A short, short time ago, in a land not very far away at all, a political talk show aired nightly on network television. It was called Politically Incorrect. Comedian Bill Maher was the moderator, and he presided over a panel of four celebrities who voiced their opinions on the events of the day. In its many years on the air, the show covered a myriad of topics, ranging from abortion to deadbeat dads to presidential ethics to assisted suicide to Affirmative Action and everything in between.

I loved that the show would pair people who were guaranteed to disagree, because it made for the kind of lively discussion that I can only imagine took place more than two centuries ago when the founders were putting together the 5000-piece jigsaw puzzle we call the United States Constitution.

What became of Politically Incorrect, you ask? Oh, you didn't ask? You don't care? Well, sucks for you, because I'm going to tell you anyway. Shortly after the tragic events of September 11th, Bill Maher criticized President Bush on the show. His bold statements shocked a nation still overcome with grief. Stunned affiliates refused to air subsequent shows. Advertisers pulled their commercials from the program. Politically Incorrect was canceled before the summer. Perhaps it wasn't the right time for Maher to take George W. to task, but should his opinion be silenced simply because it isn't the opinion of the majority?

I thought about this recently when I made the mistake of leaving the house for dinner. There are plenty of reasons I don't venture out in public very often, but most of them are variations on the theme that the human race absolutely terrifies me with its stupidity and/or ignorance. My parents did convince me to make a rare public appearance last week (did someone say something about free food?), but I barely got through my chicken casserole before the people next to me started ragging on Michael Moore for his acceptance speech at last month's Oscars. The comments were nothing new or particularly captivating. Mostly they repeated the mantra about taking Moore out back to be shot with the murderers and rapists.

I was going to swallow the anger that had begun burning inside me like a fire at a paper factory, but then some lady brought up her disgust with the Dixie Chicks and it was all I could do to keep from planting my fork squarely in her forehead. Before too much longer, I excused myself, went in the bathroom, and wept.

Okay, not really, but it strikes me as pathetic that people greet their fellow Americans with open hostility, hatred, and contempt solely because they chose to exercise their Constitutional rights. It seems to me that someone who refuses to even hear the other side out may be unsure of their own opinion on the topic, or generally uninformed about the situation. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech, one of the many rights we are beginning to take for granted. (On an unrelated issue, if the Homeland Security Act of 2002 doesn't have you quaking in your boots, it should. This is scary stuff.)

Nobody bitched or booed when Best Actor winner Adrian Brody voiced his concern for the troops overseas, but I suppose no one would. This is a stark contrast to the treatment Moore received when he voiced an anti-war view earlier in the evening.

Some have argued that it was neither the time nor the place for Moore to be voicing his personal opinions and views. I can't think of a better time or place for a director from Hollywood to state his opinion than at the industry's biggest self-promoting scam ever. I've also heard that Moore had no right to say those things because the Oscars were telecast on the Armed Forces Network to American servicemen overseas. I would think the soldiers would be happy to know that the rights they are fighting for are alive and well back at home. Also, Moore didn't say anything derogatory about the troops. Those who disagree with the war don't disagree with the people in the trenches. The combat units are doing exactly what they've been trained to do. What they're doing is their job. Those who disagree find fault with the Bush administration and its motives in this action.

Certainly, Sheryl Crow in a 'No Blood for Oil' T-shirt wasn't going to keep President Bush from declaring war, and it certainly isn't going to convince him to pull the troops out at this late date. This begs the question: why do celebrities speak out on controversial issues? Every day, every one of us makes choices about our political participation. Maybe we're not elected officials, so we can't dictate policy or spur major changes quickly, but we can make our voices heard. We can use the system to make sure that our opinions are represented.

I could cite voter apathy studies until my eyes bleed, but the Cliffs Notes version is that a large percentage of the population chooses not to participate in their government at all, ever. Celebrities are people, too. They are faced with these same choices, but they have an even bigger responsibility because they are in the public eye, like it or not, and it is their right and maybe even their responsibility to promote discussion and debate if they so choose.

Whether the celebrities are informed is another issue entirely. Sure, some (okay, many) of them don't even have high school diplomas, but that fact alone doesn't make them automatically stupid. Maybe some of them quote questionable sources and statistics, or even go so far as to make things up, but the only recourse we have to prevent that from happening is censorship, and if we start down that path, this country is in very serious trouble. Additionally, celebrities make up a statistically insignificant percentage of the population, despite what reality television would have you believe. High school dropouts come in all shapes and sizes, and the vast majority of them are decidedly not celebrities. We don't have any citizenship test or voter knowledge quiz that requires any citizen, famous or not, to demonstrate a reasonable understanding of the candidates or issues in any given election. As long as they're breathing, older than 18, and can prove their legal citizenship, they can vote in a default state of blissful ignorance.

Dixie Chicks singer Natalie Maines recently told concertgoers in London that she was ashamed the president hailed from Texas, Maines's home state. As a result, country music stations boycotted the Dixie Chicks and even ran promotions encouraging listeners to burn the group's CDs. This smacks of the McCarthy hearings of the 1950s. To censor people and groups simply because of their beliefs is to go against everything this country was founded on. Remember the good old days, all "free exchange of ideas" this, "enlightened discussion" that, and "lively political debate" the other thing?

You may have noticed that I haven't stated my opinion on either the war or the President's performance. That's not what this is about. I'm not writing this to nitpick a war or speak out against our nation's leaders. I'm simply saying that when we become so stubborn in our views that we can't even respect other people's opinions, whether they be celebrities or mail carriers or businesspeople, the Constitution means nothing. We are fighting this war for the long-term safety and security of our country, but when we start trampling on the First Amendment rights of our fellow Americans just because we don't like what they have to say, we face a danger far greater than the threat of a nuclear attack.

Because the Constitution, when it comes down to it, is just a piece of paper. It's just a lot of words until we as Americans let them ensure our liberty and freedom. What's the use of fighting for our freedom abroad when we are beginning to have it stateside less and less? As Voltaire said, "I may disagree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

Sadly, I think we have a better chance ousting Saddam Hussein than we do preserving the natural rights we all supposedly have as American citizens. Better the devil you know, right?

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Sorry it's a little heavy this time around. But the links were entertaining, right? Anyway, back to the insanity soon, I promise.