Gingrich raises alarm at event honoring those who stand up for freedom of speech (Can you spell "I N T E R N E T CENSORSHIP"

(johnmac -- Newt makes the case, without meaning to, for heavy
encryption)

From the Manchester UnionLeader --
http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Gingrich+raises+alarm+at+event+honoring+those+who+stand+up+for+freedom+of+speech&articleId=d3f4ee4e-1e90-475a-b1b0-bbcd5baedd78

Gingrich raises alarm at event honoring those who stand up
for freedom of speech
By Riley Yates

MANCHESTER  Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich
yesterday said the country will be forced to reexamine freedom
of speech to meet the threat of terrorism.

Gingrich, speaking at a Manchester awards banquet, said a
"different set of rules" may be needed to reduce terrorists'
ability to use the Internet and free speech to recruit and get
out their message.

"We need to get ahead of the curve before we actually lose a
city, which I think could happen in the next decade," said
Gingrich, a Republican who helped engineer the GOP's takeover
of Congress in 1994.

Gingrich spoke to about 400 state and local power brokers last
night at the annual Nackey S. Loeb First Amendment award
dinner, which fetes people and organizations that stand up for
freedom of speech.

Gingrich sharply criticized campaign finance laws he charged
were reducing free speech and doing little to fight attack
advertising. He also said court rulings over separation of
church and state have hurt citizens' ability to express
themselves and their faith.

Last night's event, held at the Radisson Hotel-Center of New
Hampshire, honored a Lakes Region newspaper and a former
speaker of the House for work in favor of free expression.

The Citizen of Laconia was given the Nackey S. Loeb First
Amendment Award, which is named after the longtime President
and Publisher of the Union Leader Corporation, owner of New
Hampshire's statewide newspaper.

The Citizen scrutinized the Newfound Area School Board
beginning last year over a series of e-mail discussions held
before public meetings. It also used the right-to-know law to
uncover costly decisions by the town of Tilton this year.

Executive Editor John Howe said the decision to pursue the
stories led to at least one advertiser canceling its business
with the paper.

"We try to practice what we preach, even if it costs us
business," Howe said. "And it has and it will in the future.

Also honored was Marshall Cobleigh, former House speaker and a
longtime aide to former Gov. Meldrim Thomson.

Cobleigh introduced an amendment to the state Constitution
defending free speech. He also helped shepherd the state's
1967 right-to-know law through the Legislature.

Gingrich's speech focused on the First Amendment, but in an
interview beforehand, he also hit upon wide-ranging topics.

     * Gingrich said America has "failed" in Iraq over the past
three years and urged a new approach to winning the conflict.
The U.S. needs to engage Syria and Iran and increase
investment to train the Iraqi army and a national police
force, he said. "How does a defeat for America make us safer?"
Gingrich said. "I would look at an entirely new strategy." He
added: "We have clearly failed in the last three years to
achieve the kind of outcome we want."

     * Political parties in Presidential primary states should
host events that invite candidates from both parties to
discuss issues, said Gingrich, who criticized the sharpness of
today's politics.

     * Gingrich said voters unhappy with the war, the response
to Hurricane Katrina and pork barrel spending were the main
drive behind the GOP's rejection at the polls. But he argued
Republicans would have retained the Senate and just narrowly
lost the House if President Bush had announced the departure
of embattled Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld before,
instead of after, the election.

     * Gingrich said he will not decide whether he is running
for President until September 2007.

The event last night was sponsored by the Nackey S. Loeb
School of Communications. The school was founded in 1999 to
promote journalism and other forms of communication.

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