Erbe the hater

Taranto has a good snark at the absurd Bonnie Erbe, whom I mentioned on 16th

"Yesterday's item on "hate speech" prompted several readers to write in with the observation that columnist Bonnie Erbe's comments on antiabortion extremist Randall Terry seem to fall under her own definition of hate speech, which she believes should be criminalized.

Terry called the late George Tiller, who performed late-term abortions, a "mass murderer," and Erbe in turn described Terry as "an accessory to murder" and accused him of "partaking in domestic terrorism." She also called for "reprisals" against Terry.

Now, don't get us wrong. We think that Erbe's statements, like Terry's, are fully protected by the First Amendment. If the government sought to prosecute her for them, we would be the first to speak out in her defense (assuming we could do so without running afoul of the law).

But if Erbe really believes such speech should be punished, she is quite capable of punishing herself. In lieu of a fine, she can make a "gift" to the U.S. government (we'd suggest $10,000) by following the instructions at this link. And in lieu of a prison term, she could place herself under house arrest for, say, a year.

Source