Mike M wrote:
Okay, let's get this out of the way. The link you posted tears down your argument, if you read it carefully. The *first* point of the IRS's list, which will jeopardize a 501c's standing, is "must absolutely refrain from participating in the political campaigns of candidates for local, state, or federal office". We are *expressly* forbidden from participating in any political campaign - the original poster was soliciting campaign donations, and that is (at least in my reading) being directly involved in a political campaign.http://www.irs.gov/charities/charitable/article/0,,id=123299,00.html
The public does have a right to expect certain things from 501(c)(3)
organizations because they are tax-exempt.
Posting on an open list is protected by the First Amendment.Incorrect. First off, this is not a public list. TriLUG is a 501c corporation, and there for we are prohibited from making a profit or engaging in profit-making activities, but we are not a public organization in the same way as, for example, a government office would be. Even in that case, consider the lobby of the FBI building at Langley. Do you really think, that because it's a government owned, funded, and entirely public building, that you can waltz in and stay as long as you like, and say what ever you like? Could you stand in the corner and continuously babble about your (hypothetical) opinion that Iran and North Korea should be nuking us to start their strategic invasion of the lower 48 states? No, the first amendment does not give you the blanket rights to do what ever you like when the government is in some way involved. For a more clear understanding, let's quote the first amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
By not allowing political drivel, or in any side-ways manner supporting a political campaign, we are *not* directly infringing upon your right to freely assemble. You are *welcome* to freely assemble and say what ever you like, in any *appropriate* location you see fit. In fact, you are *strongly* *encouraged* to do so. I will fight and die for your right to do precisely that. But I will not even tolerate, much less encourage, you doing so in an inappropriate forum. This is not an appropriate place for you to voice your opinion, and by denying you the right to do so, we are not impinging upon you overall greater rights to free speech or assembly.
If the government were denying you the right to setup a separate political discussion group, that would be granted 501c status, that would be an infringement of your 1st amendment rights.
If the government were not allowing you any forum at all to assemble and discuss political candidates, matters, or (virtually) any other topic - that would be an infringement of your 1st amendment rights.
If the government were not defending you any group attempting to suppress your rights to assemble and discuss political candidates, matters, or (virtually) any other topic - that would be an infringement of your 1st amendment rights.
I agree this is not an appropriate forum forThe point you're missing is this is not an *open* forum. It was never intended to be. It is not paid for with your tax dollars. Yes, because TriLUG is a 501c organization we are bound not to make a profit, engage in political campainging, be largely oriented towards lobbying for any single cause, work to help anyone else make a profit, operate for the benefit of private interests, do something particularly outside our charter, or anything illegal. We can not make our sole endeavour be to suppress political discourse. That would be a violation of the IRS's first point (because it would be, in effect, trying to maintain the political status quo), and it would potentially endanger your 1st amendment rights. But we're not doing any of that, we're just explaining to you that this is not the appropriate forum for that, and it won't be tolerated.
general political discussion. The point is that you cannot stop
someone from making OT statements in an open forum. You can
ignore them and you can disuade them but you cannot stop them.
Man, Tanner is so much less verbose than I am.
Aaron S. Joyner -- TriLUG mailing list : http://www.trilug.org/mailman/listinfo/trilug TriLUG Organizational FAQ : http://trilug.org/faq/ TriLUG Member Services FAQ : http://members.trilug.org/services_faq/ TriLUG PGP Keyring : http://trilug.org/~chrish/trilug.asc
