Among those singled out for intense scrutiny were "Impeach Obama," "Work Harder. Obama Needs the Money," and "Al Qaeda's Favorite Days: 9/11/01 & 11/4/08," the dates of the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, DC and the election of Barack Obama to the presidency.
The owner of the Kiosk told a local TV station that the stickers and posters sold by Free Market Warrior were intended to be "biting." The slogans displayed on this politically charged Kiosk are no different than those on display in magazines, on the Internet, and posted on walls and auto bumpers throughout the nation.
However, one person who found the Kiosk display offensive wrote to the mall's owners and to the editor of the Charlotte Observer. According to NewsChannel 36, the letter-writer, Jennifer Ibanez stated, "I find it appalling that Concord Mills, North Carolina’s #1 visitor attraction, would condone such a message to be portrayed by their vendors and can't imagine how the outside visitors' perceptions of North Carolinians have been skewed by such an establishment.
"It’s hard to stay open-minded when such uncivilized and outdated ideas are endorsed on a daily basis. It's 2009; please, let's at least try to put this type of bigotry to an end."
Ibanez told NewsChannel 36 she was so offended, she wrote the mall as well. She says a friend of hers also wrote in. Both threatened not to return to Concord Mills.
Apparently the Ibanez's actions bore fruit: At the end of the month, Free Market Warrior will not be allowed at Concord Mills Mall. The kiosk chain's owner shared e-mail correspondence with NewsChannel 36 that explains that the mall management has decided that the items sold are not "neutral" enough. The lease will be allowed to expire July 31, 2009 without an option to renew.
NewsChannel 36 also reported that the mall owner, Mel Simon, is a generous contributor to Democratic causes and politicians, including Barack Obama. Spivack thinks the decision about his lease is political, since he pointed out to the TV news crew a store that sold items that were just as offensive if not more offensive, only from a more liberal point of view.
So, my friends, there you have it. In Chicago, members and supporters of a radical Islamic group are allowed to exercise their First Amendment rights, but an American citizen and small businessman is denied his right to advertise items that oppose a sitting president. And the US Constitution continues on its downward spiral -- protecting radicals and terrorists, but not protecting American citizens and capitalists.
It's a topsy-turvy country, folks.