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17-year-old newspaper columnist canned for patriotism column

blogs.chicagotribune.com — Every once in awhile, we newspaper columnists, raging and fulminating at our keyboards, go too far -- we overstate, we gloss over nuance, we generalize unfairly, we give offense we don't intend while trying to be funny or profound, or we otherwise lose our rhetorical way. If we're lucky, we have an editor who saves us. Mohammad Sagha wasn't.

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  • LumpyRevolution, on 04/22/2008, -12/+17Finally the Colonel diggs something worthy! Well done! Watch out! this is coming to a neighborhood near you!
    • ColonelTribune, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4Thanks for the, um, compliment!
      • LumpyRevolution, on 04/22/2008, -6/+10Pay specific attention to the content that this young man is writing, or wrote about.
        He gets it!
    • zaptoman, on 04/22/2008, -0/+4What exactly is coming again?
      • ieatpizza, on 04/22/2008, -2/+1A movie about a 17 year old newspaper columnist
  • starsarebent, on 04/22/2008, -69/+21He should be canned. It's all speculation. You can't write opinion as news. People want facts, not the opinion of someone being blatantly bias. Same goes for anyone who writes on their opinion on, say Bush, for example. Whether it be positive or negative. News- no, MEDIA would do a great favor in this world to remain *truly* neutral.
    • pintomp3, on 04/22/2008, -11/+39so that would mean all of fox news should be canned.
      • ventralnet, on 04/22/2008, -6/+6Fox news isn't a legitimate source of the news just as the daily show isn't.. the chicago tribune is
      • flip2trip, on 04/22/2008, -8/+4and CNN, MSNBC, ABC, CBS, NBC......
        • dagnome1984, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4All of those suck worse than fox because the propaganda is not as obvious. It's not only the spin that counts, but what is not covered by the media.
    • ralphie81, on 04/22/2008, -2/+59He wasn't writing a news article, he was writing a column. Columnists go beyond strictly reporting the news.
    • Picaroon, on 04/22/2008, -3/+24I would agree with you had this been presented as a news article. But it was his column, and as such, he can say what he wants. If he wants to say something stupid that I don't agree with, fine.. I'll write a letter to the editor offering my dissenting opinion.

      That's how democracy works.
      • brycelb, on 04/22/2008, -2/+5I would agree with you if this article was presented by some sort of public entity. But it was a private company, and as such, they can do what they want. If they want to fire someone for saying something stupid they can. You can stop paying for the service they provide.

        That's how capitalism in the US works.
        • MWeather, on 04/22/2008, -3/+2Capitalism and Democracy seldom get along with each other.
    • Culled, on 04/22/2008, -1/+24It was on the opinion page. The newspaper, of course, had the right to fire him but he was writing his opinions on the opinion page not in the news section.
    • dondara, on 04/22/2008, -8/+4Don't give me that facts crap, this is American media we are talking about here. Lying is fine as long as it's "their" lies.
    • SenorCardgage74, on 04/22/2008, -2/+181. It's an OpEd

      2. One of the quickest ways to identify a moron is in the way they use the word "bias."
      Try to get this: People, News Organizations, Opinions can be BIASED.
      None of them can be BIAS.
      It amazes me just how many of you guys make that same, very common stupid mistake.
      Mostly because it ISNT a mistake. It's an indicator of a huge lack of understanding of a term that you guys throw around far too much.

    • srondizzle, on 04/22/2008, -1/+24The editor should have been the one who got fired, actually. This kid's job is to write columns, which he did. The editor's job is to make sure the columns are appropriate to go to print, which he/she clearly did not do.

    • monolife, on 04/22/2008, -12/+4I agree with the idea that news should be neutral, based on the facts. I also agree that the editorial staff handled the situation wrong (though if he were 30 instead of 17, would there be this much clamor?).

      The news should be about facts, not editorializing, as the passage from his article seems to do. However, this article doesn't give a clue as to what the boy's normal scope of writing is supposed to be. Is he supposed to be a "voice" of his age group? Then opinion might be okay. If it's supposed to be a news article, then this isn't the language for it. Has anyone actually read his articles?

      I think the only issue here is that the staff didn't give an underage writer a bit more caution before terminating him and cutting ties with him publicly.
      • hipnerd, on 04/22/2008, -0/+8He was "editorializing" because he was writing an opinion column -- not news.

        The real story is that the paper did a sloppy job of checking what the kid was writing and then threw him under the bus when people complained. He's 17 years old and not out of high school. He made a mistake in tone and subject matter. It should have been the news professionals at the paper that caught and corrected the issue before it was published. These type of missteps are common with young writers trying to find their voice. They just needed to provide the kid with a little guidance.

        The editors of his paper look pretty gutless from where I'm sitting.
      • CJMac, on 04/22/2008, -0/+6But, as said before, he wasn't writing a 'news' piece. He was writing an editorial column. If the editor had thought it was inappropriate, he shouldn't have run the article. Plain and simple
    • TheSwashbuckler, on 04/22/2008, -0/+5"You can't write opinion as news."

