Actually, believe it or not, public opinion is a huge driver of public policy. As a result, when speaking in public with the opportunity to influence people's opinions, one needs to be careful not to influence people's opinions in a way that may result in support for harmful public policy.
To say otherwise, in my opinion, is to say that speech has little value - in which case why does the US protect it so highly?
I hope that public opinion will be swayed most strongly by facts, not by random internet guys’ opinions. This got started with pugworthy’s request for numbers above, and I think the facts I’m asking for are relevant.
I actually worry that this plea bargain business is a sign that we have implemented a justice system much more scary than what everyone else is discussing. A system which locks people up for having a little weed is bad... and also pretty trivial to work around. A system which locks people up for reasons known only to the DA, who is free to lie and threaten behind closed doors, is fucking terrifying.
Do we even know which of these systems we have? That's what I was hoping people could help me understand.
To say otherwise, in my opinion, is to say that speech has little value - in which case why does the US protect it so highly?