The First Amendment

Free speech is a wonderful thing. Many of the members and contributors of this site are citizens of the United States of America, and free speech is enshrined in the First Amendment of its constitution.

This fine and noble ideal is much commented upon by users of the Internet. "Free speech for all!" is the battlecry, and this is a good thing. The most vociferous users of this clarion cry are those who have been told to curtail what they say, or perhaps have been banned from forums such as ours. Indeed, this page is not linked to anywhere on the site. The only reason you should see this page is when a moderator is forced to pull this link out to show you a few facts.

There are three things to consider:

A: The First Amendment protects free speech in public arenas. Internet forums have time and again been proven to be private institutions and subject to their own rules. Noble though the First Amendment is, it does not apply here or to any other Internet forum.

B: Even if the American legal system changed and it did apply, the site is owned by a citizen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and hosted in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Unless the 'special relationship' between the UK and the USA gets any more special, you can spin on it.

C: The moderator or administrator who gave you the URL for this page was probably chuckling while typing. There may even have been a snigger. The owner of this site encourages such jocularity.

Welcome to reality (tm).

Reginald Arbuthnot Peregrine Scallion