An 18-year-old high school senior was scolded by her principal after she criticised her state governor in a tweet.

Emma Sullivan, of Fairway, Kansas, was reprimanded by the head of The Shawnee Mission East High School.

She was summoned to the principal’s office and was ordered to apologise to Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback.

Emma posted the tweet during a field trip to the state Capitol.

After meeting Mr Brownback, Emma tweeted: ‘Just made mean comments at gov brownback and told him he sucked, in person #heblowsalot.’

Mr Brownback’s office contacted the school and complained about the tweet.

The following day Emma wound up in the principal’s office, NBC Action News reports.

She said: ‘He laid into me about how this was unacceptable and an embarrassment.

‘He said I had created this huge controversy and everyone was up in arms about it … and now he had to do damage control.’

She said she was told to write a formal apology to the governor, which so far she hasn’t done.

Emma said: ‘I don’t agree with a majority of the things that he is trying to pass.

‘I believe that it is my right to state my opinion.’

The school’s principal said: ‘This is not about political views since none were given in the tweet – it’s about being respectful with a public official whether we agree or disagree with their viewpoints.’

Read more here. This is exactly wrong. We all have the absolute right to be totally disrespectful to any elected official. That a Governor, like Brownback, should miss this point is completely disheartening.

Obama is riding the positive wave for all it’s worth. John Brennan, homeland security advisor, was dispatched to the briefing room to regale the media with the administration’s heroics.  The LA Times provided the right amount of reality:

“Sunday was, Brennan revealed to his eager audience, ‘probably one of the most anxiety-filled periods of times in the lives of the people assembled here.’ Poor, poor bureaucrats. Extra Tums all around. Did someone order dinner?”

Obama will be visiting Ground Zero Thursday.  According to FoxNews.com, the president explained:

“I know that unity that we felt on 9/11 has frayed a little bit over the years, and I have no illusions about the difficulties, the debates we’ll have to be engaged in in the weeks and months to come,” Obama said. “But I also know there have been several moments like this during the course of this year that have brought us together as an American family, whether it was the tragedy in Tucson or most recently our unified response to storms that have taken place in the South.”

It is this type of response that leads me to believe these kinds of events, Tucson specifically, are used by politicians to marginalize legitimate critics.

As the president said, it was a “good day” for America when Bin Laden’s last memory was apparently the barrel of an American gun.

But that euphoria won’t and shouldn’t silence legitimate criticism regarding out-of-control spending and debt that is piling higher than we can imagine.

That could have the type of impact that could make Bin Laden smile from the bottom of the Arabian Sea.  CNBC reported:

There have been increasing concerns about the fate of United States’ prized triple-A sovereign debt rating. While Standard and Poor’s recently downgraded its U.S. debt outlook to negative from stable, implying that a ratings cut could happen in two years, one independent ratings agency has given the U.S. sovereign rating a “C”.

“A ‘C’ is equivalent to approximately a triple-B on the S&P, Moody’s and Fitch scales. It’s two notches above junk and one notch above the equivalent of a single A,” Martin Weiss, President of Weiss Ratings, told CNBC Tuesday.

This is dangerous territory and we’ve yet to see little interest from Democrats or Republicans in doing anything about it.  Just because Congress cut a few billion out of a massively bloated budget does not mean it’s even coming close to living with its means.

So let’s stand united in defeating our terrorist enemies, but not use it as an excuse to silence critics.  After all, in the words of Bush-hating radical leftists, “Dissent is Patriotic.” Right, Mr. President?

The Washington Times reports and provides audio that Democrat House Speaker Nancy Pelosi supports the investigation into those who disagree with her:

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California Democrat, called for an investigation of those who are protesting building the Ground Zero Mosque on Tuesday. She told San Francisco’s KCBS radio:

“There is no question there is a concerted effort to make this a political issue by some. And I join those who have called for looking into how is this opposition to the mosque being funded,” she said. “How is this being ginned up that here we are talking about Treasure Island, something we’ve been working on for decades, something of great interest to our community as we go forward to an election about the future of our country and two of the first three questions are about a zoning issue in New York City.”

Calls to investigate the funding for those proposing the $100 million “Cordoba House” have fallen on deaf ears, though, as New York’s Mayor Mike Bloomberg has described such an investigation as “un-American.”

Is Pelosi referring to every day Americans, the families of the victims of 9/11, or her fellow Democrats–including Harry Reid–who have come out against the mosque?   She must also be endorsing that the only free speech in America is the speech where everyone agrees with her.  Remember when dissent was patriotic?