      He was a columnist, not a reporter.
    • starsarebent, on 04/24/2008, -1/+0Ah... my bad, guys. In that case, forget everything I said.
      Also, pintomp3;
      "so that would mean all of fox news should be canned."
      All of ALL news should be canned, and a better format should be introduced. Not filtered bent opinions of ANYONE. Bascially, Colbert levels the playing field. He attacks every side of every opinion, leaving the viewer to form their own.
  • nahsrocketeer75, on 04/22/2008, -14/+125An utterly ***** overreaction on the part of the newspaper. If you're going to have a high school kid writing regularly, you've got to either edit his/her stuff closely so that it fits within what you define as your paper's standards, or you accept the consequences like the grownups you're supposed to be.
    • schuder, on 04/23/2008, -3/+4The real lesson here is don't have a name like Mohammad Sagha and trash America. I'll be the first to admit America is far from perfect, but just absconding it does no good. His column offers no solution, no positive, it's just a trash column. That's all fine and good, but most Americans believe that while their government is corrupt as *****, the people and country are still good on the whole. I don't think it would be as big a deal if he had anything constructive to add, but he didn't. Try Pakistan for a few years kid, then see how good you have it. Clearly not perfect, but a cut above the rest.
  • GrandmaSheila, on 04/22/2008, -32/+24It's called strangling free speech, and you have to teach them young to keep their mouths shut, even if you publish them first
    • ProjectGSX, on 04/22/2008, -8/+11This has nothing to do with free speech.
      • DreKor, on 04/22/2008, -4/+9It looks like this has everything to do with free speech, just not with regard to the 1st amendment to the the constitution.
        • slvrbullet87, on 04/22/2008, -1/+3How about freedom to run your business as you see fit?
        • TheSwashbuckler, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2There is no such thing as free speech when applied to non-governmental entities.
    • schuder, on 04/23/2008, -1/+3It's not strangling free speech, no one is personally stopping him from writing for other columns. They just don't want to lose readership, because this kid is a schmuck. A true patriot is someone who loves their country enough to point out it's faults, correct. But there's no love for America in his columns.
  • whoreable, on 04/22/2008, -21/+39Good. He is only 17. Now he can focus more on nailing high school chicks while he still can.
    • Bantec, on 04/22/2008, -1/+5he has plenty of time for that.
    • MWeather, on 04/22/2008, -1/+12That's what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older and they stay the same age.
    • akamurph, on 04/22/2008, -0/+5From the contents of his article he is probably a digger so odds aren't in his favor of getting laid.
    • schuder, on 04/23/2008, -1/+2Considering we're all being raised in a McCarthy-like era I wouldn't think high school chicks would go for Muslims?
      • solid12345, on 04/23/2008, -1/+2Do Muslims even go for high school girls? How often does a Muslim date a non-Muslim, hell in the mideast most Arabs marry their cousins.

    • DJafrodijiak, on 04/25/2008, -0/+217, you ready.
  • chicofaraby, on 04/22/2008, -30/+158According to the article Mr Sagha wrote: "The 9/11 generation is being raised somewhat similarly to how the youth of the Red Scare were raised which included confusion, misinformation, fear, nationalism, and undue support of our elite rulers.

    But we have traitors on our hands. We have war hawks, instigators, oppressors and conquering emperors who have brought nothing but death and anguish to the Iraqis."

    -------------
    Looks like the kid spoke truth to power. Of course he was fired. Good job kid.
    • Picaroon, on 04/22/2008, -51/+15Looks like the kid is an uneducated buffoon. But I don't think he should be fired for a dissenting view--that's the whole point of free press.
      • ironhide, on 04/22/2008, -8/+45Uneducated? How so? Sounds like he's spot on to me. Let me guess, he's uneducated because he doesn't see the world as you see it right?
        • Picaroon, on 04/22/2008, -35/+4Yes.
          • twisterrust, on 04/22/2008, -0/+6well, than that's 21 more uneducated people and counting ( -21digg)
        • ironhide, on 04/22/2008, -4/+25@picaroon, well thanks for showing who the real uneducated buffoon is.
          • Picaroon, on 04/22/2008, -26/+5You just proved that you're no different. Just afraid to say it until you think it's witty.
        • Picaroon, on 04/22/2008, -14/+3BTW, if you really want to know why he's guilty of buffoonery, here's why:
          "...oppressors and conquering emperors who have brought nothing but death and anguish to the Iraqis."
          "...benefactors and benevolent bringers-of-hope who have brought nothing but freedom, democracy, and a better way of life to the Iraqis."

          Both of these statements are equally retarded for the same reason.
          • MWeather, on 04/22/2008, -3/+11We brought democracy, not freedom or a better way of life.

            So they're poor, sick, starving, and getting blown up, but they can vote.
          • goffy59, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2Welcome to my block list. You jack *****!
      • CajunDigg, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2Spot on Picaroon. Perhaps the kids believe too much of the buffonism spewing from Digg.
      • CryRightardCry, on 04/24/2008, -1/+2Speaking of uneducated buffoon.... oh, there you are.
        How's that rightard shilling going? Good?
        Good.
        So why is it rightards come down on the wrong side of EVERY issue?
        This kid tells the truth, and the right wing ***** think he should be fired.
        When you right wing asshats are wondering how you guys manage to suck so hard and fail so badly, remember stuff like this.
    • jerryudigg, on 04/22/2008, -14/+7Yes, I think Iraqies are wishing the old days were back. Oh Sadam, why did we kill you when we were so happy with you in charge......
      My only advice for him is to go live in Iran or China or Russia for a little while. The US is not perfect and it will never be so, but I do sometimes grow tired of the hate America first crowd
      • MWeather, on 04/22/2008, -2/+7Are you trying to say things weren't better under Saddam? Under Saddam most Iraqis only needed to worry about not pissing off the government. Now, whichever side they choose, even if they pick none, they are a target.

