Discussion 2
Welcome. During the first week of the discussion, students are to upload an initial post in response to the discussion question. The initial post should be a minimum of 300 words and is due on Sunday at 11:59 pm EST. Please be sure to utilize the reading materials (and any outside sources) to support your position(s) and include proper APA citation (in-text and reference list) in your post.

During the second week of the discussion, students are to upload two reply posts in response to their classmates’ initial posts. Each reply post should respectfully agree or disagree with the position(s) taken by your classmate and state the reasons for your position. Each reply should encourage further discussion from the author of the initial post and be a minimum of 100 words. The two reply posts are due on Sunday at 11:59 pm EST. Please be sure to utilize the reading materials (and any outside sources) to support your position(s) and include proper APA citation (in-text and reference list) in your post.

See the discussion rubric in the Important Documents Folder for more details on grading.

ASSIGNED READING:

Please read Chapters 5 and 6 of MCADAMS (2012). LAW, BUSINESS AND SOCIETY (10th ed.). McGraw-Hill Publishing.

Initial Discussion Post (Minimum 300 words):

James Madison believed that the main focus of the First Amendment was to protect serious political discourse. Now the First Amendment often protects hate speech and commercial babble. In a 1996 book review and commentary, lawyer Paul Reidinger raised the concern that we may have “too much” free speech. Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Please provide the basis for your position.

The initial post should be a minimum of 300 words and is due on Sunday at 11:59 pm EST. Please be sure to utilize the reading materials (and any outside sources) to support your position(s) and include proper APA citation (in-text and reference list) in your post.

Two Reply Posts (Each Post – Minimum 100 Words Each):

SAMPLE SOLUTION

Freedom of speech is protected by the First Amendment. However, I disagree with lawyer Paul Reidinger that we may have “too much” free speech. There are certainly some forms of free speech that are not protected by the First Amendment. According to McAdams (2012), “freedom of speech is not absolute.” Historically, there are some exceptions to the protection of free speech. For example, the government can have restrictions on the place, manner, or time in which a speech is made, but the restrictions must not be related to the content of the speech and should leave people with adequate alternative ways of expression (Campbell, 2017). Such instances that the government may curtail free speech include the use of loudspeakers at night in residential areas and demonstrations that block traffic among others.
Secondly, some few categories of speech are unprotected from government restrictions. Such situations include incitement, obscenity, child pornography, fraud, threats, or fighting words. Defamation in the form…