The Eight Values of Free Expression

 Introduction:

The people of the United States of America all share one thing alike, no matter what. We all have the freedom of speech and expression to speak and write our ideas out to the public and have them be heard. That's why the First amendment is so important, as it is there to protect the eight values of free expression.

These values, in order, are Marketplace of Ideas, Participation in Self-Government, Stable Change, Individual Self-Fulfillment, Check on Governmental Power, Promote Tolerance, Promote Innovation, and Protect Dissent. These all play a role in our everyday lives, and come up in the news every day, whether we recognize it or not! 

Addressing the Eight Values of Free expression:

        When it comes to the Eight Values of Free Expression, I find the sixth value, promoting tolerance, as the one that resonates with me the most. As a member of the LGBTQIA+, I value freedom of expression, and especially tolerance, greatly due to its importance of who I am and what I believe in. The community often comes under fire from many groups, and I have for one seen the people who try to shut down Pride celebrations. A few months ago, I attended Greensboro Pride:

with some friends and had a wonderful time celebrating and embracing who I am, but as we rounded a street corner, we were met by protestors, who in their defense, have every right to protest the celebration. However, these protesters were shouting rather offensive words, blocking walkways, and making threats. In those, I was unable to enjoy my celebration due to the stress and worry that had been caused by those, which could've been solved through the use of tolerance.

While both groups may not agree with one another, if we both tolerate each other's beliefs, it may lead to more peaceful and understanding interactions with one another.

The values that I feel are most important to me are Stable Change, Individual Self-Fulfillment, Promote Tolerance, and Protect Dissent.

I have already spoken on why Promote Tolerance is important to me, but for Stable Change, I believe everyone has a right to be upset, and while people's language can be very harmful, I believe that Benedict Spinoza makes a great point in that it leads people away from violence.

Individual Self-Fulfillment is important due to its integral part of being human, having the ability to speak your mind and create your own beliefs and identity.

And finally, Protect Dissent, because we deserve to criticize the government, as that is our job and duty as an American citizen

                        

When it comes to the Free Expression Values that I see today, I see many examples of Stable Change, as shows like Saturday Night Live (SNL) run skits criticizing and making fun of current government officials like Donald Trump, and don't receive backlash from those government officials.

The same applies to users on the internet who have been making memes of JD Vance by photoshopping his face and morphing it into different formats to make fun of him.

There has been no takedown of these memes by the government, because they are following the Stable Change value. This can also fall under the Protect Dissent value, which also supports the criticization of the governments and its officials.

Conclusion:

We must hold strong to the First Amendments and its values, as that is one of the key parts that allows us to have the freedoms that we do in this country, and is a right that we must protect.

History and Workings of the Supreme Court

After watching these two videos, Part 1 and Part 2, I was surprised at the amount of information of the Supreme Court I was unaware of!

The first piece of information was how the Supreme Court receives thousands of petitions each day, from people all over the US, and must look through each and every one.

The second piece of information was a statistic that shocked me; that there has only been around one hundred Supreme Court Justices since its creation, each serving around sixteen years, with some serving twice as long as that.

The third piece of information came from Justice David H. Souter when he said that as a Supreme Court Judge, “(Y)ou really start doing you work here properly when you forget that you’re here. And that takes a few years.” I never thought of how the judges may have felt about being in the position of power that they hold.

The fourth piece of information I was not aware of, was that the court receives more than a hundred cases each week, and over seven thousand cases per year. But they only accept around one hundred per year.

The fifth piece of information was that when the Supreme Court comes to a decision, it is done by majority. That means some Justices may disapprove of the final decision, and I found it interesting that they are able to write their own opinion pieces, helping show which side they voted in favor for.

The sixth and final piece of information that I was unaware of, was the fact that the final public release of the court's decision can be from a few pages, to over eighty pages long, which I find astounding. 

I think the most important take-away from this video about the Supreme court, is the final quote by Justice Souter who says, “The power of the court is the power of trust earned – The trust of the American people.”

This is an extremely powerful quote, highlighting the fact that our system works so well, because the citizens and judges have a two-way trust for each other. We trust they will rule accordingly, and they trust that we will listen and obey. 

The most surprising piece of information to me, was the number of cases and petitions they receive each week and year, and the fact they only decide to take up one hundred of those each year. The amount of work these justices must do to go through all those petitions is admirable and brings a newfound respect from me for the work that they do. 

Overall, this video helped educate and re-inform me about the Supreme Court, reminding me of the important role they play in the society of the United States, and helping me further understand how the legal processes of our system work. 

My Top 5 Sources of News

    When it comes to news, I try to stay somewhat on top of what is going on, in both the United States, and the world in all sorts of events, whether it's LGBTQIA+ rights, new videogame releases, album releases by my favorite metal musicians, current events around me, or around the world. This leads me to many different sources of news, as I try to gain as many perspectives as possible in said subjects. Here are my personal top 5:

1. AllSides

    AllSides is my number one place for finding overall political and non-political news in the United States and the world from many different perspectives. They pride themselves in providing 3 sources per news story, one with a left leaning bias, one center, and one right leaning bias, and providing a summary on current news and events. This helps me stay up to date on current events in both the world and the government of the United States, and keeps me well informed.

2. PinkNews

    PinkNews is my go to place for catching up on current LGBTQIA+ specific news around the world. They coverage is full of inclusivity and and great perspectives, constantly advocating for people of the community, no matter where. It is really helpful when I want to stay informed about certain LGBTQIA+ policies in both state and country levels, as I like to stay aware of how they are treated in certain places I may be visiting.

3. GameSpot

    GameSpot is my news source when it comes to all things video games and video game design! They are constantly on top of all of the current events in video games around the world, touching in on new releases and giving their thoughts. One of my favorite writings they make is their video game guides, where they will provide walkthroughs to obtaining certain items, or finding certain objectives.

4. Loudwire

    Loudwire is the site I use the most when searching for news based on my favorite genre of music, metal music. They provide coverage on events within the rock and metal music world, and conduct several interviews with popular bands and artists for fans. I thoroughly enjoy their personal rankings of certain artists and bands, and their favorite songs of the year, as it helps me find new artists to listen to!

5. YouTube

    YouTube is my general use site where I obtain some more casual news from several different authors and creators. This website usually serves as the starting point where I receive initial news, and I use the past four to dig deeper into the topics I see. YouTube is a great place to find people of all niches, posting about all topics, and seeing people who love to entertain others and create content.