        The US is not the worst nation and it will never be so, but I do sometimes grow tired of the America can do no wrong crowd
      • SSUK, on 04/22/2008, -1/+5But you invaded Iraq under the pretence that they had WMDs and weren't afraid to point them at America. In FEAR of a potential strike against the US, however unlikely, the US invaded the country. So by supporting the war in Iraq, you're already deluded enough to buy into the fear which this kid got his job taken away for pointing out. Good job.
    • CajunDigg, on 04/22/2008, -6/+3"Truth to Power" give me a break. Are you blind or can you not fathom the threat to the west?
    • JohnSteel, on 04/22/2008, -7/+7"the President continues his genocide in Iraq" Where is the truth in that?
      • Noods, on 04/23/2008, -1/+3Have you not seen the thousands of pictures, videos and news reports of innocent Iraqis killed? Pushing a political war on a country that had taken no action against us with blatant disregard for its people is pretty close to genocide. It sure as hell isn't liberty, which is what this country used to be all about.
      • CryRightardCry, on 04/24/2008, -1/+2Try reading the news.
        Get off Fox.
        Get a ***** clue.
  • heavystone, on 04/22/2008, -6/+27It's the kid from Karate Kid!
  • pintomp3, on 04/22/2008, -13/+90even at 17, he's more of a journalist than most of our corporate media. i guess they think he should have written more about britney spears or anna nicole's death.
    • BobMysterioso, on 04/22/2008, -10/+9No, that isn't true at all. When you reign fire and damnation down upon your readers, the only people that read it are the people that already believe it. You have to take a more moderate approach on the subject, a point of view people find approachable.
      • MWeather, on 04/22/2008, -1/+10So you water down the truth with lies to sell more ads?
        • insllvn, on 04/23/2008, -1/+2It wasn't the news, or even the truth, no matter how much I may personally agree with the kid. It was an opinion piece.
      • Hamletlere, on 04/23/2008, -0/+4Then why is Rush Limbaugh so popular?
    • zantos420, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4i don't know why he got fired he's right
    • PolishLogic, on 04/23/2008, -0/+3Or he could have stuck to writing about his experiences with adolescence and high school. From the sound of this article, that was what was expected from him upon getting his column. As an example, I'd rather not have my NBA beat writer opining in his playoff coverage about the economic fallout in Africa due to a trade embargo on the Sudan. He's there to write about sports, not politics. It doesn't appear that this kid was there to right about politics.

      That being said, the newspaper completely over-reacted in this whole situation, he deserved a bit better than getting canned that quick. Especially after just hearing word from his editor to lay off the politics.
  • Kbennett, on 04/22/2008, -9/+2Zorn has put together some very good columns and blog entries of late.
  • kkiran, on 04/22/2008, -12/+9True that you have freedom of speech but beware, some remarks might not be taken in the same light as YOU feel...
    • ace429k, on 04/22/2008, -3/+3like on Digg when someone diggs you down?
  • tiberone, on 04/22/2008, -25/+11Obviously the newspaper should have handled everything better, but you have to admit the kid was a nutjob.

    "He'd recently used his column to promote the idea that college students should be allowed to carry concealed weapons."

    I mean, seriously?
    • davidamerland, on 04/22/2008, -3/+9Hmmmm.....is it just me or do the words "column" and "opinion piece" do not mean the same thing any more? It's an opinion designed to promote discussion not a sermon to be absorbed and worshiped.
    • zaptoman, on 04/22/2008, -1/+3Hmm. Should have linked that one. I'd have dugg it up for you.
    • Bantec, on 04/22/2008, -1/+9Yeah, people who promote free speech and 2ND amendment rights are 'nut jobs'. Not like those sound minded individuals who view that silly constitution as 'just a stupid piece of paper'. Because, it's a good idea to allow government to make and enforce laws without any preset guidelines. In fact, making the rules up as you go is a good policy in any avenue of life.
    • MWeather, on 04/22/2008, -1/+4Why shouldn't college students be able to carry concealed weapons? Kids their age not in college are allowed to. You used to be able to carry in high school.

      The pussification of America continues.
      • InnerRayg, on 04/22/2008, -2/+3Because I don't trust them enough not to shoot me.
        • MWeather, on 04/23/2008, -0/+2So what is it about going to college that makes them less trustworthy with weapons?
          • InnerRayg, on 04/29/2008, -0/+1I don't trust anybody not to shoot me. All for making any group less able to do it to me.
    • sqwirl, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2Yes. Seriously.

      Why do you hate the 2nd amendment?
    • goffy59, on 04/22/2008, -1/+1I blocked you! :)
  • Bamont, on 04/22/2008, -11/+23I don't agree with his message in the least - BUT, I most certainly do advocate for Freedom of the Press. The kid has the right to say what he wants, regardless of his age. He wasn't standing on the street promoting profanity - he wrote an articulate, intelligent column that should be made more famous because the paper attempted to bury it. This kind of rampant stupidity isn't what we need in America, because it's NOT ***** AMERICAN.

