A guest column by Gene Policinski of the First Amendment Center:

Give the First Amendment – and the nation – a unique gift this holiday season: On Dec. 15, "tweet" your support for this 220-year old guarantor of our basic freedoms.

And don't stop there … round out the holidays by making that 140-character pledge the first step in a New Year's commitment to better understand and defend year-round those precious 45 words that define our core freedoms: religion, speech, press, assembly and petition.

What's the reason to make the First Amendment part of the season?

For one thing, Dec. 15 is the 220th anniversary of the ratification of the Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, beginning with the First Amendment's protection of freedom of expression and freedom of religion. That's an event deserving in its own right of glitter and tinsel.

More urgently, it's a chance to challenge and maybe change a sad result of national surveys the First Amendment Center has conducted since 1997. In all that time, never more than six percent in any year could name all five freedoms unaided.

We live in times in which the First Amendment never has been more on display – or more contested.

There are the yearly Yule concerns over religious-themed songs and carols at public school holiday pageants, but also the miraculous example to the world of multiple faiths in one nation peaceably observing holy days and holidays alongside one another.

There are Occupy Wall Street demonstrators exercising their rights to speak freely, to assemble and to petition the government for change – in the manner of generations of Americans who have taken to the streets to make their voices heard.

The U.S. Supreme Court soon will decide a dispute over what we can see and hear on broadcast TV. Meanwhile, we’re all "a-Twitter" over how private are our personal facts and messages. And the fight goes on over how public are our public records.

The Internet, e-mail, Facebook and Twitter have brought new concerns about smut, identity theft and hate speech, all while also giving us an unparalleled opportunity to talk with our fellow citizens – provided that government does not get in the way.

Has there ever been a time when all five of our First Amendment freedoms were more in play?

The "Free to Tweet" initiative is an unprecedented, day-long online call to the American public to stand up on Dec. 15 for these fundamental freedoms. High school and college students nationwide, ages 14 to 22, get a bonus for participating: Expressing themselves freely with the hash tag #freetotweet on Twitter will mean an opportunity to win one of 22 scholarships each worth $5,000. (Find more details on the initiative and the competition at www.freetotweet.org).

For more than two centuries, the First Amendment has been protecting our right to speak out. Let's do just that on Dec. 15!

Gene Policinski is senior vice president and executive director of the First Amendment Center, 1207 18th Ave. S., Nashville, Tenn., 37212. Web: www.firstamendmentcenter.org. E-mail: gpolicinski@fac.org

To Friend or Not to Friend? That is Just One of the Questions

The nation's oldest appellate court, dating to back 1684, will be using the latest technology, namely Twitter, to announce future rulings.

Pennsylvania Supreme Court to tweet rulings - dailylocal.com

Free speech ends when you start to critize liberals.

Facebook Removed Gov. Jan Brewer's Post Criticizing Obama - HUMAN EVENTS

White House Uses Progressive Media Director to Bully Conservatives on Twitter | NewsBusters.org

PA Lottery Now on Facebook, Twitter

More politicians are using social networking to get their message to potential voters, according to a new study.

NationalJournal.com - Pew Report: Looking For Voters? Check Out Facebook and LinkedIn

Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati has made the leap into social networking, announcing he has set up Twitter and Facebook accounts.

A top Republican leader in the state Senate, Scarnati said in a press release he will use the new mediums to "better inform not only the citizens of the 25th District, but the rest of the Commonwealth as well."

"Clearly it is important for voters to have information readily available to them and gain a better understanding of what is taking place in Harrisburg, as well as around the district," Scarnati said. "This is just another means to better notify the public of current actions."

Scarnati said his Twitter account will allow him to better communicate with voters in real time, while his Facebook page gives constituents the ability to view current photos, videos and audio files.

I don't think anyone has kept a tally, but I suspect there are still at least 100 current state lawmakers who are not using Facebook or Twitter. I'm not sure what they're waiting for.

Scarnati's Twitter page can be found at www.twitter.com/senatorscarnati

His Facebook page is www.facebook.com/senatorscarnati

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