The first amendment gives us the right to Freedom of Religion, Speech, Press, Assembly, and Petition. The one most people seem to think is the most important is the freedom of speech. It entails that you have the freedom to state your opinion and say what you want about what you want. Although, you may not say something if it may "create clear and present danger," contains "fighting words," has "obscenity," and the "time, place, and manner," in which it was said. My question, is what makes something have one or more of these qualities, and who gets to decide that.
Certainly there have to be restrictions on freedom of speech in order to prevent danger, but who should get the power to decide how severe the restrictions are? Do these people need to have a degree in law, because I believe that they should. Also, how many people are on the comity for deciding? Obviously, one person can't just decide what can and can't be said. But are there any specific things that make a statement illegal? In a recent event, an anti-Islam video was released, and it offended many people, who started riots and killed an ambassador. Whoever released it probably didn't intend to start a riot, but does that make him innocent? I say that he was just expressing his opinion, and just because some people thought it was offensive, shouldn't make it illegal. People can get mad over anything, really. The maker of the video was sentenced to a year in prison, because the video violated his parole, but even if he was on parole, he should still have freedom of speech.
After some research, I've found out that the supreme court makes these decisions about freedom of speech. They are appointed by the president under the consent and advice of the senate. This occurs whenever an opening in the supreme court appear, which is about once or twice a term, or maybe not at all. Due to how strongly the first amendment is worded, most people think that we can say anything we want. However, the supreme court decided that things like national security, personal security, and justice outweigh freedom of speech. Therefore, if someone says something threatening, they are taken into custody. Those are the restrictions on freedom of speech, and who makes them.
Sources: http://www.freedomforum.org/packages/first/curricula/educationforfreedom/supportpages/L04-LimitsFreedomSpeech.htm
http://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/50146.pdf