    American is the ability for people of differing views to express them freely and openly. This kid defines patriotism - speaking out and questioning the government.

    Sorry for the goddamn profanity. But stupid people like the editor of this paper make me wonder if they wipe their asses with the Constitution.
    • kazoomaloo, on 04/22/2008, -1/+9Well, let's not go overboard and call him articulate. The article was pretty rambling and not quite cohesive. While I agreed with the spirit of the article, I can't say I was impressed with the writing. He's a young guy though, so it's not the end of the world.

      Regardless, if the paper decided to run the column they shouldn't have turned around and canned him. They had plenty of time in between submission and publication to review the article, tell him to write another or decide not to put it in. If I had been the editor I just would have said, "This is a bunch of jumbled political screed. Why don't you go back to writing about college ruled vs. wide ruled notebooks like we hired you to do?"
    • quarkie, on 04/22/2008, -1/+14"Freedom of the Press"?
      The newspaper has the freedom to publish it, retract it, make fun of it, etc... If he doesn't want his pieces in that paper he can sell them to someone else and they can publish it.

      Isn't freedom wonderful?
      • SuperMoses, on 04/22/2008, -5/+3Ya, it's too bad only those with money have freedom.
      • Bamont, on 04/22/2008, -0/+2Newspapers are a business - there's no doubt about it.

        My problem was the inability for the Editor to correctly review the article, and instead of allowing this kid to stand and perhaps "defend" himself - they canned him right off the bat. Wasn't the failure of the young journalists, it was the failure of their Editors.

        Having said that - he can print what he wants and say what he wants, but to not post it is ridiculous. My hometown is very conservative, but our newspaper was intelligent by lending a very liberal journalist a column right next to the periodical written by O'Reilly.
    • Bantec, on 04/22/2008, -2/+2That would suggest that they own a copy of the constitution. I doubt it.
    • dafunkmonster, on 04/22/2008, -1/+5Don't blow this out of proportion, the kid wasn't thrown in jail for speaking his mind. He was fired. Employers, especially newspapers, have every right to fire columnists who they believe will hurt readership.
      • insllvn, on 04/23/2008, -1/+3As much as those who agree with what the kid said will try to make this a first amendment issue, it isn't one. He wasn't imprisoned for what he said, and the paper wasn't shut down by the government for printing it. The issue here is journalistic integrity. You are exactly right, he was fired because he was perceived to be hurting readership. He was fired to preserve profit. His column passed muster as far as the editorial staff was concerned, they had it a week in advance. They didn't tell him to stick to his niche or to moderate his positions, they fired him outright because they thought it would look good and they would in turn make more money. I expect that someone will crawl out of the woodwork to call me, or imply that I am, a dirty hippie for condemning a for profit business acting to make a buck, and normally I would agree with the assertion that business have a right and perhaps even a duty to their employees or stockholders or what not to turn a profit, but this is different. A view, albeit an extreme one, has been silenced out of concern for cash flow. Apparently the integrity of the so called journalist editing this rag was for sale. Business is about making money, journalism is a higher calling. It is a mission to tell the truth, to separate fact from rumor, and to give voice to all sides. The newspaper has no right to call itself that anymore. They have no journalistic integrity for having silenced this kid. There is a line, and that is where I find they crossed it.
    • JulyZerg, on 04/22/2008, -3/+2"American is the ability for people of differing views to express them freely and openly."
      When? 200 years ago?
      • saigumi, on 04/23/2008, -0/+4Watch this.....

        BUSH SUX! I'm still here. Nothing happened.

        Now, had I been in a country that doesn't have the freedom of speech, that would have looked like this

        "CHINA SUX! I'm still... wait, someone at the door... cru...asegihawegioazxcvbnm,./"
    • CajunDigg, on 04/22/2008, -0/+3He can say it all he wants. He does NOT have a "right" to be published. Someone else paid his ticket. Perhaps he learned his lesson: "more thought, less outlandish exaggeration"
      • PolishLogic, on 04/23/2008, -0/+3100% right.

        Sure he's got the freedom to write about anything he wants, but the paper also has the freedom to publish or ***** his column. The decision was a bit harsh, considering, but they had the right to do it.
    • JohnSteel, on 04/22/2008, -0/+4The Paper has the same Freedoms of the Press and Speech that the kid has. He was NOT harassed, arrested, or killed for speaking his mind.
  • franklymister, on 04/22/2008, -3/+51The important point was made at the beginning - Mohammad should have had an editor who would push back, and let him know if his column was straying out of bounds BEFORE it got published. What an ironic way to teach American values to our kids - punishing them for expressing themselves.
  • Wholekernalcorn, on 04/22/2008, -11/+6People shouldn't be allowed to write want they want. There should be restrictions on Freedom Of Speech!..../end sarcasm
    • davidamerland, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2Yeah, I mean what's the point of having freedom of Speech if you are not given strict guidelines on the things you are free to talk about!
    • ventralnet, on 04/22/2008, -3/+8 The Chicago tribune is a company just like any other and they can choose what they want in their papers and what they don't want.
    • CajunDigg, on 04/22/2008, -0/+0You should lobby your government representatives for the funds to support the "right" to to publish whatever pap you dream up.
    • Defuser, on 04/22/2008, -0/+2Dear dumbass: he's still free to say whatever he wants to say. But the point that always seems to elude people like you is this: NOBODY is required by the Constitution to provide you with a public platform. A newspaper is free to print (or not print) anything whatever they want.
  • McGuinness, on 04/22/2008, -8/+60Am I the only one that thinks this kid is 100% correct in what he wrote, and that the editors/owners of the Naperville Sun (which is...down the road from me) are just a bunch of old fogies that think anything critical of our nation is anti-American?

