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Federal court decides in favor of retired engineer told by state to not talk about math in public (www.wect.com)

submitted 10 months ago by flumph@programming.dev to c/nottheonion@lemmy.world

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[–] rockSlayer@lemmy.world 343 points 10 months ago (5 children)

For those curious but don't want to bother opening the link:

It was in North Carolina
The engineer was critiquing NC infrastructure
A NC agency said he needed a permit to criticize their infrastructure
The judge correctly determined that it was a violation of our first amendment rights

[–] Red_October@lemmy.world 50 points 10 months ago

Damn, and here I was really excited for the Forbidden Math lecture, like exposing why dividing by zero is actually a government coverup and how imaginary numbers are actually real but from a shadow dimension.

[–] fpslem@lemmy.world 29 points 10 months ago

The engineer was critiquing NC infrastructure

Well, good, a lot of North Carolina road infrastructure is dangerous bullshit, and members of the public shouldn't be stymied by state panels from pointing out that road deaths have been increasing in North Carolina, despite fewer vehicle miles traveled.

[–] ikidd@lemmy.world 15 points 10 months ago

Someone needs to be fired for this happening in the first place. Then the lawyers that took this to court need to be fired for not just bowing out the second it was filed.

[–] bobs_monkey@lemm.ee 10 points 10 months ago

A license, not a permit. Permits are typically issued for specific projects, while licensing is basically a state's way of saying you're credible in your field and a certified professional (usually in a leadership position, ie stamping approval on drawings), as well as in a knowledgeable position to take on legal liability.

[–] linuxdweeb@lemm.ee 2 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (1 children)

This isn't quite the full story. The OP is editorialized clickbait. The engineer wasn't just "criticizing" NC infrastructure, he was testifying in a lawsuit against it, and the defense complained about it to the NC board of examiners for engineers because he did not have a license. The board then sent him a letter saying they were investigating him for practicing engineering without a license.

“Wayne’s troubles began when he agreed to help his son, Kyle, a North Carolina attorney, with a case about a piping system that allegedly flooded a few local homes. In his deposition, Wayne testified truthfully that he was not (and never had been) a licensed engineer. In fact, like the majority of engineers nationwide, Wayne was not required to get a license since he worked for a company under the state’s “industrial exception,’” according to the Institute of Justice.

Source: https://www.wect.com/2021/06/10/retired-wilmington-engineer-files-federal-lawsuit-against-state-board-claims-first-amendement-violations/ (on the same site, linked in the OP)

So it's still stupid, but it's not as stupid as the OP is making it out to be (for those sweet sweet clicks).

[–] Aatube@kbin.social 1 points 10 months ago

I mean, it's the headline, which completes the final layer of the onion