The Common Sense God Gave a Goat

                                                                                                                                                       

  Vol. 1                                                    Issue 7

“What secret knowledge, one must wonder, is breathed into lawyers when they become Justices of this Court, that enables them to discern that a practice which the text of the Constitution does not clearly proscribe, and which our people have regarded as constitutional for two hundred years, is in fact unconstitutional? . . . Day by day, case by case, [the Court] is busy designing a Constitution for a country I do not recognize.”     Antonin Scalia

 Originating in springs that flow from Mt. Herman, the Jordan River emerges from the Sea of Galilee and snakes for 135 miles over the sixty-five mile distance to the Dead Sea some 1200 feet below sea level.  The river is no more that 200 feet wide, but when the thaw of spring fills the river with melted snow, the river flows in a torrent.  Still, unlike the River Nile or the Great Mississippi, the Jordan River is not an imposing geographic barrier.  However, to Joshua, in his first spring as the newly anointed leader of the Israelites, the River Jordan must have seemed like a great ocean standing between the people of Israel and the Promised Land.

 The Lord commanded Joshua to have the Ark of the Covenant lead the procession of Israelites across the river. Obedient priests hoisted the Ark and marched to the river. As the feet of priests carrying the Ark stepped off the riverbank, inches above the torrent, the river parted.  Just as God had favored Moses, so also was He faithful to Joshua, and the children of Israel marched across the dry riverbed into the Promised Land.

“Each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder from the midst of the Jordan where the priests stood firm,” commanded Joshua.  Twelve stones were taken out of the Jordan, one for each tribe of Israel.  Joshua set the stones up at Gilgal and proclaimed that the stones be a sign among the people, a memorial to the children of Israel, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is upon Israel and that the God of Israel is mighty.

Ancient people erected standing stones to commemorate a variety of occasions.  The mysterious Stonehenge of England is a well known example.  Similar ancient standing stones can be found throughout the British Isles and the Middle East.  Modern day people have erected standing stones of our own.  Skyscrapers and expansive bridges speak to the entrepreneurial spirit and engineering innovativeness of our citizenry.  Monuments to heroes of the Republic adorn the mall in Washington and Mount Rushmore in South Dakota. Arenas, coliseums and great stadiums profess our love for sport and competition.  Great cathedrals and minarets proclaim our religious fervency. On a personal level, the crucifix, the menorah, the image of a dove or a fish and the Star of David are individual standing stones denoting our religious heritage. 

No matter how grand the architecture, all standing stones, modern and ancient alike need a witness.  One generation must proclaim to the next the story behind the stone lest the significance of the monument become as mysterious as the Stonehenge.  On a hill overlooking Washington D.C, in a field in Normandy, France, in the pastures of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania beneath the waters of Pearl Harbor,  white pillars stand in silent remembrance of the sacrifice young Americans, who laid the last measure of their devotion to our Republic upon the altar of freedom.

         Marine Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder died while on active duty in Al Anbar province Iraq on March 3, 2006.  “He was a hero and he was the love of my life," was the way Albert Snyder described his son. Albert Snyder buried his son on March 11, 2006.   The family erected a stone to honor their son and placed it on his grave in the cemetary of St. John Catholic Church in Westminster, Maryland.

         On the day of Matthew Snyder's funeral, assembled on city property adjacent next to the St. John Catholic Church , members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka Kansas held signs, some bearing anti-gay slurs, that declared that war casualties are divine retribution - that God is allowing men and women to die in Iraq because of this country's tolerance of homosexuality. After the service the church posted on their website statements directed at Matthew’s parents accusing them of raising a child for the devil, ridiculing the Catholic Church and condemning Matthew to hell. The church - which has about 75 members, roughly 80 percent of whom are relatives by blood or marriage - protests at funerals without regard to the presumed sexual orientation of the late soldier.  The group claims to have led 22,000 demonstrations since 1991 at parades, funerals and other events. The funeral of Matthew Snyder was the first of such protests in the state of Maryland.  Their protest was a cruel publicity tactic calculated to gain media attention to promote their dysfunctional view of their Christian duty.

       Albert Snyder sued Westboro Baptist Church for intentional infliction of emotional distress, a civil action recognized at common law.  It was a private civil lawsuit. He did not ask the government to participate in any way to restrict the speech of members of Westboro Baptist Church.  He simply asked that a jury of his peers determine if he had been wronged. This case simply alleges that one does not have the right to conspire to use lies in order to inflict intentional harm upon persons who are grieving the death of their children.  Not surprisingly Mr. Snyder won his case and monetary damages were assessed against the church.  An appeal overturned the verdict and today, one day short of the fifth anniversary of the death of Matthew Snyder, eight members of the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution denies him his right to sue Westboro Baptist Church.

       The First Amendment of the Constitution reads:  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.  It does not attempt to regulate speech between individuals.  Torts such as defamation are not protected by the First Amendment and it has been well established that speech alone could be the basis for suit for intentional infliction of emotional distress.   While the First Amendment may prevent the government from restricting the speech of the members of Westboro Baptist Church, nothing in the Constitution prevents a private right of action for a tort that has been recognized at common law for centuries. In the words of dissenting Justice Samuel Alito: “Allowing family members to have a few hours of peace without harassment does not undermine public debate. But the exploitation of a funeral for the purpose of attracting public attention intrudes upon their grief and may permanently stain their memories of the final moments before their loved one is laid to rest.  The First Amendment permits a private figure to recover for the intentional infliction of emotional distress caused by a speech on a matter of private concern.”

       Reacting to the Supreme Court decision, Albert Snyder sadly proclaimed: “I can't believe that the Supreme Court today has now told us that we have no rights to bury our dead in peace. It's a sad day for our military men and women, their families. It's a sad day for all Americans. My first thought was, what kind of society have we become?”     Me too.