Free speech, press, and food ... with a price

Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 12 months ago to Economics
19 comments | Share | Flag

The following is an advertisement for a talk at Florida Tech tomorrow. The second sentence in the next paragraph is meant to illustrate the effects of electing socialists.

Sick of hearing about the presidential primaries? Tomorrow you can enjoy life in a country where all those pesky choices—like whom to vote for, where to sit, what to eat, and what to say—will be decided for you. Sounds relaxing.

Free food festival
Crawford green from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Get free Old School Pizza, Jersey Mike’s subs, and Krispy Kreme donuts. All it costs is your First Amendment rights.

Free speech, free press, free cookies
Outside the SUB from 3 to 4:30 p.m.
Write on the Crimson free speech wall, exercise your freedom, and get a cookie.

Keynote address
Olin Life Sciences room 129 at 6:30 p.m.
Listen to Vanderbilt Law professor and First Amendment Center scholar David L. Hudson Jr. describe challenges to the First Amendment.

------------------------------------------------------------
Ted Petersen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
School of Arts and Communication
Florida Institute of Technology
150 W. University Blvd.
Melbourne, FL 32901
321-674-7201
tpetersen@fit.edu

"Freedom of the press, as guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States, is not blocked or interfered with by Florida Tech or any of its trustees, administrators, faculty or staff."
--Florida Tech Media Board Governing Document

All Comments

  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I could send a syllabus, and have you personally interview the faculty, and it still wouldn't be enough for you. There will never be any convincing you of anything.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I brought this up before my freshman exam to several students yesterday, and they send they wanted to attend to see the satire, not be the object of it. There will be undoubtedly a few Sanders supporters who will get their just desserts.
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  • Posted by ewv 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    It takes more than that to teach philosophy, but what happens when the Berns declare that their "democratic" socialism doesn't exclude the pesky choices and their campaign to restrict the First Amendment is on behalf of free speech? Most of them probably don't even realize that the satire is aimed at them.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    And thus we are teaching them an important lesson! Some had asked whether we were teaching the students appropriate philosophy to go along with the science and engineering. This proves that we are. My students have been talking about this and did not need the warning about the trap.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    When you speak of freedom to this kind of group, they think that freedom means getting stuff free.
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  • Posted by $ Olduglycarl 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That's cause they have not a mind that speaks...only a brain that eats.

    Laughing even though it's sad.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The postponement was wise. It did rain hard for 15 minutes at about noon, when most of the food would have been served.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Precisely! I didn't know about this until it was well-advertised this year, in its fifth year of existence.
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  • Posted by $ allosaur 9 years, 11 months ago
    How to feel the Bern without for really real getting scorched.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    The first event got postponed until tomorrow because of forecast rain, but you are exactly on point. Because of the postponement, I will unfortunately miss the interesting satirical part because I have to go attend a funeral for my brother-in-law out of state. The faculty member sponsoring the event is at least sympathetic to Objectivist principles. I will find out tonight at the talk whether he is an Objectivist.
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  • Posted by Herb7734 9 years, 11 months ago
    Wonderful satire.
    However, I'm guessing that there's a contingent that will say that they'll take the free stuff because they don't care about all that other crap.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 12 months ago in reply to this comment.
    As a private, non-tenure-granting university, Florida Tech is an odd place. At the faculty table in the dining hall, politics is a common topic, but there are no Democrats at that table. We have even discussed Objectivism.

    As for the students, they appreciate value-for-value exchange, and given the cost of tuition, they had better get it, which of course they do.
    I see very few moochers here, but maybe I will tomorrow.
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  • Posted by edweaver 9 years, 12 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Latter would be my choice.

    Nice to see this event. I sometimes wonder though, based on what I hear from many young people, if they really care about anything but the free lunch. The number of Bernie supporters tells me they don't.
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  • Posted by $ jbrenner 9 years, 12 months ago
    It is pleasant to see my university reaffirming some of my values. I think I will wear some of my Galt's Gulch Online apparel! Should I wear my AS: Now Non-Fiction or my shirt saying that without producers, the looters would have no wealth to redistribute to the moochers. I am leaning toward the latter.
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