October 26, 2023
It’s time to demolish the myth that you cannot shout fire in a theater.
It’s not insightful. It’s not graceful. It’s not applicable. Instead, it’s such a flawed concept that anyone who invokes it is worse than wrong.
This canard is rolled out every single time someone wants to suppress expressions they dislike. You’ll turn on your TV, and some interviewer will say, “But the First Amendment says they have a right to free speech,” to which the Authoritarian of the Hour will respond, “Well, there are exceptions to the First Amendment, I mean we already know that…
“You cannot shout Fire! in a theater.”
Except…
- You absolutely CAN shout fire in a theater.
- It might be morally wrong to do so, but your action will have nothing to do with the First Amendment activities.
OR…
For Future Reference
After you watch this episode of Gracearchy with Jim Babka, you’ll realize that this is a complete and total takedown of the relentless Authoritarians who hide behind this canard. You’ll want to bookmark and save it.
This episode is designed to be an evergreen resource that you can send to everyone who repeats this myth. And after they hear these facts…
No one will want to be associated with this line of thinking once you expose its hideous origin.
They will also learn why they have no legal leg to stand on. And they will discover conditions are necessary to convert shouting Fire! into a criminal offense. Even more amazingly, they’ll learn what they could be charged with if they did so — and why those charges will have nothing to do with First Amendment issues.
Bonus material covers the relationship of the shout Fire! myth to the Twitter files, Biden v. Missouri (state-led social media censorship), and campaign finance law.
And during one short segment, you’re likely to learn something you’ve never heard anywhere else about the construction of the First Amendment…
Along with why someone would never PRINT Fire! in a crowded theater.
For more details, check out the time stamps for this episode titled, You Can Shout Fire In A Theater. You can also listen while you work or drive on these podcasting platforms: Pandora * iHeart * Google Podcasts * Spotify
We’re featuring today’s episode on…
And why Rumble? Because we know some of you have already switched from YouTube to Rumble. YouTube numbers are down, Rumble is up. Rumble won’t censor us when we bring grace into controversial waters, and Rumble will revenue share with Gracearchy much sooner than YouTube will.
Regardless of where you choose to listen, please subscribe to the show there.
ZAP The State and have a nice day,
Jim Babka
Host, Gracearchy with Jim Babka
Co-creator, Zero Aggression Project
Gracearchy is hosted by Zero Aggression Project’s co-founder, Jim Babka, but the views expressed in the show are not necessarily those of the board, staff, or supporters of the Zero Aggression Project (Downsize DC Foundation).