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George Will Is Wrong about Masterpiece Cakeshop: The Right NOT to Promote a Message is Protected
National Review ^ | 12/05/2017 | David French

Posted on 12/05/2017 7:13:17 AM PST by SeekAndFind

Is the lighting “primarily” intended for illumination here? Or is it intended to send a very specific political statement? Every reasonable observer knows the answer.

Now, let’s consider the facts of the Masterpiece Cakeshop case. The gay couple eventually selected a rainbow cake to celebrate their nuptials. This decision was every bit as expressive as the White House’s decision to light up its façade. Given the context and the occasion, the meaning was abundantly clear to even the most casual attendee. There is no ambiguity here.

There’s a line, moreover, in Will’s piece that demonstrates surprising ignorance about weddings despite the fact that Will has undoubtedly attended countless ceremonies in his long and illustrious career. Who has ever said that a wedding cake was primarily food? No one wants the cake to taste like trash, but is that the reason that brides, moms, and wedding planners agonize over their cake choice? (Grooms are more likely to be indifferent.) No, they want the cake to be beautiful. They want it to be — dare I say it — a work of art.

Rare is the person who attends the wedding reception eager to chow down on a piece of wedding cake. The common and nearly universal experience in weddings where the bride and groom have even the smallest budget to celebrate is the gathering of guests around the cake, to proclaim how “amazing” it looks, to admire the specific aspects that make it special, the “perfect” cake for the perfect couple.

In ordinary circumstances, the artistry of cake designers is so obvious that it’s presumed — the same with photographers, calligraphers, and florists. This obvious artistry is a reason why no one bats an eye when a baker refuses to design, say, a Confederate-flag cake. The message it is sending is staring you in the face. But a message may be implicit instead, present though not obvious, even if the artistry is. For example, does anyone believe that the prohibitions against sex discrimination would compel a fashion designer to create a dress for Melania or Ivanka Trump?

There is no ambiguity as to whether the design of the cake in this case communicated a message.

There is no slippery slope between Masterpiece Cakeshop and segregated lunch counters. There is no ambiguity as to whether the design of the cake in this case communicated a message. The Supreme Court can, in fact, rule in favor of Jack Phillips without doing the slightest bit of harm to generations of civil-rights case law. In fact, it can explicitly reaffirm its rulings in those cases at the same time that it defends free speech. It’s that simple.

It cannot, however, rule against Phillips without committing an act of judicial violence against both the First Amendment and common sense. Phillips doesn’t discriminate on the basis of any person’s identity. He was asked to engage in an act of artistic expression that communicated a specific cultural, religious, and political message. The Constitution and generations of Supreme Court precedent hold that he has the right to refuse to speak that message — regardless of whether it’s delivered by punditry or by pastry.

— David French is a senior writer for National Review, a senior fellow at the National Review Institute, and an attorney.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events; US: Colorado
KEYWORDS: 1stamendment; anthonykennedy; atheism; christians; colorado; fakeconservative; firstamendment; gaymarriage; gaystapo; georgewill; gopestablishment; homofascism; homosexualagenda; jackphillips; lakewood; lavendermafia; liberalagenda; masterpiececakeshop; obama; obamalegacy; obergefellopinion; phillips; religiousliberty; rino; scotus; sodomandgomorrah; ssm; will
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To: jospehm20

Well stated.


21 posted on 12/05/2017 7:43:57 AM PST by MrEdd (Caveat Emptor)
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To: posterchild

I never followed this closely......but just realized the baker didn’t refuse to make them a cake because they were gay.....he just refused to make them a rainbow (gay) cake. Changes the whole story. I would think the response would be the same if it was a Nazi cake or a Klan cake or any other “theme” the baker might object to. Stunning the SC has to decide this.......


22 posted on 12/05/2017 7:44:55 AM PST by PSUGOP
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To: fwdude
This could have been a landmark case to bust open the fascist nature of “anti-discrimination” laws as they apply to private businesses and associations, but they won’t go there. What a tragically lost opportunity.

I think a ruling for the baker will still have the same effect of knocking down anti-discrimination laws. How do you enforce them once the Supreme Court has said you can't?

23 posted on 12/05/2017 7:45:31 AM PST by DoodleDawg
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To: miss marmelstein

Will was actually pretty good when conservatism held sway and politicians didn’t become afraid of the label. But he turned out to be a fair weather columnist.

His reasoning in the 2000 election “recount” fiasco were gold and a keeper. So were his commentaries on abortion.


24 posted on 12/05/2017 7:56:52 AM PST by fwdude (Why is it that the only positive things to come out of LGBT organizations are their AIDS tests?)
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To: SeekAndFind

George Will is usually wrong.


25 posted on 12/05/2017 7:59:16 AM PST by Lurkinanloomin (Natural Born Citizen Means Born Here Of Citizen Parents - Know Islam, No Peace -No Islam, Know Peace)
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To: miss marmelstein
To keep up with the food metaphor: Will’s a fruitcake.

No, he's a nutcake. (keeping up with the food metaphor...)

26 posted on 12/05/2017 8:02:01 AM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
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To: DoodleDawg
How do you enforce [anti-discrimination laws]once the Supreme Court has said you can't?

Good point. But it will be more likely that the Court just might "split the baby" in the spirit of concession (as is the modern practice) and actually give the Gaystapo an unexpected victory by making them a protected group by judicial fiat, while allowing the baker to withhold services. So, the GLBTXYZ group gets special federal status, to be used for future attacks against unwilling conservatives, while a very narrow "exemption" (how I HATE that concept) allows bakers to refuse the order, perhaps being required to publish his beliefs beforehand, like the Jews were required to display Stars of David in their shop windows.