    Because...our country is about a half rotation away from going down the drain and most > 30 years old just turn around and pretend its not happening.

    I never liked ANYONE from Naperville anyway, the entire town is a bunch of stuck up, snooty perfect suburban little families. Whenever I met a kid from Naperville, they were almost always void of being able to think for themselves without mommy and daddy having their hand up their kids ass like a little puppet.

    Of course the citizens of Naperville wont take this article, they dont like any free, non-collective thought. Growing up next to that town, I genuinely have a hatred for it and its citizens.
    • dweeb73, on 04/22/2008, -1/+7Spot on!
    • flip2trip, on 04/22/2008, -7/+2How can you hate a whole town? You ever consider YOU may be the problem?
    • catalysis, on 04/22/2008, -1/+7I lived in Naperville too and it's mostly an upper-middle class, white-picket fence, conservative area. Many of them are the type that voted for the war but then don't want to hear about it or see it. That's what this is about.
    • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0McGuinness any time you want we'll buy you a pint @Quigley's Pub downtown a block from NCC,on Jefferson st. Lots of warhacks, but more most important 6 soldiers have paid highest price in this war.help this kid board sanjaya express,those who fired him have report the story is DEAD.
  • minox, on 04/22/2008, -15/+25His article reads like the majority of the comments on digg. That's not a compliment.
    • buggu, on 04/22/2008, -9/+8I'd rather read a truthful opinion than a dressed up column that bows down to the corporate elite.
      • dafunkmonster, on 04/22/2008, -2/+1You'd be dancing to a different tune if you were the editor in chief of a newspaper that pays your salary with ad revenue.
        • TripcodeMel, on 04/22/2008, -2/+0You'd be dancing to a different tune if I was shooting at your feet with a revolver and shouting "Dance, boy!"
    • Bantec, on 04/22/2008, -4/+2Yes it is.
    • TripcodeMel, on 04/22/2008, -3/+4Your comment reads like the majority of comments on a MySpace.

      (That's not a compliment.)
  • Quick2822, on 04/22/2008, -3/+19He's from Naperville, his parents will just buy him a BMW to make him feel better.

    In my lifetime, I have never experienced such asshatery and rudeness that I get from people who live in Naperville.
    • ImpulseControl, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2Pfft, Naperville is where you move if you can't afford the North Shore. Nothing but strip malls and cooke cutter housing.
    • Versh, on 04/22/2008, -0/+3Damn you Naperville!!!
    • dracostimpy, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4Naperville also has ranked pretty darn high up in Money magazine's top places to live for several years:

      http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/200 ...

      I'd say for all its asshattery and cookiecuttery, it seems it must have something going for it. If you ask me, that something is a night life whose hotchickery rivals the best Chicago has to offer, albeit without big city beer prices.
    • delmar14, on 04/22/2008, -0/+4I go to DePaul and the Naperville kids are without a doubt among the dumbest and most arrogant people I have ever interacted with.
      • dracostimpy, on 04/22/2008, -2/+1But are they hot? I bet there ain't a fugly one in the bunch. Dumb girls = happy fun time. Arrogant ones just need you need to tell them they're worthless trash before they'll give it up.
        • HotBaconSauce, on 04/24/2008, -0/+1I've seen some wild beasts in Npaerville, believe me.
        • delmar14, on 04/25/2008, -0/+1Ya...they can be a fun time when I'm drunk enough to not care that I'm ***** someone who's at least mildly retarded.
      • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0I love that young people are free to express thoughts so clearly,as a trucker i see these people from MARCO IS. to EAGLE RIVER,wis. AFTER they leave the bar people often rip the heck out of the dumbest and most irritating. NAPERVILLIANS tell us regular pretty often how much better thay are than us lowlies.. H ow about helping this young writer punch a ticket on the SANJAYA EXPRESS. also can you believe chicago wants to win bid 4 olympics ,scary thought.
    • brainboy77, on 04/22/2008, -0/+3from an east coast guy's mouth: Where the hell is Naperville?
      • rarr, on 04/23/2008, -0/+0Far off suburb of Chicago
        • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0It is at the intersection of crooked cops and corrupt public officials who are o.k. drawing only 3-4 or 5 taxpayers checks. Ya the mayor PRADEL recieves at least 5 checks counting his winter snowplowing gig. he can't help it if he's lucky.$$$$$$
  • willamette, on 04/22/2008, -10/+21First, the kid shouldn't have been canned....it was the editor's job to screen what a 17-year old columnist wrote.

