Letter from M. Stanley Bugge

‘Live Your Life As You See Fit’

Those manufacturing outrage over the drag performance in Oneonta are arguing against the First Amendment. A free society doesn’t work that way.

The First Amendment doesn’t come with a “but only if everyone approves” clause. People have the right to speak, perform, assemble, and associate peacefully—even when others find their choices offensive or distasteful.

If event organizers want to host a drag show, performers want to perform, and adults—or parents making decisions for their own children—want to attend, that’s their business. Not City Hall’s.

You don’t have to like drag. You don’t have to attend. You don’t have to approve of it. But you shouldn’t enlist the government to make that decision for everyone else.

That’s the essence of liberty: You have the right to live your life as you see fit, as does everyone else, provided you aren’t violating someone else’s rights.

Government should protect our rights, not referee our culture.

The answer to speech you dislike is more speech. The answer to art you dislike is to walk away. The answer to an event you oppose is simply not to attend.

Oneonta doesn’t need the government acting as a cultural hall gatekeeper or speech police. It needs officials who understand the limits of their authority.

You’re free to hate drag. You’re free to love it. You’re free to ignore it. Government shouldn’t make that choice for anyone.

M. Stanley Bugge
Otego