[JebBush2008]

Carpenter was ordered in January 2002 to remove the license plate or park his truck off city property.

Read the fine print. The county never said that he could not have the plates on his truck but that he could not park the truck on County Property. Much like the woman in Nashville could not sent Anti-War e-mails on or from company property.

[eyespysomething]

That's good and all, but then any personal expression, of anything, would require the same treatment, right?

[dixierose]

OK...there's a fellow who works with me that has a "BUSH KNEW" bumper sticker on his truck. That offends me. Should he be forced to remove the bumper sticker or park off of company property??? Sorry, but that argument doesn't wash. As far as I'm concerned it's his personal vehicle and he can use it to express what he wants, no matter what I think of it. After all...I don't have to ride in his vehicle.

[GOPcapitalist]

Read the fine print. The county never said that he could not have the plates on his truck but that he could not park the truck on County Property. Much like the woman in Nashville could not sent Anti-War e-mails on or from company property.

Not really. The situation would be comparable if the county owned his truck, but it does not. As a general rule (barring the inane and often unconstitutional local ordinances etc. that some places have), political is protected on public property so long as that piece of public property is not being turned into the item of speech itself.

For example, I could carry a protest sign while standing on a public sidewalk. But if I tried to paint my sign's message on that public sidewalk, or if I hammered a hole through it and put up a billboard holding my sign's message, free speech would not protect me nor should it.

It would seem that the first situation would apply for a privately owned car that simply makes use of a public parking lot at a public building, thus his free speech appears to be protected.

[wcbtinman]

IMHO, parking lots, whether govt or corporate, are operated as a 'public conveyance'. When you invite the 'public' to work or park there, you take the public with all of it's warts.

Employees are no less the 'public' than anyone else. Taking an employment position does not mean that you give up your rights as a citizen.

The "state" is now passing laws that can be used to punish someone for simply espousing an unpopular point of view. Other viewpoints will be next, and it could be yours or mine.

[Charles Martel]

The county never said that he could not have the plates on his truck but that he could not park the truck on County Property.

I wonder if it was okay for him to drive it on county roads.