Ed Brayton is a journalist, commentator and speaker. He is the co-founder and president of 
I hadn't written about this previously, but this story has been out for about a week now. It was first reported by Pam Spaulding after she received an email from a Floroda law professor that said this:
I thought I would pass along an incident that occurred at the Fort Lauderdale Airport this morning. It is simply amazing considering how gay-friendly this city is and how many gays and lesbians live here.At approximately 12:45 am, my partner and I were in the baggage claim area in terminal 3. We had just arrived from Chicago and were waiting for our bags when an announcement came over the intercom. It basically said that "a man who lies with another man as he would a woman is subject to death." We couldn't believe what we heard, and then it came over the intercom again a few minutes later. We were shaken by the announcement because it specifically said "subject to death".
They complained to the airport manager and an investigation was begun. Access to the airport's PS system is restricted; a patron can't just pick up a phone and say something over the PA. It had to be someone in an official position and accessing the PA requires a pass code that is apparently unique. Today, Pam reports that the person has been caught. She quotes a Miami Herald report:
An aviation employee has told his bosses he was responsible for the anti-gay message blared over the public address system at Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport a week ago.The man is Jethro Monestime, 23, who works for Superior Aircraft Services. He said it was meant as a prank, airport officials announced at a news conference Monday morning. It was not immediately known if he would be disciplined and if so, in what way.
Broward County officials had vowed to discharge the person responsible if he or she worked for the airport. Monestine does not.
Should the person be fired? Absolutely. And no, this is not a free speech issue. The government shouldn't do anything about it, the company he works for should fire him. Do you think there would be the slightest hesitation to fire him if he had announced that all black people were "subject to death"? He'd already be gone. And he should be gone. Misusing airport equipment to call for the death of a group of airport patrons? That's a no brainer. Fire the idiot.
Comments
While Broward county is very accepting of gay people, it is also the home of Rev. Kennendy's homophobic church in Oakland Park. less than 10 miles from the airport. The good news is the the new mayor of Oakland Park is openly gay. I just now thought about how the mayor was chosen in November and the "good" Rev. had his heart attack in December. I am starting to wonder if they are related.
Posted by: Tulle | May 8, 2007 9:55 AM
I dunno. At least he didn't try to smuggle 4oz of hair gel onto an airplane. That would have been really bad.
Posted by: Rob Knop | May 8, 2007 10:28 AM
IMHO, a perfect example of crying fire in a theater.
If I was in a baggage claim area and heard those words, my first reaction would be to get my loved ones out of the terminal ASAP, believing that sort of proclamation might be a precusor to setting off some bombs or some other terrorist act. That sort of reaction by me would of course reduce overall safety. The guy should be jail, not just fired.
Posted by: Michael Heath | May 8, 2007 10:42 AM
JETHRO?!! Really?!! I hate to engage in stereotypes but something tells me his parents didn't expect him to grow up to be a surgeon.
Posted by: TomMil | May 8, 2007 10:42 AM
This message is pretty much straight out of Leviticus. Seems to me your complaint should be with God. Firing this guy is simply shooting the messenger.
Posted by: Tex | May 8, 2007 10:44 AM
Well the complaint should be with the bible and the idiot who spouts those things.
Posted by: Rev. BigDumbChimp | May 8, 2007 10:58 AM
Hey, Tex makes an excellent point.
Posted by: Skip Evans | May 8, 2007 10:59 AM
Tex, I somehow doubt that if Jethro had quoted this little gem from Mein Kampf that the concern would be over the message and not the messenger:
With the Jewish people the readiness for
sacrifice does not extend beyond the simple instinct of individual preservation.
Both the message and the messenger here are reprehensible, and the airport is right to fire him for spreading a particularly despicable message.
Posted by: THobbes | May 8, 2007 11:06 AM
Tex wrote:
Could not disagree more. Giving him status as a messenger implies that he delivered the message at someone's orders, and had some sort of obligation to do so. In fact, he had an obligation NOT to use that equipment in this way. Like all employees at airports, he has an implicit responsibility to do what he can to aid customer safety, and to avoid doing the opposite, which seems to have been the case here. Claiming that an invisible old guy in the clouds was that source of the statement should absolve him of nothing.
