Op-ed:

'Eat More Chikin’...a rallying cry heard across the land

By: Diane Sori

Yesterday was Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day and I was proud to take part in a day that for me was about protecting our First Amendment right to free speech, for if free speech is taken away from us, America as we know her will cease to exist.

I am one of millions who patronized the restaurant yesterday in solidarity for Chick-fil-A, which drew unnecessary criticism because its chief executive officer, Dan Cathy, said in an interview that he and his company were against gay marriage and that he supports "the biblical definition of the family unit” meaning the traditional view of marriage being between one man and one woman.

And it is his right under our First Amendment to state his beliefs whether some like it or not.

Mr. Cathy’s comments brought unintended consequences for a company just trying to sell chicken and run their PRIVATELY owned business according to their Christian beliefs.  And for that they’re being crucified in the media.

All this media attention led to some left-leaning customers pledging to boycott the restaurant chain.  And then some big city mayors, like BIG mouth Chicago mayor Rahm Emmanuel, had the unmitigated gaul to say they would not allow Chick-fil-A restaurants to open in their cities.

Nothing but polarizing showboating bloviations, as NO mayor has the legal right to stop a business from opening in their city.  In fact, the entire brouhaha over Chick-fil-A, in my opinion, is just another tactic Obama and his minions are creating and using so they can get people worked up about the always hot button issues of religion and gay rights, in an effort to try and make everyone forget that the economy under this administration, to put it bluntly...sucks.

Obama and the likes of Rahm Emmanuel have NO trouble sacrificing Chick-fil-A in their quest to keep the White House and push forward their agenda of radically changing American family values and morals, all the while trying to shore up the gay voter base in a faltering campaign season.

While I personally won't get involved in the gay aspect of this argument because I don’t gay bash, never have and never will, and I'm also not sure if this is really just a religious issue per say as some contend, I am getting involved because some are trying to take away both a man’s right to free speech and are trying to financially hurt his business simply because he stated his religious beliefs.

And what those who chastise Mr. Cathy forget is that under the First Amendment the only speech NOT protected is speech which incites violence or the overthrow of the government,  And the last time I looked, stating one’s religious views is neither of those.

So for me, this is a First Amendment issue of paramount importance and I will speak up for and in defense of Mr. Cathy, because if we allow his first Amendment rights to be taken away simply because he expressed his religious views, which by the way people do every day in this country, then I wonder what else guaranteed to us under the First Amendment will be taken away next. 

And under Barack Hussein Obama the sky on that has NO limits.