The Times They Are a Changin'

A federal court in Virginia recently threw out a $5 million verdict against anti-gay protesters who picketed the funeral for a dead marine in Maryland. Many were understandably upset at that ruling. Among the many who were upset at the offensive protest, were those who were more upset by the anti-gay message of the protesters, and the court ruling in their favor, rather than the hostility shown towards a young man who died serving his country.

Yet, despite the anger and frustration often on display at many rallies and protests, few have matched the deliberate offensiveness of the left. From the hateful protests against the Vietnam War (I can recall the "baby killer" signs) and the hostility displayed against those returning from that war, both dead and alive, to the orchestrated offensiveness often on display at Gay Pride rallies, the left is unmatched in it's attempts to shock the sensibilities and it's contempt for the public. Unlike the objectionable protest by the anti-gay protesters in Maryland however, the protests by the Vietnam and gay rights protesters were, and are, embraced by the left. The protest in Maryland was condemned by the right.

The offensiveness displayed towards those serving in Vietnam was greater than that displayed in Maryland because most who went were drafted, and so had no choice but to go and fight. However, despite the hostility, insensitivity, and down right cruelty of some of those protesting against veterans returning from Vietnam, both dead and alive, I cannot recall a single instance where protesters were sued for their actions.

As an American, I am angered by the offensiveness of such protests as occured in Maryland. As a conservative, I am troubled by the attempts to stifle them. It is well within the rights of people to take offense at the words and actions of others. But people should be wary of trying to prohibit those words and actions. As history has shown, the sides always change. You can never know whether, in the future, you will be the one protesting, or the one offended by the protests.