27 posted on 12/05/2017 8:03:57 AM PST by fwdude (Why is it that the only positive things to come out of LGBT organizations are their AIDS tests?)
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To: usconservative

After his support of gay marriage, he’s a cupcake.


28 posted on 12/05/2017 8:04:52 AM PST by miss marmelstein
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To: miss marmelstein

You win!


29 posted on 12/05/2017 8:06:20 AM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
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To: Governor Dinwiddie

Interesting about Will’s private life. I always wondered why he stopped writing about his son - the one with Down Syndrome. Now I know!


30 posted on 12/05/2017 8:07:40 AM PST by miss marmelstein
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To: SeekAndFind

I could see a baker choosing to specialize in exclusively creating cakes celebrating homosexual unions and issues. Would there be any clamor or outrage if that baker subsequently refused to expand his specialty to include cakes intended to celebrate actual marriage?


31 posted on 12/05/2017 8:08:22 AM PST by davius (You can roll manure in powdered sugar but that don't make it a jelly doughnut.)
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To: davius

No, of course not - no one is going after muslims who refuse to bake those cakes. Most “straights” would be too intelligent to use them anyway. Who knows what they’d put in the cake.


32 posted on 12/05/2017 8:25:19 AM PST by miss marmelstein
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To: DoodleDawg
I think the problem with "anti-discrimination" laws is that they were intended to protect overtly identifiable traits, like race, gender, age, handicap, etc. Once one has to inquire in order to comply, everything changes. A service provider is at the mercy of the honesty of the answer.

Things like sexual orientation, gender identity, even religion to some extent, aren't obvious in routine transactions, and we can't become a society where everyone is required to wear their color-coded star in public so that the "authorities" can sort out the winners from the losers.

-PJ

33 posted on 12/05/2017 8:55:10 AM PST by Political Junkie Too (The 1st Amendment gives the People the right to a free press, not CNN the right to the 1st question.)
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To: SeekAndFind

Cake is food. Icing is food. But design and the skill to decorate a cake beautifully = artistic expression. If not true then bake a cake and sell them the unassembled cake and icing and anyone can put it together since it is just food. A painting is just paint and paper then? George, ever hear of gestalt? The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.


34 posted on 12/05/2017 9:01:33 AM PST by Anima Mundi (Socialism is theft.)
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To: Political Junkie Too
I think the problem with "anti-discrimination" laws is that they were intended to protect overtly identifiable traits, like race, gender, age, handicap, etc.

They were meant to protect specific classes regardless. An unforeseen consequence of those laws is what happens when protecting one classes rights violate another classes rights. Which one wins? Does opening a business and catering to the public mean that you voluntarily forego your own protections? If the answer to that is no then anti-discrimination laws are unconstitutional.

35 posted on 12/05/2017 9:02:15 AM PST by DoodleDawg
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To: SeekAndFind

Sounds like we’re going to have to get some people to run around San Francisco asking businesses to bake Confederate flag and swastika cakes.


36 posted on 12/05/2017 9:07:31 AM PST by Behind the Blue Wall
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To: SeekAndFind

Its not the states place to conscript anyone. I’d argue that it shouldn’t be able to even do that for military service. We are either a free nation or not. It doesn’t mean we are free to do whatever we want or demand whatever we want from others compelling them against their will. Consent is the founding principle of this nation. Its better to tolerate bigotry than to institute slavery in the name of combating it and by tolerating I don’t mean passively accepting. There will always be the freedom to protest perceived bigotry.

What the George Will’s of the world want to do is allow the federal government to use the heavy hand of the state to FORCE acceptance of homosexuality and the promotion of it. MSNBC can refuse to run pro life commercials but a cake baker can’t refuse to make cakes with a pro ssm message. It is exactly the same thing and no matter how much I think MSNBC not allowing paid ads for Pro Life messages they don’t like is awful I fully support their right to be awful.

The LGBT movement has been one of the most anti liberty big state movements in history. They are not demanding liberty from the state but liberty to control others through edicts that force adoration of them and their depravity. Religious liberty and further more freedom of conscience are the keystones to stopping dead this movement. One more Conservative Supreme Court Justice and Religious liberty will be unassailable and this depraved group can be shoved firmly back into their gutter where they belong.


37 posted on 12/05/2017 9:13:49 AM PST by Maelstorm (Free is just another word for someone else has to pay.)
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To: Reno89519
Amen! If my wife, siblings, adult children and even grand children are treated badly by a store owner or those working in the stores.

We take our $'s elsewhere.

You posted: I also think it is incumbent upon the shopper to shop where they are welcome.

38 posted on 12/05/2017 9:16:04 AM PST by Grampa Dave (Build Kate's wall and keep the illegals and illegal murderers/criminals out of America! SLAP!!!)
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To: Governor Dinwiddie

Thanks for that information on Will. Context is everything.

I used to read Will regularly years ago but I cannot recall when the last time I read one of his essays.

Now I put him in the General Petraeus category.


39 posted on 12/05/2017 9:16:12 AM PST by bkopto
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To: Reno89519

A lot would depend on the number of options the prospective customer has. The gay couple had many cake makers to choose from, yet deliberately chose a Christian bakery for the express purpose of forcing them to create a message.


40 posted on 12/05/2017 9:21:11 AM PST by SauronOfMordor (Socialists want YOUR wealth redistributed, never THEIRS!)
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