Sense prevailed Monday when Gov. Sam Brownback said no apology was required from a Kansas City teen who — get this — did not say the Governor “sucked” on a message sent out from her cellphone.
The teen, Emma Sullivan, a senior at Shawnee Mission East, posted on the website Twitter that she had made a disparaging remark to the governor while she was attending a Youth in Government program last week in Topeka.
Though she made no such remark, Sullivan obviously thought it would be cool to claim such bravado.
Brownback’s office must include people who regularly search social media websites for his name and pull out the alarming.
Youth in Government organizers were contacted about Sullivan’s posting. Next day, the student found herself in the principal’s office for more than hour and was ordered to write the governor a letter of apology.
The teen’s initial posting was sent to 61 of her friends. By Monday, the incidence had gone viral. More than 9,000 viewers have viewed the tweet — (hash)heblowsalot.
BROWNBACK was smart to retract the demand for an apology. By virtue of being an elected official, he’s fair game for public criticism.
What’s unsettling about the incident is the feeling of Big Brother lurking in the background, sifting through the posts of mouthy teenagers, and worse, taking issue with them.
It’s a lesson in free speech all right — for the Brownback administration.
— Susan Lynn
