Religion
In reply to the discussion: A Really Good Thing: Why we should celebrate the rise of atheism and secularity [View all]Starboard Tack
(11,181 posts)Then the key word is the auxiliary verb, where "to be" is somewhat ambiguous, and "to feel" is not.
"To be offended" could mean you are the object of an offender (participle), or could mean you are the subject who feels offended (adjective).
Your "photograph" analogy does not fully apply, because being offended can also describe a state of mind, or an emotional state, whereas being photographed cannot, and means simply being the object of the verb "to photograph", hence no ambiguity.
"You have no right to be offended" makes sense when meaning "to feel offended". That's why I speculated that was what he meant. My criticism of the US educational system is not founded on posts made here. I have a lot of respect for higher education in the US, but far less for the public school system, especially when it comes to reading comprehension, grammar and syntax. Obviously, there are exceptions and some excellent teachers, but I speak from first hand experience, having raised kids there and having worked as a teacher.
Point is, the sentence he used is both clumsy and ambiguous.