Furthermore, there is another point in her statement that needs to be pointed out, Pelosi states:

“As we go forward to an election about the future of our country…”

Pelosi gets something correct.  This upcoming election in November will decide the future of the United States–will the country fall to liberalism/progressivism/socialism or will the country survive and begin to dismantle the ‘reforms’ put in place by the progressive left–clearly against the will of the majority of the American people.  Indeed, elections have consequences.

Of course, according to the ever post-racial Shirley Sherrod, this might as well be a KKKlan mobile.

Note to other “post-racial” racists: People don’t object to His Excellency Presidency because Obama is black. They oppose Obama because he is red.

At the time, our Marine son and his men were deployed to a remote Forward Operating Base in Afghanistan. As I reflected on my experience at the Shell station, I wondered if this woman had any idea the sacrifices so many had made so she could exercise her 1^stAmendment rights during the previous administration or this one.

I wondered if she knew about Belleau Wood, the Chosin Reservoir, Hue City, Fallujah, or the Helmand Province? Was she aware that at Tarawa, 1,020 Marines were killed in the seventy-six hour battle? She may have seen the photo but did she know at Iwo Jima, the thirty-six day assault left more than 26,000 Americans wounded and 6,800 Marines dead?  Did she have any clue as to the sacrifices others have made throughout this nation’s history so she could live free?

My wife and I recently spent a week on the Marine Corps base where our son is stationed. As we walked up and down the residential street where he and his family live we realized almost half of the homes had husbands deployed to a combat zone. The other half had spouses who recently returned or were about to leave. It was humbling to see parking lots with so many cars displaying Purple Heart license plates or seeing the injured frequenting the PX. Did the woman know about these recent sacrifices?

Last week while I was working out at the gym and wearing a Marine Corps t-shirt, a young man approached. I could tell he had sustained recent injuries. This twenty-five year old medically retired Marine Corps Staff Sergeant was wounded in Iraq and only recently was able to abandon the wheel chair. His knee was still so full of shrapnel he needed a total knee replacement. He will forever live with the scars on his face but his sacrifice was even more personal. His brother, a Marine, was killed five miles from where my new friend was injured. His younger brother just enlisted. I can’t imagine what his family has been through. Yet he was so proud of his brother who died and the one about to carry the title “Marine.” Did the woman at the gas station know my friend and his family?

In AMERICAN PATRIOT by Robert Coram, Medal of Honor recipient Colonel Bud Day is quoted as saying “It is not a widely known fact, but military people are weepers. They weep when they watch a parade and the flag goes by. They weep when they hear the National Anthem. They weep at tales of valor and sacrifice.” When I read that, a sense of relief washed over me. If maybe the most valiant man I ever met can weep then I guess it’s okay for me to admit shedding a tear. I’ve shot guys and never flinched but tales of valor and the sacrifices I have seen by my military heroes and their families choke me up every time. I wonder if the woman at Shell ever cries and if so, for whom or for what?

My vehicle has only one decal…a scarlet and gold U.S.M.C. on the rear window. I’ll often have someone pull up next to me at a light and nod knowingly. I only spent four years on active duty as a somewhat marginal Marine yet after a twenty-six year career in the FBI, many of those years undercover, I’m prouder to say I was a Marine than to say I was an FBI agent. Although only a small portion of my life was in the Corps, I am forever part of a brotherhood of warriors.

Today, November 10th, a date known by every Marine, marks the 234th birthday of the United States Marine Corps. Tomorrow is Veteran’s Day, a chance to remember all who served. Maybe you can say thanks in a tangible way this year by supporting the USO,Freedom Alliance, Iraq Star, Operation Gratitude, Hope for the Warriors, or any number of charities serving our servicemen and women who have earned our respect and admiration with their shed blood.

“When I give you the word, together we will cross the Line of Departure, close with those forces that choose to fight, and destroy them. You are part of the world’s most feared and trusted force. Engage your brain before you engage your weapon. Share your courage with each other as we enter the uncertain terrain north of the Line of Departure. Keep faith in your comrades on your left and right and Marine Air overhead. Fight with a happy heart and strong spirit. For the Mission’s sake, our country’s sake, and the sake of the men who carried the Division’s colors in past battles – who fought for life and never lost their nerve – carry out your mission and keep your honor clean. Demonstrate to the world there is No Better Friend, No Worse Enemy than a U.S. Marine.” – Major General James N. Mattis. Commander, 1st Marine Division, March 30, 2003, on the eve of crossing into Iraq

Happy Birthday Marines and Semper Fi!