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Man told he must get rid of "ATHEIST" license plate
Ananova ^
Posted on 03/14/2002 3:27:40 PM PST by JediGirl
A US man must get rid of his number plate because it reads, "ATHEIST."
Steven Miles says his right of self expression is being trampled on.
But the state of Florida has declared the number plate "obscene or objectionable." It is refusing to re-issue it after receiving 10 complaints.
Mr Miles, 55, from Gainesville, Florida, has had the licence plate for 16 years. He is vice president of the group, Atheists of Florida.
But he has now been told by the state's Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, that the personalised plate is on the department's blacklist, along with swear words and slang words describing certain body parts.
Mr Miles said: "It's kind of disconcerting to know that the United States is based on freedom of expression, yet in actuality, it's quite restrictive."
Others have reacted strongly to the plate since Mr Miles first screwed it to his Isuzu in 1986, reports the St Petersburg Times.
"I had a wrench thrown at me in Jacksonville about 10 years ago. It went right over the hood," he said. Another time, "someone surreptitiously tore up my tag and threw it in the bushes. I put a frame and a plastic cover on it after that."
He intends to fight the banning order with the backing of the US Civil Liberties Union.
Story filed: 22:11 Thursday 14th March 2002
TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: florida
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To: southernnorthcarolina
Something like "1I0O0I01"Hmmmm...propeller heads like this b/c it looks like binary code!
Comment #102 Removed by Moderator
To: JediGirl
the Florida, Wisconsin, & New York State "banned license plate" lists can be found in the achives of thesmokinggun.com- if you wanted to see them. Some are hilarious!
To: riley1992
Normally that is exactly what I would say, too. This time I am not because it would be infringing on free speech with no claim to back it up. Only the government can violate your free speech rights, by locking you up for saying the wrong thing. A private business can not. No one has a right to cheap or "fair" insurance rates. In this case, property rights wins over speech.
104
posted on
03/14/2002 7:21:08 PM PST
by
timm22
To: JediGirl
This is what happens when people allow the state to restrict and licence the RIGHT to drive.
To: VA Advogado
I think he should be allowed to keep the plate but because he does not believe in God he has no basis to defend that right. --MM
To: JediGirl
So much for freedom of speech!
To: southern rock
Driving is not a right but a privilege granted by the state. Speech and expression are God given rights. --MM
Comment #109 Removed by Moderator
To: mustapha mond
Driving is not a right but a privilege granted by the state. Why? Because the state says so?
Driving is a RIGHT, NOT a privilage, despite what your friendly local DMV says.
To: southern rock
if driving is a right, as you state, why, then can the state (every one, as far as I am aware) take away your right to drive for reckless driving, DUI/OUI, non-payment of child support, lack of insurance, or any one of a dozen more reasons that don't come to mind immediately?
To: RangeRatt
if driving is a right, as you state, why, then can the state (every one, as far as I am aware) take away your right to drive for reckless driving, DUI/OUI, non-payment of child support, lack of insurance, or any one of a dozen more reasons that don't come to mind immediately? Because we don't live in a free country.
To: southern rock
okay...
To: diefree
You've got a good point.
Should government get involved at all in this kind of stuff? But then aren't we a christian government? Where should the line be drawn?
I still struggle with these issues as a believing christian but not wanting to compel belief.
To: Kerberos
An eloquent and reasoned reply. Thanks.
To: Torie
My late husband said he was an atheist. He was the most Christian-like person I ever knew. He would debate me on religion but never taunted me. He didn't object when I had our daughter baptized either. And when he died, I buried him with a Catholic Mass and in a Catholic cemetary.
116
posted on
03/14/2002 8:21:11 PM PST
by
diefree
To: diefree
Ya there are some. Everyone that knew my dad loved him. He had 400 people at his funeral (well celebratory conclave). He was one of those charismatic chaps, that had the gift. And those gifts took him a long way from the slums of Brooklyn. Amazingly, he didn't have a New York accent. Very odd.
117
posted on
03/14/2002 8:26:49 PM PST
by
Torie
To: diefree
can the following words be put on license plates; God, Baptist, Catholic, Jesus, Christian, Muslim, Wiccan, homosexual, abortionist, homophobe, etc.? Most of those words would not be allowed because they have more than seven characters.
To: Paleo Conservative
It never dawned on me that license plates were limited to 7 characters. You can tell I don't have vanity plates. Too vain.
119
posted on
03/14/2002 8:46:35 PM PST
by
diefree
To: riley1992
Are you saying that anyone who does not believe in God should not be granted the same rights as those who do? Well, it's not consistent to demand rights with no basis for them, but that doesn't mean people shouldn't respect the rights of the self-contradictory.
120
posted on
03/14/2002 9:53:58 PM PST
by
Pistias
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