    Second, it was a stupid column that shouldn't have been published. 1) The kid apparently doesn't really know what happened in the Red Scare, at least if he's comparing it to America today. 2) His argument seems self defeating - here he (a child!) is with a platform to speak his mind about an administration that he doesn't like, and his argument is that's being muzzled or misinformed?? The only media group that even attempts to paint the Bush administration in a good light is Fox News, and I highly doubt this kid has been forced to view that. Add to this the fact that the "9/11 Generation" is the most online group of individuals EVER having the largest and most free access to all content, opinion, views, etc. of any generation that's ever lived. I highly doubt this kid sits down at 5:30 every night and watches the BS MSM with their 30 second sound bites (unless is Heath Ledger's death or Brittany Spears...then it gets a full 2 minutes).

    The poll numbers demonstrate this fact, too - younger voters are the least likely to support the current White House or Republicans in general. It appears the 9/11 generation is the least misinformed or confused.
    • SpencerMc, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4"Suspicions were often given credence despite inconclusive or questionable evidence, and the level of threat posed by a person's real or supposed leftist associations or beliefs was often greatly exaggerated. Many people suffered loss of employment, destruction of their careers, and even imprisonment. Most of these punishments came about through trial verdicts later overturned,[1] laws that would be declared unconstitutional,[2] dismissals for reasons later declared illegal[3] or actionable,[4] or extra-legal procedures that would come into general disrepute." Wikipedia on McCarthyism.
      Accusations being given credence despite lack of evidence? People being detained under false pretenses? Government actions that courts later find to be unconstitutional? Unfounded fear mongering? Mindless nationalism?

      The comparison is arguable, but saying the kid didn't know what he was talking about makes you come off as a patronizing *****.
      • arcticblue, on 04/22/2008, -0/+3I thought his "a child!" made it obvious he was a patronizing *****. A 17 year old teenager is only 1 year from being a legal adult. That's a far cry from "a child."
  • worldinmyeyes, on 04/22/2008, -5/+7Mentioning the "confusion, misinformation, fear, nationalism, and undue support of our elite rulers," and also the traitors and war hawks in our government, and mentioning the needless Iraqi deaths...these should be the regular talking points of the MSM if they had any backbone. I might even subscribe to such newspaper instead of the occasional insight and analysis they publish.
  • Culled, on 04/22/2008, -6/+15Freedom of the press is limited to those who own one.
    • p0s3r, on 04/22/2008, -6/+5Who own a printing press? Doesn't just about everyone got a printer nowadays? Or atleast a Kinko's nearby?
      • Culled, on 04/22/2008, -3/+6Exactly, if he wants his ideas to be heard there are plenty of ways for him to have them heard. Whether or not anyone wants to listen to him is a different story. The paper was fully justified in removing his column and the kid is fully justified in expressing his beliefs.
        • p0s3r, on 04/22/2008, -4/+3Agree 100%. If that kids views are so important and righteous, he should start up his own paper and build a readership. He shouldn't expect that it is his right to punish the readership of that paper with his hate, ignorance, and vitriol.
    • JointVenture, on 04/22/2008, -1/+6Yeah, just look at all the people on DIGG who are repressed and unable to say what they want.
      • Risingashes, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1And what would the world be like if the internet wasn't available?
        Where todays 'news' programs were the only source of info?
        • saigumi, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1About the same as it was 14 years ago when the internet was a meager handful of servers used by research institutes and colleges....

          You know, the world did exist before it and the world is still here.
  • kingUssop, on 04/22/2008, -9/+2Only in the US right now could a kid sounding about as snarky as Andy Rooney get in hot water with his newspaper gig...
  • isunktheship, on 04/22/2008, -2/+8I read the rest of his column, and it's mildly interesting. The Sun just should have said, from the start, since you are the High School journalist write about [good topics] stay away from [bad topics]. They screwed up when his thoughts were published, editors are censors, if they didn't like it, they shouldn't have published it. It seems like they needed his spot, so they published whatever he wrote, later realizing it was a bad idea.

    If the editors HAD started off that way he would have been let go after the first article, instead of them getting frustrated and taking it out on hom.
  • beachtrader, on 04/22/2008, -2/+12I guess I have to take a contra-opinion to the previous comments. Everyone keeps quoting freedom of press and how it is now being suppressed because the kid was canned. That's not true. Freedom of press comes from the constitution and it means the "government" can't suppress your speech. Freedom of press has no applicability to a private newspaper who decides what they want to print.

    If this newspaper wants to only have articles on Microsoft and great bottles of wine to drink -- they can do that. If they want to only print Democratic politics -- they can do that. If they only want to run articles on Paris Hilton, well you get the point. At no time was this kid guaranteed a full right to print whatever he wishes. He was an at-will employee who could have been terminated for anything the newspaper wanted. The newspaper could have given him the boot even if his articles were in the wrong font. Freedom of press is not an issue here.

    If you want to discuss whether the editors should have booted him, you can. But, the kid has no constitutional right to have his articles printed by the private company running the newspaper.
    • Rendonsmug, on 04/22/2008, -2/+2Its not because of freedom of press that he shouldn't have been fired, its because the newspaper should have manned up to its screw up.
  • Zlorp, on 04/22/2008, -11/+8tomorrow theres going to be a new article up on digg showing that the guy who wrote this did something completely out of line that had nothing to do with this article and THATS why he got the boot.

    but until then, go ahead and freak the hell out you liberal pussies
    • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0it's been a week where is the article???PUT HIM ON THE SANJAYA EXPRESS and see if he can fly,or does he sink>
  • TheCommentThief, on 04/22/2008, -10/+4According to the article Mr Sagha wrote: "The 9/11 generation is being raised somewhat similarly to how the youth of the Red Scare were raised which included confusion, misinformation, fear, nationalism, and undue support of our elite rulers.

