The Constitution (A.K.A. The Punching Bag)

The first amendment took another beating today when the Supreme Court delivered a one-two punch to government employees. It seems that their employers are justified in retaliatory actions against whistle blowers. Now when government employees discover wrongdoing at their place of employment, they have to choose between doing the right thing or face the wrath of the big cheese, which could include losing their job. Aside from the fact that the ruling sets up the scenario for corruption to run rampant, what would become of the would-be whistle blower if it is discovered through an investigation that they had prior knowledge of wrongdoing? Would they then be held accountable for not spilling the beans sooner? Should an employee have to make such a choice? That's a really crappy place to stick someone.

Kudos to Justices John Paul Stevens, David H. Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen G. Breyer for recognizing that.

Justices Set Limits on Public Employees' Speech Rights