5760

One of the greatest things about being an American is that we have the freedom of speech. We can fully express our feelings verbally (or written) and not be subject to persecution for our beliefs from a legal standpoint (mostly and theoretically). It is with those freedoms understood that I think Phil Robertson is perfectly within his rights to say the things he has said recently. Another great facet of America is free enterprise. Companies can choose to align themselves with whatever groups or cultures they wish and build a brand based upon their own beliefs. It is with that understanding that I think A&E is perfectly within their rights to suspend the use of Mr. Robertson in their programming. You see, just because something is right for one person, doesn't mean it is right for everybody and A&E is choosing to remove Phil Robertson from their programming because they don't want to align themselves with his beliefs. I honestly don't see what the uproar is about. It's marketing. It goes on in business all the time. If a representative of a company or brand says or does something that said company or brand does not agree with, they part ways. While I personally feel that Mr. Robertson's comments are closed minded, archaic, and bigoted, I have no problems with him expressing his opinion. That is his right as an American. It is also A&E's right as a company to distance themselves from that image if they wish. They have a monetary stake involved and it is their right to protect their bottom line. The retaliation against A&E from individuals like Sarah Palin decrying Mr. Robertson's First Amendment rights is laughable. Mr. Robertson is not the victim of censorship by any stretch of the imagination. He is merely in disagreement with his employer's point of view and as such being removed from representing them. Thankfully the world is on a 24 hour news cycle and this farce of a news story will die quickly. There are far more important things in this world to worry about than a few off the cuff remarks from a closed minded individual that gathers his opinion from a book of fallacies that was created by the Council of Nicaea due to the monetary gains they received from Constantine in an effort to gain power. The Kardashians must be pissed this is stealing their press.