Has Somebody Embalmed The First Amendment?
At WSJ.com, James Taranto blogs about an embalmer, Troy Schoeller, who was less-than-circumscribed in talking to a Boston Phoenix reporter, spilling that he hates embalming fat people and describing the body of a baby as a "bearskin rug."
After reading his comments, the Massachusetts licensing board for funeral directors and embalmers yanked his license, and Schoeller is arguing in court that the yanking violates his constitutional right to free speech.
Assistant Attorney General Sookyoung Shin seems confused about the text of the First Amendment, telling the Massachusettes Supreme Judicial Court:
"If his comments are OK, then any funeral director or embalmer in the state would have license to go out and describe the types of bodies that he finds nasty or that he finds amusing."
We call that free speech -- and really, really, really deadly for business.
Yanked his license? Idiots. His mouth will probably take care of the situation by itself, since the living are very sensitive to things like that.
As for me, I'm signed up with the Biolife people who will come and get my corpse for medical research and cremate the remains. I'm sure these folks probably make their share of clever remarks, but I don't intend to be sticking around to hear them.
Pricklypear at February 13, 2012 7:22 AM
Pricklypear is right, his business would have died on its own. But now that the governemtn got involed and the rep said something so monumentally stupid he'll probably get enough of a settlement that he doenst have to work
lujlp at February 13, 2012 7:43 AM
"If his comments are OK, then any fast food or fine dining restauranteur in the state would have license to go out and describe the types of customers that he finds nasty or that he finds amusing."
"If his comments are OK, then any plumber or drain cleaning technician in the state would have license to go out and describe the types of toilet plugs that he finds nasty or that he finds amusing."
Yeah, if his comments are not punished, anyone might talk about their jobs, which are often disgusting and occasionally funny and we cannot have that, innit?
Storm Saxon's Gall Bladder at February 13, 2012 7:12 PM
The AP took that line out of the argument, and out of context. That's not the extent of the First Amendment analysis. The full brief (including the whole argument) is here: http://www.ma-appellatecourts.org/?brief=SJC-10980_02_Appellee_Funeral_Director_Brief.pdf
MD at February 14, 2012 10:54 AM
I started referring to the place as the People's Republic of Massachusetts.
Firehand at February 15, 2012 2:08 PM
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