Editorial: Supreme Court puts women, workers at risk
Publisher’s note: This editorial is form the June 26, 2014, Los Angeles Times.
The U.S. Supreme Court faced the challenging task of weighing one person’s right to free speech against another’s right to be protected from harassment when it reviewed a Massachusetts law requiring 35-foot buffer zones around abortion clinics. Unfortunately, the court got the balance wrong when it voted Thursday to strike down the law.
As important as the First Amendment is, courts have long recognized that it may be restricted, within limits. Americans may protest, plead, hector and even offend, but they have no inalienable right to falsely shout “fire” in a crowded theater, play obscene movies on Main Street or intimidate or bully others going about their lawful business.
The Massachusetts buffer zones were established by the state Legislature after years of violence and intimidation by abortion opponents outside clinics. The fatal shooting of two clinic workers in Brookline, Mass., in 1994 by an abortion opponent spurred the original 2000 buffer zone law, which was eventually found by Massachusetts officials to be inadequate to the task of stopping opponents from intimidating clinic visitors — which is why they put a stricter law in place in 2007.
I have to agree with the article on this matter. The Supreme Court was clearly wrong on this issue. The basic principal here can be formed in a question. Can a right be used for the purpose of violating the rights of others ? The correct answer is “NO” .
The likely reason the Supreme Court is wrong with their ruling is probably because their political beliefs have influenced their decision. Here you can see that we cannot trust a government run court. When a government court, paid by the government, appointed by the government, is making rulings effecting the citizens lives. Here we have a court that completely missed the correct decision. This has happened on other important decisions.
Most people do not educate themselves on legal matters. That’s why in public opinion forums, such as this, you will see foolish comments that are formed according to what a person wants, not according to the law. People have disagreed with me on matters of law here, and upon reading their comments you can see that they know nothing about law.
Pizza. What do you expect from the Stare Decisis Roberts Court… logic? This Roberts Supreme Court makes the Taney (Dred Scott) Supreme Court look good in comparison.
So let me understand Tahoe Pizza – you are schooling the Supreme Court Justices on legal matters? This ruling takes nothing away from women. That is a left talking point to continue their misleading “war on women.” A war that most women agree does not exist. There are many, many programs which provide birth control. A company should not be forced to go against their beliefs just as people have the right to choose who they work for. Don’t like Walmart? Don’t work there and don’t shop there.
Well dan, maybe if they took away your viagara and made you pay out of pocket for your vasectomy you might think different. Probably not. Seems like you want to speak on behalf of women. You dont speak for me.
I agree that we, the people, need to speak up with our money by not shopping or supporting the business that we know are part of this problem. So boycott these business. It worked with the open carry whacko types in texas who now cannot bring their big ol guns into target when buying diapers.
endless pressure, endlessly applied, it will change some of these awful outcomes.
Dan, did you read the article? this case is not the Hobby Lobby case but rather the Mass. abortion case.
All – I owe you an apology, as Reloman stated, I obviously jumped to the conclusion this was the Hobby Lobby case and didn’t do my job in fully reading the article. Shame on me! Go Figure, while I was completely wrong in what the topic was, I don’t speak for all women and don’t pretend to but clearly, neither do you. What one person calls a wacko another calls an American. I suspect that target has had few shootings…
Hey Rock : Thank you for pointing out perhaps the worst decision the Supreme court ever made. What people expect from that court is logic and justice. Sometimes they don’t give it to us. We deserve a Supreme Court that is absent of all politics. When politics play a part, we get bad decisions. I don’t expect the Supreme Court’s decisions to be better than any political decisions made in Washington. I’ve lost faith in the courts. But those who don’t pay close attention to what’s going on still have unjustified faith. It’s high time we stop treating these justices as if they are our kings. We are becoming a laughing stock in Europe, and it’s due to the incompetence in our courts.
Every liberal president appoints liberal justices; And every conservative president appoints conservative justices. So we get politics in the Supreme Court. And there is no end to this political garbage that comes from the Court.