    But we have traitors on our hands. We have war hawks, instigators, oppressors and conquering emperors who have brought nothing but death and anguish to the Iraqis."

    -------------
    Looks like the kid spoke truth to power. Of course he was fired. Good job kid.
    • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0HELP US LOCALS GET A TICKET ON SANJAYA EXPRESS,he will expose a very interesting scandal as zlorp above has hinted,hopes he puts it out here. We are waiting mr zlorp,what's the story. ZORN tip line is 847-755-7984 847-755-7984 a long long openline message machine which he responds to .
  • ace429k, on 04/22/2008, -5/+6Ray Ramano?!
    • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0SANJAYA REBORN ;HELP US PUT THIS GUY ON CABLE NEWS SHOW??
  • davidamerland, on 04/22/2008, -9/+7Let's make this article far more famous than the Naperville Sun can even imagine.
    • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0That's what i'm talking about. Im a ignorant,fat ,white-trash trucker with little web skills ,can you and your friends put his guy on the SANJAYA EXPRESS,lookin to get him at least a cable news show blurb on the issue of silencing public discourse,killing the messenger,. naperville loves to regard the NAPER-CITY as nirvana,but many others disagree. Dupage county is were that prof hosts vote 4 worst idol site. He made Sanjaya day, can we help this guy get a shot??? read POTLUCK in naperville SUN to grasp a problem in NPD and city boy's camp
  • shortstick, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4I don't know about this guy's particular case, but sometimes an overstatement in writing, on contemporary events, can represent a fear of a possible near-term future. Even the government can do it when building cases for action on different matters. Perhaps in painting a picture of a scary possibility, we can avoid it. However, lots of small connecting words used by the writer can begin to shade the piece of writing, giving the reader the impression that this is conjecture, and also allowing the reader to see that the writer himself realizes the paranoia at the edges.
  • p0s3r, on 04/22/2008, -16/+12Sounds just like you retarded diggers. Congrats, your ignorance and hatred are going to ruin your future.

    Cheers!
    • ironhide, on 04/22/2008, -0/+8Says the man who is blinded by hatred of all things liberal.
      • p0s3r, on 04/22/2008, -9/+1Atleast I didn't lose my job because my views were so vile and ignorant.
        • ironhide, on 04/22/2008, -0/+9Yeah, and the fact that you're an anonymous internet troll has nothing to do with it. At least the kid has some balls.
    • matador3, on 04/22/2008, -0/+9Have you ever made a comment on here that wasn't buried?
  • markgl, on 04/22/2008, -10/+9oh yeah sure, he speaks for everyone right? this 17 yr old don't know squat and thinks america is bad.
    • banmaster, on 04/22/2008, -0/+3Seems to know more, a LOT more, than the lies the average American has been force fed for the past 6.5 years!
  • aratika, on 04/22/2008, -9/+8Hey kid...scrawl your comments against some backwards arsed theocracy in the middle east. And learn the meaning of sleeping with one eye open. You'll get fired...at.
    • nyinegy, on 04/22/2008, -0/+3Only 2 theocracies in the middle east: Iran And Israel!!
      Saudi Arabia is a kingdom! the rest are military republic systems .coo and small oil tribal mini countries with budgets bigger than California!!
  • socketman, on 04/22/2008, -13/+8What a little bastard writing that kind of liberal propaganda BS.
    He should be fired, for crappy journalism.
  • zaptoman, on 04/22/2008, -4/+6Aww. How sad.
  • Tonicks, on 04/22/2008, -2/+6Columns are for opinions, whether you agree with them or not; however, the paper had a right to fire him since they are a private organization. If OPINION/COLUMN staff isn't writing to the paper's liking, then they can give them the boot.
    This of course does not apply to the NEWSROOM, where this wouldn't have been acceptable. Also, though, you can't be fired for reporting TRUE NEWS; that's wrong.
    I agree with the guy's opinions, but...

    To summarize: The kid was fired from his opinion column gig because the paper didn't like his direction. Plain and simple.
    • moxley, on 04/22/2008, -2/+3The problem isn't that they fired him - The real problem is how they treated him afterward and disparaged him for a ***** EDITORIAL column. Obviously some neocon shareholder called the editor and reamed him.

