ACLU throws its weight around in... battle for Colorado vanity plates?
If you LVTOFU, the ACLU might go to bat for your right to let the world know you love tofu. A Colorado woman was recently turned down by the state's DMV when she wanted a plate reading "ILVTOFU." The Department of Revenue said the letters "FU" are a banned combination, and cited a statute that allows rejections if plates are "offensive to the general public" or "offensive to good taste and decency." If loving tofu is wrong, we don't want to be right...And the ACLU wants none of it. The organization has requested records from the Department of all of the rejected plates, probably with an eye to bringing a case if they find infringement of free speech. At issue is the boundary of First Amendment rights and state ownership of the license plate. An Oregon DMV rep said his state probably would have denied the plate -- Oregon turned down the plate "VINO" -- a Nevada DMV rep said his state probably would have approved it.
Even more odd is the list of banned 3-letter combinations on Colorado license plates. "Die," "gat," and "pee" we can understand. But "hot," "USB," and "moo"? Makes us think that Coloradoans have different meanings for their words than the rest of us...
[Source: Denver Post]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Lucas 12:13PM (4/25/2009)
I *love* the ACLU. I don't know why they're such a conservative punching bag.
ILVTOFU2!
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pmbard 12:51PM (4/25/2009)
I don't get it either. They defended Rush Limbaugh, for Christ's sake.
Farmboy 1:39PM (4/25/2009)
And who wants to defend him?
Sea Urchin 1:42PM (4/25/2009)
ACLU also defends NAMBLA
Google them
PJ 4:32PM (4/25/2009)
Defending an organization's legal right to exist is not an endorsement. The ACLU is concerned with the letter of the law, its compatibility with the Constitution, and the equality of its application.
Same mindset as "I don't agree with your opinion, but I'll defend to the death your right to voice it," despite identifying with the opposite end of the political spectrum.
paul34 4:52PM (4/25/2009)
The ACLU only defends the liberties that are in vogue. They don't care about the second, for example.
AMcA 5:41PM (4/25/2009)
Had the plate said something like "IEATMEAT" the ACLU would have taken a pass.
The ACLU is no longer the defender of civil liberties it once was. It's now the defender of a certain viewpoint.
Word is that brings in way more money.
FSM 7:00PM (4/25/2009)
Its because conservatives like Rush don't really believe in free speech unless its convenient for their ideology.
Smegley 7:07PM (4/25/2009)
FSM wrote: "Its because conservatives like Rush don't really believe in free speech unless its convenient for their ideology."
I didn't know Nancy Pelosi was a conservative.
Mr.Oak 10:26AM (4/26/2009)
Paul34: The ACLU pees me off also from time to time, but your accusation is not based in fact.
About the second amendment: First of all it is not under attack, being challenged or even threatened. The right wing gun toting fanatics in this country (MOSTLY inbred and extremely ignorant) are nothing but a bunch of whining crybabies.
Remember the salmonella scare with lettuce and tomatoes? How many people died? 10 maybe? The government was required to act in the name of PUBLIC SAFETY.
Remember the Firestone/Explorer roll over issue? Less than a dozen people died. Again, the government was required to act in the name of PUBLIC SAFETY. As a result, All SUVs are now required to have some form of stability control.
Columbine
Va. Tech
Civics Center, Upstate New York. to name a few.
To date this year, more americans have been killed or injured by GUNS here in the US, than in the Iraq & Afghanistan theatres of war combined. However, to some, guns are not a PUBLIC SAFETY issue.
Lucas 12:50PM (4/26/2009)
@Mr. Oak: Yeah, but if EVERYONE had guns.. :rolleyes: It's like telling all SUV manufactures to REMOVE stability control so it becomes a level playing field.
Aloysius Vampa 12:38PM (4/25/2009)
If I want cow sounds on my license plate, I will have ffffing cow sounds on my license plate! MOOOOO.
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Joe 6:31PM (4/25/2009)
My parents minivan had a non-vanity plate that started M00. This was in MD.
Smegley 12:40PM (4/25/2009)
FU ACLU
and I say that even though I support the right to the ILVTOFU plate
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AMcA 5:42PM (4/25/2009)
Oooo, can I get that plate?
micscat 12:47PM (4/25/2009)
I thought it said, "I live to f**k.
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Hike15 7:08PM (4/25/2009)
i was thinking i love to f**k
micscat 11:49AM (4/26/2009)
Livin' and lovin'...what's the dif?
jeffzekas 2:53PM (4/25/2009)
ACLU: the same organization which protected the "rights" of child molesters to solicit young boys, the "rights" of child pornographers to post material online, and the "rights" of Nazi's to harass elderly holocaust survivors... when will the American Criminal Liberties Union wither and die?!!
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CEMan 6:29PM (4/25/2009)
And the rights of Churches to exist in neighborhoods. And the right for Jerry Falwell to broadcast. And the right for idiots like you to post your drivel.