Newsgroups: misc.legal,alt.censorship,alt.society.civil-liberty,alt.politics.usa.constitution
From: mnemonic@eff.org (Mike Godwin)
Subject:  Re: Shouting "Movie!" at a Fire Station (Schenck v US)
Message-ID: <1993Jan6.213336.7729@eff.org>
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1993 21:33:36 GMT

[...]

I want to add here that I often find useful the following discussion of
the distinction between mere advocacy and incitement:

  "Advocacy is the communication of ideas; it is
directed at intellect; it affords the listener an opportunity to reflect
on it. Incitement, on the other hand, ... is a spur to automatic action,
intended to bypass the rational thought processes. It is against this
oversimplified background that the classic case of shouting fire in a
crowded theater can best be understood. Shouting the word "fire" is not
the communication of an idea designed for reflective thought; it is
precisely the same as if a fire *bell* were intentionally rung. It is
intended to spur an automatic series of responses."

                Alan Dershowitz, THE BEST DEFENSE, p. 222