      ***** that paper. Maybe they need a little wake up call.....

      Yes....A love letter..of the sort Frank Booth would send......Yes...that would do quite nicely..Send a love letter from Frank Booth to all of these assholes..They'll never bother anyone again.
  • Litespeed, on 04/22/2008, -5/+14Who the hell hires a 17 year old to write newspaper columns in the first place? That's the worst age. They think they know everything but don't have the real world experience to put it into perspective.
  • TinternAbbot, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4While I disagree with what the kid wrote, this is *****. The reason newspapers have editors is so that they can be aware of exactly what they're publishing. If they didn't want to publish the article, they shouldn't have published it.
    • banmaster, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2Why do you disagree? He wrote the truth that most people wish wasn't actually true.
  • bicyclethief, on 04/22/2008, -2/+3Ralph Macchio is still 17? God, that guy does not age.
  • flip2trip, on 04/22/2008, -9/+3He was warned, he got fired, end of story. He can get a job at Raw Story, they need a few more liars.
    • moxley, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2***** - Raw Story is generally quite accurate, much more so than this paper.
      • 1timeuser, on 04/23/2008, -0/+22/2 of these comments are based upon opinion.
    • saigumi, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1Nah.. this guy wasn't good enough of making up "truthful but fake" evidence like Raw Story guys are.

      Remember last week when they published about the Pope not eating dinner with Bush and made a huge deal about it? And digg liberals got their panties in a bunch saying that "if a nzi yuth wont eat dinr wif u, u must sux"? Yet, the reason he didn't was because his calendar was full with meeting US Bishops, Cardinals and other groups. And even still, the first thing the Pope did when he got off the plane in the US was to be greeted by Bush and have a photo-op and meeting right then and there?

      Yes, it is a fact that Bush and the Pope didn't have dinner. But it is also a fact that the FIRST thing he did after setting foot in the US was to meet him and Raw Story just decided that fact was irrelavent and messed up their tardical story.
  • MWeather, on 04/22/2008, -6/+4As an editor I wouldn't have changed much. He was pretty much spot on.
  • WayneCA, on 04/22/2008, -1/+3Kid does have a point though. They're using terrorism just like the red scare. They gave us a common enemy to fear that only the government and increased government control can protect us from (so they would have you believe). Terrorists could be lurking anywhere in the nation, they might even be your neighbor, just like Communists. The problem is that our President used it as an excuse for a power grab. Since 9/11 we have less democracy and more executive power. That's not the principle my country was founded upon and it pisses me off when people are called anti-American for pointing it out.
  • mbraynard, on 04/22/2008, -1/+7Two thoughts come to mind:
    1) Newspapers have editorial views and that is reflected in whom they choose to carry. If Mohammed has a problem being fired from a paper, he should speak to Ann Coulter who has been removed from MANY papers even as her readership grows because some considered her content at odds with their paper.

    2) He's 17. Nothing in his writing samples presented sounds anything different than what you read on the typical 100+ digg, Anti-Bush post here. As someone who wrote op-eds at 17 and under, let me tell you that you neeed to have an original point of view to be worthwhile reading,
  • futureisours, on 04/22/2008, -4/+5Idiot kids with no life experience who are still living with their parents should not be writing in a professional publication other than say a teen beat article or review of some concert.
  • nzeeshan, on 04/22/2008, -2/+4he wrote the truth and he got fired .. wow !! ..
    What do you guys think? What he said .. was it wrong? I think otherwise.
    • truckertom, on 04/28/2008, -0/+0I think your right,locally here in N-ville we want this man made a national story to speak to the issue,something not allowed currently. Were try to slingshot him NASCAR style wall to wall,nationwide.This guy is the REAL DEAL, can you help punch his ticket on SANJAYA EXPRESS. I am a ignorant truckdriver,not well versed in hiiting homer in the webosphere. All you peeps who like stirring a boiling POT, help us NAPERGATIANS ,expose core criminal elements in NPD and local government. BOYCOTT NAPERVILLE NOW. put this where it can be read,thanks
  • dafunkmonster, on 04/22/2008, -1/+3Columnist writes bad articles. Bad articles offend readers. Readership drops. Newspaper makes less money.

    God, you people are naive about advertising revenue.
  • mashw, on 04/22/2008, -7/+2A 17 year old should never be in a position to inform the general public, the people who digg this down will simply be those who are yet to (or never will) realise that.
    • mashw, on 04/23/2008, -2/+23 pissed off 17 year olds dugg me down.
  • JointVenture, on 04/22/2008, -4/+1Wow, are 17 year olds really that scared? What about 21 year olds?

    The 20 somethings I saw at South Padre didn't look like the were living a life of fear and oppression.

    Maybe the digg kids in their bedrooms are, but the majority are more likely to say STFU you paranoid *****.
  • elliotys, on 04/22/2008, -1/+2It seems like he nailed it right on the head, although it should have been in the editorial section.
  • jlhoben, on 04/22/2008, -0/+2Young people need to get more politically active. Globalism has stolen their future and yet we still see our leaders pushing the NAU.
    • DiogenesJr, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1Globalism stole my future? Damn. I guess this means I am a victim and need to be outraged at the injustice of it all.

      Bury away liberal scumbags.
  • nastronomical, on 04/22/2008, -4/+1utter nonesense
  • nastronomical, on 04/22/2008, -6/+3He represents the typical dumb america kid, they think they know everything yet cannot find their state capital. He can find a job at the dailykos among his equally dismall buddies oh and here on Digg as well.
    • DiogenesJr, on 04/23/2008, -2/+0I agree. It's only a matter of time before he's an executive at MSNBC or CBS or CNN or wherever...
    • 1timeuser, on 04/23/2008, -0/+1Yes, stupid kids. Thank god for old people who ***** EVERYTHING up for future generations and make insane generalizations right? Back to your hole.
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