Our government is broken. Whether it is the local, state or federal government, it never can seem to get anything done. We have an ever increasing amount of debt, another potential government shutdown on the way and presidential campaigns that last forever, cost millions of dollars and never focus on the important issues.

But through it all, we know that as Americans, no matter how bad it gets, we still have rights, and we are able to protest and have our voices heard…well, sometimes at least.

Ever since the collective bargaining rights debate began in Wisconsin, Azael Brodhead , a Wisconsin state parole officer, protested outside the home of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker every day. According to an article in the Chicago Sun-Times, Brodhead would drive by the governor’s house on his way home from work, honk his horn repeatedly, make an obscene gesture and yell “Recall Walker.”

He was forced to change his protest in April, because he was ticketed for “excessive blowing of horn,” according to an article from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Brodhead claimed his gesture was a protest, which should be protected by the First Amendment, and he fought the ticket in court.

A couple of weeks ago, he lost. A judge found that there was no precedent for horn-honking as constitutionally-protected free speech, according the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel article.

This ruling, like a number of things the government has done lately, makes no sense. Not only did it decide that the worst part of his protest was the honking (not the obscene gestures that he made), but it seemed to ignore a pretty strong argument, based on legal precedent, for Brodhead’s actions to be considered free speech.

According to a case from the sixth judicial circuit court of Florida, conduct is protected when “the nature of the activity, combined with the factual context and environment in which it was undertaken,” shows the “activity was sufficiently imbued with elements of communication to fall within the First Amendment’s scope.”

The court basically said when deciding whether or not an expression should be considered free, the context needs to be considered because it may provide meaning to the act.

In this case, the context of Brodhead’s situation gives meaning to his actions. He wasn’t just angrily honking his horn, he was shouting, making an obscene gesture and honking as part of one expression of his frustration with the governor’s policies.

This was a bad decision by the judge, and his speech should have been protected by the First Amendment.

Now, our government is probably always going to make bad decisions. Whether it’s court rulings, budgets or involvement overseas, citizens are going to disagree and tell them what is wrong with they are trying to do.

That is our right, and it is important for democracy. Whether you want to give speeches, write a column in newspaper or honk your horn, you should be able to do it.

The government needs to stop limiting our “free” speech, because it’s not really free if there are only certain ways we’re allowed to do it.