but should have for filming political ads for groups on a controversial political issue. This wasn't just someone using footage from the Miss USA contest and what someone said to answer a question in their ad, this is one of their crowned winners getting paid to film TV ads for them, and getting paid to do interviews where she speaks out against gay rights.

Image if this was several decades ago and a Miss California was asked about interracial marriage and said it was wrong and immoral, and then went around filming TV ads advocating same race marriage. Do you think the people who organize these Miss America contests would want people decades later to associate someone like that with Miss USA? And people to think "well since they never took away her crown for saying that stuff in ads then that must mean they agreed with her".

You can imagine the uproar the fundies would be making if say Miss Alabama started to show up in pro-abortion ads shown on TV that she got paid to be a part of.

[Gman]

2. Perez Hilton is a complete asshole

he's worthless. But OTOH, he's pushing his name out there for the sake of making money. That's all. He's the whore in all this.

[Cid_B]

12. Ladies and Gentlemen,

I give you your spokesperson....

[Duncan Grant]

15. Gee, do you have an opinion about Carrie Prejean or is posting photos all you're good for?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

[Cid_B]

19. Who gives a crap about Miss California?

Honestly I'm just standing back watching the circular firing squad of those who think she is the devil incarnate.

[Duncan Grant]

21. Circular firing squad? What are you talking about?

I don't think she's the devil incarnate. She managed to foolishly destroy her credibility all by herself.

Carrie's the one who went off on a moralistic highwire act. It's a pity she wasn't up for the challenge.

Glass houses and all that...

[Duncan Grant]

16. That doesn't change the fact that Carrie Prejean is a conservative moralist bigot.

Seems to me Carrie's had every opportunity to make this "right". A reasonable person would have stopped digging on day 1.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

25. Maybe.

But he's a much better human being that that bigot woman.

And all of her supporters.

[tularetom]

3. First Palin, then JT Plumber, and now this dumb beyotch

They sure can pick some doozies for role models for us common folk can't they/

This is going to blow up in their face big time. Carrie is not a sympathetic figure despite her constant whining. The more we hear her the less we like her.

But I still want more pictures of her fake titties. If she 's that eager to be objectified I'll oblige her.

[JI7]

10. exactly, it's the same reason there isn't much outrage at Wanda Sykes joke about Limbaugh

other than from the typical far right fox news type crowd.

even if people disagree with the joke it's just not something they can get worked up over because Rush Limbaugh is not a sympathetic figure.

Prejean is a joke. and seeing her spew her ignorance right after the interview with the gay soldier being kicked out of the army made her look like a bigger piece of shit than she already is.

[spanone]

4. k&r...

[LakeSamish706]

5. Hey... But there is a bright side... Maybe Donald got his "end wet"... How great is that...

for him? This is nothing more that bullshit ... uh.. Just like American Idol.... Republicans at their best or worst, you choose.

[azurnoir]

7. Note to Carrie

Free Speech means you have the right to voice your opinion, it also applies to those who think your opinion is stupid, bigoted, or even vile, you see they have Free Speech too

BTW dear saline or silicone?

[JI7]

8. Bigots always claim their freedom is being violated when they are criticized for their bigotry

[ColbertWatcher]

9. I think Wanda Sykes has eclipsed Perez Hilton. n/t

[SeattleGirl]

11. From what I heard of her bleary teary speech, it seems she thinks

her rights were violated because a lot of people disagreed with her neanderthal views.

To which I say, Oh boo hoo, Carrie. Cry me a freakin' river.

[tblue37]

13. The RW has latched onto Carrie Prejean because Joe the Plumber has ditched the Repulican Party.

Carrie Prejean is their new Joe the Beauty Queen.

[Withywindle]

14. Free Speech means you can shoot off your ignorant mouth all you like

and the Government isn't allowed to mess with you. She hasn't been arrested. She hasn't been executed or exiled or any of that shit that the founding fathers remembered happened all too often to dissenters in their day.

Free Speech does NOT mean you are protected from all natural consequences of other private citizens, with their own Free Speech rights equal to yours, listening to you and thinking and saying, "Damn, that bitch is ignorant."

[Trocadero]

17. Violation of constitutional rights requires state (govt) action

[jberryhill]

18. Apparently The First Amendment Prohibits Criticism Of What You Say

Who knew?

[unblock]

20. to the right wing, their freedom of speech means NOT HAVING TO HEAR OUR freedom of speech

they think if anyone objects to anything they say, their free speech rights are somehow being violated.

they confuse freedom of speech with freedom from consequences, or alternatively, they want rights without responsibility.

[Caliman73]

22. It is just plain ignorance.

I would imagine that many people are ignorant (probably no one on DU) of what exactly the 1st amendment enumerates. As some have already said, and as KO pointed out yesterday, the 1st amendment prohibits government interference in self expression. If the FCC had yanked the plug on the answer, or had launched a campaign against her, then I could see her point. However, she is a contracted private employee of the pageant and as such is not protected from any policy of theirs unless she could clearly prove that as a member of a protected class, she was targeted. Sorry but ignorant people are not a protected class. She has no claim to say her "free speech" rights are being violated. She is an idiot, but yet the media continue to give her airtime and they do not challenge her stupid interpretation of what the 1st amendment actually means.

[HillWilliam]

23. Beauty is only skin deep, ugly goes to the bone...

Beauty always fades away,
But ugly holds it own.

You can peroxide-up and paint-up and put fake titties on a pig and it's still a pig. Prejean is just another typical spoiled, whining, temperamental, holier-than-thou, seen-one-seen-em-all, brainless pageant queen. They're utterly interchangeable, utterly forgettable, good for two things and good AT neither one of 'em without lots of assistance. Once the looks fade and the tits and ass droop, there goes one of those.

Carrie, if you had a brain, you'd know that a wise man once said, "It is better to be silent and though a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt." But being a typical rightwinger, you only stop shooting yourself in the foot just long enough to reload.

[Toucano]

24. I am not a pageant person, so someone has to tell me.

What is the point of ASKING the contestant a question IF her response to the question isn't going to be judged?



She's just a homophobic sore loser, I think.

[Fountain79]

26. One thing I do find funny in this whole debate is the right's repeated statement

that she gave an intelligent response. Actually it wasn't...however I think Perez Hilton holds some of the blame along withwhoever released the photos. If she had been ignored it would have gone away quickly. Fox News and the like were basically picking a fight and the left responded.

[WeDidIt]

27. She is operating under the mistaken notion that she has a constitutional right

to not be criticized for things she says.