Civil War

Discussion Questions

1. If you were a judge, would you find Peter Deuster or “Brick” Pomeroy or Edward G. Ryan guilty of any crime? Why or why not? If you think any are guilty, what should their punishment be?

2. Do you agree with the Majority Report of the Committee on Federal Relations that all newspapers like Deuster’s MilwaukeeSee Bote should be censored both in and out of the military? Why or why not?

3. A) Describe a situation where you believe a person should be legally punished for what he or she said. B) Now explain why that person should be punished. C) Does your line of thinking apply to anyone described here?

4. Who is right: those who say the rules of free speech change during war or those who say free speech is the same in peace and war? Explain your answer.

5. Which is the truth: the censor’s claim that the administration is the same as the Constitution or Ryan’s claim that they are separate? Explain your answer.

6. A) Describe a situation where you think it would be really very wrong for the government to punish you for expressing a controversial opinion. B) Why would it be wrong? C) Are your reasons like any of Mr. Eldredge’s reasons?

7. (A) What are some benefits of allowing citizens to criticize their government? (B) What are some dangers or harms of allowing citizens to criticize their government? (C) Which is more important: the benefits or the dangers?

8. One of Congressman Eldredge’s claims is that speech (opinions) is different from acts (disorderly behavior) and that we should be more tolerant of what people say than what they do. Do you agree? Why or why not?

9. One of Congressman Eldredge’s claims is that free speech is essential in several ways to democracy. Do you agree? Why or why not?

10. Carl Schurz claims that we all have an identity of interests and that a violation of your rights is also a violation of my rights, and vice versa. Do you agree? For example, should the Republicans have felt threatened themselves by their calls for censorship? Why or why not?

11. What political speech, if any, would you ban? Speech supporting anarchism? Speech supporting communism? Speech supporting terrorism? How would you draw the line between acceptable speech and unacceptable speech?

12. One test commonly used in the 19 th century to distinguish lawful/unlawful speech was the “bad tendency” test. According to this test, any speech that has a tendency to cause harm was unlawful. Would you agree that this was a good rule for deciding what is lawful and unlawful speech? Why or why not? If you reject it, what replacement rule would you suggest?