Posted by: Chuck C | May 8, 2007 11:27 AM
Ok, people, imagine that this guy had used the PA system, which has restricted access and is meant to be used for specific purposes, to say "Boobies, farts, wee-wees!". Nothing offensive about that message to any but the prudest prudes, and yet, wouldn't you expect the company to reprimand him or even fire him for using sensitive company property to make a prank?
Ed is right, firing this dolt has nothing to do with free speech.
Posted by: valhar2000 | May 8, 2007 11:29 AM
I think he has already been fired from what I've seen in the grapevine, but don't hold me to it.
Posted by: James Taylor | May 8, 2007 11:30 AM
Wait - someone actually understood something that was said over an airport PA system?
Posted by: Garrett | May 8, 2007 11:39 AM
Garrett -- LOL
Posted by: Tulle | May 8, 2007 11:42 AM
Yes, it would appear that he's gone:
http://www.wpbf.com/news/13275704/detail.html
Posted by: Chuck C | May 8, 2007 12:01 PM
There are two things that many people seem not to understand about free speech.
The first is that freedom of speech includes the freedom for other people to say things you don't approve of them saying.
The second is that freedom of speech does not include exemption from the consequences of your speech.
This guy misused the equipment and access of his job for something asinine and stupid, and potentially harmful. That's justification for his being fired, pretty clearly.
-Rob
Posted by: Rob Knop | May 8, 2007 12:54 PM
"a man who lies with another man as he would a woman is subject to death."
That is incitement to murder and that is, at least here in the Good Old United States of Europe, a very serious criminal offence! So throw the bastard in jail!
Posted by: Thony C. | May 8, 2007 1:26 PM
That is incitement to murder and that is, at least here in the Good Old United States of Europe, a very serious criminal offence! So throw the bastard in jail!
So, anyone who sells a bible or koran in Europe is jailed?
Posted by: Margaret | May 8, 2007 2:28 PM
I agree he should be fired, but isn't it possible that his intent was to show the absurdity of the Leviticus verse? I'm not defending his actions, but saying that stuff out loud is a pretty good way to expose its nastiness.
I like to mention Deuteronomy 25:11 whenever I can work it into the conversation.
Posted by: TW | May 8, 2007 3:39 PM
TW, I think that's being too kind to the creep.
Rev. Kennedy's Homophobic Church. I'm reminded of the Lethal Weapon movie in which Danny Glover's character walks into the (apartheid-era) South African Embassy and announces to the Afrikaner desk clerk that he wishes to emigrate to South Africa, and all the clerk can do is stammer "But... you're black..."
I'd love to see Rev. Kennedy's Church inundated by (deliberately played-up) stereotypically camp male and butch/dyke female pairs lining up to arrange their weddings there: "After all, you're so close to the Lord, and we wouldn't want just any pastor marrying us who didn't have a good grasp of the faith, you know?"
Posted by: Justin Moretti | May 8, 2007 7:02 PM
JETHRO?!! Really?!! I hate to engage in stereotypes but something tells me his parents didn't expect him to grow up to be a surgeon
Well, it was either brain surgeon, movie star, or double-naught spy. But those ambitions required Jethro to have a vast oil fortune behind him.
Posted by: QrazyQat | May 8, 2007 8:25 PM
Justin: That reminds me of an Australian (and Jewish) comic John Safran who as part of "John Safran vs. God" interviewd a leader in the KKK and asked him if he could join. The reaction was priceless.
Posted by: James | May 9, 2007 1:24 AM
Actually Justin, even back in the days of Apartheid there was immigration to South Africa from neighbouring African states. Being oppressed and alive was better than being dead and free or at least so I assume the reasoning went.
Posted by: LiberalDirk | May 10, 2007 10:57 PM