Correcting misleading information on "Loyalty Day" & the "Day of Prayer"

[hobsonphile]

I did some checking, and as it turns out, both Loyalty Day and the National Day of Prayer were both instituted into public law decades ago and have been observed by the sitting president via proclamations ever since

Comments

[skywaterblue]

*shrug* I wasn't really upset about either of them. I figured they were stupid hold overs from the fifties and the "Red Scare". I just find them amusing. Maybe someone else was confused about it, though.

Thanks for the rationality, hobsonphile.

[honorh]

Much as I respect my European friends and, indeed, all those expressing concern about where America is headed, it's important to remember that there are at least two sides to every issue. Hysteria serves no one but extremists. Whatever's wrong with America can, as of now, be fixed using the methods we've always used: free expression and democracy. Which, would you believe, we still have.

Comment from a hysterical European ;-)

[bimo]

Granted, the freedom of expression is officially still intact and leftist intellectuals are not being thrown into prison for making public statements criticizing government policies. However, if it comes to suppressing unwelcome political opinions, there is also a broad range of *subtle* methods

Comment from a fascist American. ;)

[hobsonphile]

In fact, 20th century history is full of cases in which the creation of a political climate indirectly encouraging self-censorship has proven to be way more successful than any official, "real" censorship could ever have been.

Indeed, that's true. As a matter of fact, this is happening in America's university system right now- only it's coming from the left. (And believe me, I know what I'm talking about. As I said, I'm a sort of a student of First Amendment case law. Not in an official sense, but for my own interest.) An argument could also be made that the climate on Live Journal encourages self censorship. However, I'm not prepared to argue that the maintainers of Live Journal run a police state