It's enough to make you think that you are in some sort of a Twilight Zone. There are a plethora of so-called "free zones" emerging throughout the United States. Most are in reaction to dangers, some real and most imagined. For example, there are "gun free zones", the misnamed "free speech zone, and now "tech free zones"! This blog will not discuss the wussy pussy "safe zones" for snowflake millennials. That will be discussed in a future post.
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The Pop Tart Pistol is especially
dangerous to diabetics.
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Gun Free Zones
"Gun free zones" are self-explanatory. But they are also "zero tolerance" zones. And this intolerance includes such benign "weaponry" as toy guns, squirt guns, and Pop Tarts bitten into the shape of a gun. No guns, real or otherwise, are to be brandished by ANYONE, that is, except for the campus gunman. The most ridiculous aspect of "gun free zones" is that the ban includes campus security. There's an old saying, "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king." So too are armed gunman "kings" terrorizing campuses or movie theaters. And yet, the stupid question is still asked as to how could this have been prevented?
"Gun free zones" are self-explanatory. But they are also "zero tolerance" zones. And this intolerance includes such benign "weaponry" as toy guns, squirt guns, and Pop Tarts bitten into the shape of a gun. No guns, real or otherwise, are to be brandished by ANYONE, that is, except for the campus gunman. The most ridiculous aspect of "gun free zones" is that the ban includes campus security. There's an old saying, "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king." So too are armed gunman "kings" terrorizing campuses or movie theaters. And yet, the stupid question is still asked as to how could this have been prevented?
Free Speech Zones
More troubling are the so-called "free speech zones", especially those located on college campuses. Student Nicole Sanders is the plaintiff in a free speech lawsuit against Blinn College in Texas.* Her lawsuit challenges the college restricting speech to a specific “Free Speech Zone” on campus. Her suit resulted from an incident where Sanders was accosted by a college administrator and three armed police officers. She was advocating for a conceal-carry policy to be instated on campus.
More troubling are the so-called "free speech zones", especially those located on college campuses. Student Nicole Sanders is the plaintiff in a free speech lawsuit against Blinn College in Texas.* Her lawsuit challenges the college restricting speech to a specific “Free Speech Zone” on campus. Her suit resulted from an incident where Sanders was accosted by a college administrator and three armed police officers. She was advocating for a conceal-carry policy to be instated on campus.
Sanders was informed by the administrator that she needed "special permission" to advocate for a "conceal carry policy" on campus and to recruit members for a student organization that she was forming. The college administration dragged their collective feet for six weeks allegedly to approve a simple card that she was going to hand out to fellow students. What was the incendiary message on the card that the administration was exercising content control over? It was an explanation of the 4th and 5th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
While it is settled law that free speech can be regulated as to time, place, and manner; such regulation must be reasonable. According to the Wikipedia article on free speech:
"Freedom of speech is also sometimes limited to so-called free speech zones, which can take the form of a wire fence enclosure, barricades, or an alternative venue designed to segregate speakers according to the content of their message. There is much controversy surrounding the creation of these areas – the mere existence of such zones is offensive to some people, who maintain that the First Amendment makes the entire country an unrestricted free speech zone. Civil libertarians often claim that Free Speech Zones are used as a form of censorship and public relations management to conceal the existence of popular opposition from the mass public and elected officials... " [Citations omitted.]**
But if Sanders didn’t get prior permission to express her views as required by the college, she was limited to expressing her views only in the “Free Speech Area” on the campus. The prescribed zone is about 16 feet long and 11 feet wide. It is approximately the size of a parking space for a college president. Talk about control and containment! Such free speech zones are more like containment areas to quarantine diseased animals.
I recall the so-called "free speech area" at Southwestern Junior College, which I attended in late 1960s-70s. The area was away from the main campus quad and located near a parking lot on undeveloped land adjacent to the Art Department. The late 1960s-70s were the days of the Vietnam War protests. It was very clear to anyone with a pulse that the object of the "free speech area" was to isolate and contain student dissent. It apparently worked because the "free speech area" was primarily used to stage garage rock band performances hired by the puppet student government to entertain students during the "College Hour".
"College Hour" was from 11 am until 12 noon. It was designed to bring students and faculty together in harmony and in various academic combinations, e.g., study groups, professor-student conferences, and rock bands! Protests faded after the draft lotteries of 1969 and 1970. Those lucky students with "safe" lottery draft numbers were free thereafter to listen to bad rock music without fear of involuntary military service. So much for (self-) righteously indignant dissent. So to paraphrase an old saying, it seemed that music, even bad music, does and did soothe the savage breast of protest. [Ed. note: The saying is attributed to William Congreve and is correctly stated as, "Musick has charms to soothe a savage breast," this is often misquoted as "Music soothes the savage beast ...]
Tech Free Zones
From CBSNew York comes a report that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children aged two years and older should be limited to only hours a day in front of a screen (TV, iPad, tablet, etc.) and zero face time for children under two.** The article also quotes Dr. Ari Brown as recommending that parents, “Have tech-free zones. So "tech-free zones" might be meals times and definitely the bedroom.”
The CBSNewYork report also noted that Pediatricians say studies have shown that excessive media use can lead to attention problems, sleep disorders, and obesity." We get that now with adults. The term "couch potato" (code for "fat ass") has become a part of the cultural lexicon.
We've all seen the YouTube video of the engrossed young woman falling into a fountain while texting. This compendium of texting calamities is instructive and amusing.
