Freedom of Speech Or Political Correctness?

The Fox News article, NPR Fires Juan Williams; Fox News Expands His Role, published on October 21, 2010, explains the issue of National Public Radio (NPR) firing Juan Williams after a comment he made on the O'Reilly Factor show. Monday night on the O’Reilly Factor show, Williams said it makes him nervous to fly on airplanes with devout Muslims; "But when I get on a plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they're identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous." Despite being fired from NPR, Fox News has now given him a new three year contract.

Apart from whether NPR was fair or unfair, the bigger question is, have we lost our freedom of speech? Blaming all muslims for actions that some Muslim extremest did, could most certainly be considered a bigoted statement. But Williams was sharing his opinion and feelings, which he is paid to do. He wasn’t saying all Muslims should be singled out as terrorists. I think it’s a little hypocritical of NPR, because they are dependent on free speech. Williams’ statement wasn’t bad, they just didn’t agree with it, so they fired him. The Daily Beast says, “But are those remarks so far beyond the pale that he couldn’t continue as an NPR analyst? Or is it that the public radio network’s leadership didn’t agree with Williams—thus reinforcing NPR’s image as a left-leaning operation?” Now if Williams went on another show and slandered NPR, and they fired him, that I think would be understandable because he injured them.

This ongoing issue reminds me of how at school and even in these blogs, we are really being pushed to think, but if we are hammpered with pollitical correctness, do we lose our full potential in that area? Juan Williams says, “Political correctness can lead to some kind of paralasis where you don’t address reality.” The political correctness with terrorists must end. I feel like the 9/11 attack should justify having fears or worries and being able to publicly voice them when getting on a plane. In 2008 during the elections, I often heard people say that if you don’t vote for Hilary Clinton then you are sexist, or if you don’t vote for Barak Obama then you are racist. I definetly did not and do not agree with these statements. Do those people think that if I don’t like terrorist, then I am bigoted?

Williams has worked for NPR for more than ten years, and they didn’t even talk to him about it before they termitnated his contract. "…I don't even get the chance to come in and we do this eyeball to eyeball, person to person and have a conversation. I've been there more than 10 years. We don't have a chance to have a conversation about this," Williams told Fox News. NPR’s head honcho chief executive, Vivian Schiller, told the New York Times that she believes in second chances, but didn’t give him one because “he had several times in the past violated our news code of ethics with things that he had said on other people’s air.” Schiller said that she had made the decision because, “…At a certain point, if someone keeps not following your guidance, you have to make a break. And that’s what we did.”

Is a “code of ethics” just another way of saying “political correctness” and is that a politically correct way of limiting freedom of speech?

Contador: Doper or Champion?

The New York Times article, 2^nd Failed Test Puts Heat on Contador by Juliet Macur, published on October 4, 2010, explains the issue of three-time Tour de France winner Alberto Contador’s second failed doping, (drug test). On the eve of the Tour’s final rest day, Contador was tested for drugs in his system. One day later, it was announced that Contador had tested positive for the drug Clenbuterol. Clenbuterol is a weight-loss and muscle-building drug. Contador continues to deny doping and has claimed that it came from his consumption of tainted meat in Spain. A new test will see if it’s possibly from blood transfusions used to boost endurance. If Contador is convicted of a doping offence, he will face a two-year ban from the Tour de France and the loss of his winning title. The investigation has been going on for the past two months and is still continuing.

As hard as I have been working in cross country, if I got to a comparable point of huge success, I cannot imagine just throwing it away by doing something as stupid as doping. I feel like many athletes today just let us, the public, think they are these God almighty talented people, when really they just get all their so called “talent” from drugs. How are we supposed to know who has true talent? What is the world coming to when just anyone with fame or fortune can buy their way to success with drugs? Athletes buying their way to success reminds me of stars being able to buy their way out of legal problems. For example, Lindsey Lohan was able to buy her way out of jail. Athletes and stars have so much, and yet they go and just abuse it. Floyd Landis, another Tour winner, was convicted of doping and had his title taken away. Lance Armstrong, a seven times Tour champion, was tested several times, and every time was clean. I hope Lance Armstrong remains a clean athlete hero of mine.

Clearly, doping will not go away, and even though the drug tests are becoming more and more precise, it doesn’t discount the crime of doping.