News & Media
Another anonymous speech win – Krinsky v. Doe
In Krinsky v. Doe, the California Court of Appeals examined two issues that are near and dear to me — the right of internet speakers to remain anonymous, should they so please, and whether rhetorical hyperbole is grounds for a defamation action in Florida. (The court applied Florida law). We thus conclude that Doe 6’s online messages, while unquestionably offensive
Neo-Cons, White Supremacists, and Gorillas Doing it Missionary
I was combing Digg, and saw this story – Gorillas Caught Making Love, Human Style. The thing is, the link didn’t work. So, I went to Google to find the story. I found the search results far more interesting than the underlying story. The top three results for this story were: Fox News Stormfront The Free Republic Just one of
Where would you be without porn?
I have always said that whether you consume no porn, lots of porn, or just the right amount of porn, you owe the porn industry a heartfelt “thank you.” When discussing this, I always start with the VHS player, which beat out Beta because the adult movies were all on VHS, and trace the listener all the way up to
When to Hold 'em and When to Fold 'em
Should you press forward when the respondent surrenders in a UDRP proceeding? At least one UDRP panelist thinks you shouldn’t. In Laerdal Medical v. Lee, WIPO Case No. D2007-1672 (Jan. 21, 2008), the panelist devoted a lot of ink to scolding the complainant for its arbitration tactics.
Clean Flix Owner Gets Dirty — With Children
How many of these holier-than-thou types have to wind up with their hands down kids’ pants before people realize that they who protest too much probably have a little something to hide? Daniel D. Thompson ran an Orem, Utah business that edited feature films to remove naughty content. The store shut down after threats from the movie studios in light
Another Republican Pervert
Robert McKee, a member of the Maryland House of Delegates is the latest Republican to be busted for some pretty family-values hostile activities. He is under investigation for possession of child pornography, and said that he is “seeking treatment.” He is resigning his position as a member of the House of Delegates and as (go figure) executive director of his
Boston to Huckabee – Quit Playing Our Song
As if anyone would think that a band from Boston would endorse Huckabee for president! CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The chief songwriter and founder of the band Boston has more than a feeling that he’s being ripped off by Mike Huckabee. In a letter to the Republican presidential hopeful, Tom Scholz complains that Huckabee is using his 1970s smash hit
Vermont Family Court and Blogger Rights
Family law scares me. Too much hate and negativity for my sensitive soul. However, it seems that if you turn over enough stones in any area of law, you’ll find an interesting First Amendment and/or intellectual property issue. In Garrido v. Krasnansky, the husband, William Krasnansky let off some steam by writing a semi-fictional blog about his marriage and his
More Police Brutality – Charlotte Marshall Jones
Just when I thought that Officer “Rod Farva” Rivieri was the sleaziest cop on the beat, I see this video of an incident a lot closer to home. Hillsborough County Deputy Charlotte Marshall Jones somehow got it in her head that it was acceptable behavior to dump a paraplegic quadraplegic, Brian Sterner, out of his wheelchair and on to the
Patriotism
“A patriot must be ready to defend his country against his government.” —Edward Abbey
Sammy & Me
I still hold out hope that Samuel Alito will become what Scalia should have been — a jurist of which Italian Americans can be proud. Today’s news gives me a little hope. Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. criticized The Sopranos television show yesterday for stereotyping Italian-Americans and his home state of New Jersey. In a talk at Rutgers University, Alito
Two Girls, One Cup – Practical Obscenity Law
In honor of Valentine’s Day, in the “aint love grand” posting category, I am going to discuss obscenity risks in the specific context of the film, Two Girls, One Cup. (link). If you have not seen the video, never fear. You don’t need to in order to understand this post. My adult entertainment clients are, understandably, often inquisitive about their
First Amendment Bad Ass Terminated
Sometimes standing up for what is right has a price… especially when you do so under the nose of uber-social-promotion hacks like Michael Powell.
Texas Dildo Law Goes Limp
Texas is one of the few states that continues to prohibit the sale of sex toys. The Texas legislature, in its infinite wisdom, enacted a broad prohibition on the “selling, giving, lending, distributing, or advertising” of “obscene devices.” The law defined “obscene device” as any device “designed or marketed as useful primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs.” I
Sunday Liquor Sales
Cary Wiggins over at Meeting the Sin Laws has a great post on this subject. Check out Georgia law continues to honor the Sabbath. I have always found some states’ prohibitions on Sunday liquor sales to be bizarre, if not a violation of the separation of church and state. These “blue laws” as we call them in Massachusetts are nothing
Clash of the Anti-Hillaristas
It is always funny when rival political factions get into trademark disputes instead of letting their ideas compete in the marketplace. That usually happens with opposing political factions. See, e.g., Hypocrites for Community Values Lose Round One. In a new twist, we see two groups with a common interest in a trademark spat. Apparently the world just ain’t big ’nuff
Salvatore Rivieri (Will the real Rod Farva please stand up?)
Does anyone wonder if Salvatore Rivieri was the inspiration for the Farva character in Super Troopers? Watch this video and judge for yourself. This is what happens when you hire police officers without screening their psychological profile first. Officer Salvatore Rivieri, a 17-year veteran of the Baltimore police force, is the subject of an internal-affairs investigation for his behavior in
Ken Foster – First Amendment Bad Ass
Ken Foster is the executive director of Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. He writes on SFGate: Last fall, a radio station in New York decided not to air a reading of the extraordinary poem “Howl,” by San Francisco poet Alan Ginsberg, on the 50th anniversary of its publication. The station feared it would be fined by
Can Myspace account names trigger ACPA liability?
Marty Schwimmer over at the Trademark Blog reports on a recent trademark infringement case filed by Cleanflicks. I noticed a rather interesting issue in the complaint. The plaintiff includes a count against the defendant under the Cybersquatting Act. As a result of Defendant’s unauthorized registration and use of the confusingly similar www.myspace.com/cleanflicks Plaintiff Clean Flicks is damaged and will continue