The video is preceded by a "Don't text while driving" message, alerting young drivers of the dangers of texting. To add to the dangers of texting while driving, there is also a medical condition called "text neck".
According to an article*** in the Blaze, "[Text neck] occurs because the joints and tissue in the neck are not built to withstand being flexed for long periods, and spending hours peering down at a screen puts them under too much stress."
A survey reported by the Blaze, found that the average American sends 41.5 text messages per day. The 18-24 age group sends 109.5 texts per day. the Blaze concluded that "... this is a lot of time hunched over a small screen and research is saying it's beginning to round out its own medical condition: the text neck." It's also a lot of wasted time sending grammatically awful messages.
Many other maladies have come about or have been exacerbated because of technology, e.g., our old friend, carpal tunnel syndrome, circulation problems from sitting in front of a computer too long, and even blindness from staring too much at a computer screen.
Proposal: Create Common Sense Zones
Most of the above-mentioned problems are created by lack of common sense like, e.g., establishing "gun free zone" where armed bad actors can terrify innocent civilians and unarmed security guards or where distracted people fall into plaza fountains while texting. Common sense zones should be created to allow people to exercise good judgment. But what are the chances of establishing "common sense zones" in America? Answer: Slim and None and Slim just left town.
"Freedom of speech is also sometimes limited to so-called free speech zones, which can take the form of a wire fence enclosure, barricades, or an alternative venue designed to segregate speakers according to the content of their message. There is much controversy surrounding the creation of these areas – the mere existence of such zones is offensive to some people, who maintain that the First Amendment makes the entire country an unrestricted free speech zone. Civil libertarians often claim that Free Speech Zones are used as a form of censorship and public relations management to conceal the existence of popular opposition from the mass public and elected officials... " [Citations omitted.]**
But if Sanders didn’t get prior permission to express her views as required by the college, she was limited to expressing her views only in the “Free Speech Area” on the campus. The prescribed zone is about 16 feet long and 11 feet wide. It is approximately the size of a parking space for a college president. Talk about control and containment! Such free speech zones are more like containment areas to quarantine diseased animals.
I recall the so-called "free speech area" at Southwestern Junior College, which I attended in late 1960s-70s. The area was away from the main campus quad and located near a parking lot on undeveloped land adjacent to the Art Department. The late 1960s-70s were the days of the Vietnam War protests. It was very clear to anyone with a pulse that the object of the "free speech area" was to isolate and contain student dissent. It apparently worked because the "free speech area" was primarily used to stage garage rock band performances hired by the puppet student government to entertain students during the "College Hour".
"College Hour" was from 11 am until 12 noon. It was designed to bring students and faculty together in harmony and in various academic combinations, e.g., study groups, professor-student conferences, and rock bands! Protests faded after the draft lotteries of 1969 and 1970. Those lucky students with "safe" lottery draft numbers were free thereafter to listen to bad rock music without fear of involuntary military service. So much for (self-) righteously indignant dissent. So to paraphrase an old saying, it seemed that music, even bad music, does and did soothe the savage breast of protest. [Ed. note: The saying is attributed to William Congreve and is correctly stated as, "Musick has charms to soothe a savage breast," this is often misquoted as "Music soothes the savage beast ...]
Tech Free Zones
From CBSNew York comes a report that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children aged two years and older should be limited to only hours a day in front of a screen (TV, iPad, tablet, etc.) and zero face time for children under two.** The article also quotes Dr. Ari Brown as recommending that parents, “Have tech-free zones. So "tech-free zones" might be meals times and definitely the bedroom.”
The CBSNewYork report also noted that Pediatricians say studies have shown that excessive media use can lead to attention problems, sleep disorders, and obesity." We get that now with adults. The term "couch potato" (code for "fat ass") has become a part of the cultural lexicon.
We've all seen the YouTube video of the engrossed young woman falling into a fountain while texting. This compendium of texting calamities is instructive and amusing.
The video is preceded by a "Don't text while driving" message, alerting young drivers of the dangers of texting. To add to the dangers of texting while driving, there is also a medical condition called "text neck".
According to an article*** in the Blaze, "[Text neck] occurs because the joints and tissue in the neck are not built to withstand being flexed for long periods, and spending hours peering down at a screen puts them under too much stress."
A survey reported by the Blaze, found that the average American sends 41.5 text messages per day. The 18-24 age group sends 109.5 texts per day. the Blaze concluded that "... this is a lot of time hunched over a small screen and research is saying it's beginning to round out its own medical condition: the text neck." It's also a lot of wasted time sending grammatically awful messages.
Many other maladies have come about or have been exacerbated because of technology, e.g., our old friend, carpal tunnel syndrome, circulation problems from sitting in front of a computer too long, and even blindness from staring too much at a computer screen.
Proposal: Create Common Sense Zones
Most of the above-mentioned problems are created by lack of common sense like, e.g., establishing "gun free zone" where armed bad actors can terrify innocent civilians and unarmed security guards or where distracted people fall into plaza fountains while texting. Common sense zones should be created to allow people to exercise good judgment. But what are the chances of establishing "common sense zones" in America? Answer: Slim and None and Slim just left town.
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Sources
*Wikipedia article, Freedom of Speech in the United States, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_speech_in_the_United_States#Time.2C_place.2C_and_manner_restrictions.
**CBSNewYork, Pediatricians Recommend ‘Tech-Free’ Zones To Cut Back On Screen Time For Tots, http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/04/11/children-technology-time/.
***The Blaze, New Medical Condition From Too Much Texting?, http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2011/10/11/new-medical-condition-from-too-much-texting/
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