[IceBreaker]

UNIVERSITY BANS SUPPORT FOR THE TROOPS: A truly disgusting policy is being carried out at the University of Oregon.

Magnetic Yellow Ribbons that say "Support The Troops" have been surreptitiously banned by the administration at the University of Oregon.

The origin of the policy was a complaint from a fellow employee and the claim was that the sticker was in fact a "political statement".

The employee who had the magnetic ribbons had put them on his vehicle months previous - but Friday a university employee complained.

So let's review...
1. University employees at the University of Oregon are not allowed to support the troops who defend those employees' freedoms and the security they live under.
2. "Supporting the troops" is deemed a political statement...so much for the "We all support the troops" talking points.
3. Even if this WAS political expression - university employees are not allowed to express themselves politically? (Can Instapundit weigh in on the legalities of University Campus political expression?)

Since when did the Bill of Rights have to undergo perusal and permission of the Administration of the University of Oregon?

http://www.gopbloggers.org/mt/archives/000121.html

[Millennium]

I know someone who got a sticker exactly like the one you show in the picture, wrote "BRING THEM HOME" on the other end of the ribbon, and put it on her car.

I say that someone put this policy of theirs to the test: would such a ribbon also fall under the ban? If so, then the policy is at least even-handed. If not, then there are real problems.

[BRussell]

Who wants to bet that there's more to this than what's being stated here. Was this a university-owned car? If it's not, then obviously the policy is absurd. Just because you're an employee doesn't mean you give up your first amendment rights. If they are talking about university cars (which I bet is true), how come they didn't state that in this little blurb from this blog? Trying to be deceitful? Nah, couldn't be.

[Curios Meerkat]

Thank you for your e-mail. Perhaps this statement from our Vice President for Administration who made this decision will clarify the approach the University of Oregon, as a state agency, is taking.

"Government vehicles in this state have never been allowed to exhibit items of personal expression. State employees are free to use their personal vehicles for statements of all types on university campuses and elsewhere. This distinction between a state vehicle and a personal vehicle is very important."

Sincerely,
Dave Frohnmayer
President
University of Oregon

End of story.

[Mister Elf]

Yup. Interesting how they left that out...

[MacGorilla]

Originally posted by Mister Elf:
Yup. Interesting how they left that out...

Ya, it was. Without that little iodbit you'd think the university was just being an a$$.

[tie]

Originally posted by IceBreaker:
Since when did the Bill of Rights have to undergo perusal and permission of the Administration of the University of Oregon?

Just begging for a smackdown on this one. Shouldn't you be posting baseless WMD rumors? The University should have kept quiet until Fox picked up the "story."

[Kodachrome]

I think that is sick. The people in Oregon that are banning personal "expression" are just nuts.

It is not POLITICAL to support the troops.

To hide behind the fact that is only banning "expression" is hiding behind a straw-man to disguise your own contempt for the very troops that are defending your right to make such comments.

[Mister Elf]

Read closer: that expression is banned on vehicles which were bought with state money and only used by the employees. It's not brain surgery-you don't put any form of expression on a vehicle that doesn't belong to you. Do I like this-no! Do they have the right to ban this-yes.

[ThinkInsane]

Originally posted by Mister Elf:
Read closer: that expression is banned on vehicles which were bought with state money and only used by the employees. It's not brain surgery-you don't put any form of expression on a vehicle that doesn't belong to you. Do I like this-no! Do they have the right to ban this-yes.

Exactly.

I wish folks on both sides would quit leaving out facts to try and fit their cause. I don't know why credibility has ceased to be important. They do far more harm to their cause than good.

[Kodachrome]

my opinion:

There are no facts missing.

This is just wrong.

[cpt kangarooski]

If it's merely a matter of not allowing people to use state property as a forum for expression where the state normally doesn't allow that for anyone (c.f. picketing being okay outside courthouses but not inside them) then it's fine. To permit otherwise would either result in a) the state supporting one side unfairly at taxpayer expense, or b) everyone getting to put on whatever messages they liked, which would be impractical and perhaps unsafe. These things are there to help state employees do their jobs; not to be moving billboards.

Also I would like to state my support for the magnetic ribbon industry.

[Curios Meerkat]

[olePigeon]

It's from GOP Bloggers, it has to be true. We've already established that Republicans are incapable of doing wrong deads. Their high moral standings prevent it.

[idjeff]

This just in....American forces in Iraq, while seen on TV driving their M-1 Abrahms and M-2 Bradleys through Bagdad, were criticized by a US citizen (?) (Faculty of the University of Oregon) because these vehicles were exposing "Old Glory" from the tops of their fighting vehicles. This employee argued that these "government" vehicles were offending him/her with this display of US patriotism as he/she started to cry as he/she screamed "MY NIPPLES ARE SORE!"

SGT Slaughter who was at the scene and attached to the armored column said in response..."Uhhhhh......ummm.....ok.....whatever" while he kissed his bicep as his column sped along yelling "GO JOE!"

[SimeyTheLimey]

The university has the right to ban privately-owned stickers on its government owned vehicles. It also has the right to waive that ban, or to itself endorse the stickers as a statement by the university of its support for the troops. They could even buy the stickers themselves. They cost only a couple of bucks and the one posted above even sends a dollar to the USO with every sale.

The university should consider doing the latter as a gesture of goodwill. After all, many of those troops are graduates of that university. And many of those troops will be going to university after they get out of the service. The university might want to consider if this stand is smart for their image.

[nath]

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:

The university should consider doing the latter as a gesture of goodwill. After all, many of those troops are graduates of that university. And many of those troops will be going to university after they get out of the service. The university might want to consider if this stand is smart for their image.

Don't the employees of the university already support the war in Iraq with their tax dollars? Seems a bit unfair to expect them to support Chinese ribbon factories as well.

[olePigeon]

Originally posted by nath:
Don't the employees of the university already support the war in Iraq with their tax dollars? Seems a bit unfair to expect them to support Chinese ribbon factories as well.

Yeah, we have our hands full with India.

[spacefreak]

Next up: The banning of American flags on public property because it can be viewed as a form of "political expression".

[chris v]

The headline could just as easily read UNIVERSITY BANS SUPPORT FOR ABORTION! and the author could have written about that fact that bumperstickers that say "Keep your laws off of my body!" weren't allowed on campus*























*some facts would be omitted in this case, too, but the conservatives would all be rolling their eyes about the librul outrage.

[MacNStein]

Originally posted by spacefreak:
Next up: The banning of American flags on public property because it can be viewed as a form of "political expression".

It'll happen.

Or better yet, people suing because "In God We Trust" is on their money... No, wait, that's already happened.