Re:Physics prof fired from oil spill cleanup job due to cont...
by pmccool on Thursday May 20, 2010 @12:27AM
(#1363253)
A set of rules for the government to act on in exercising powers peculiar to government, no?
Hence the historical importance of tenure for judges, for example. I assume his university position is likewise protected by academic tenure?
So I respectfully disagree. Whatever this is, it isn't a freedom of speech issue.
Put in a concrete, extreme example, consider if all teaching positions across the US required a statement of belief (say, in god). This would clearly be a violation of the establishment clause (really, tied to freedom of speech, but you could make another example that is more closely linked to the current situation). However, if some private catholic school required its teachers to believe in god, that would not be a violation, because the constitution binds the government, not private individuals or groups.
So, in a clear answer to your question, "why should it in this case?", it should because the constitution is a set of rules for the government to act upon, not for private companies.