Some people call this “free speech.” (Hat tip: William.)

UPDATE at 4/12/05 9:14:01 pm:

And then, there is this: Secret Service visits art show at Columbia. (Hat tip: NC.)

Organizers of a politically charged art exhibit at Columbia College’s Glass Curtain Gallery thought their show might draw controversy.

But they didn’t expect two U.S. Secret Service agents would be among the show’s first visitors.

The agents turned up Thursday evening, just before the public opening of “Axis of Evil, the Secret History of Sin,” and took pictures of some of the art pieces — including “Patriot Act,” showing President Bush on a mock 37-cent stamp with a revolver pointed at his head.

The agents asked what the artists meant by their work and wanted museum director CarolAnn Brown to turn over the names and phone numbers of all the artists. They wanted to hear from the exhibit’s curator, Michael Hernandez deLuna, within 24 hours, she said.

The craziness is getting worse. When did this kind of insane hatred masquerading as “political discourse” become a mainstream, respectable—even marketable—way to express an opinion?