News & Media
NOT an Enforceable Trademark
How many times do I have to remind everyone — trademarks are not “word patents.” The adult movie studio, X-Play, has published a series of porno parodies where it throws the word “NOT” before the name of an otherwise well-known title. For example, X-Play published titles like “Not the Bradys XXX,” “Not Bewitched XXX,” “Not the Cosbys XXX,” “Not Married
Did Perez Hilton fail to comply with § 2257 guidelines?
By J. DeVoy At True/Slant, there’s speculation that noted celebrity blogger Perez Hilton may have violated Federal obscenity laws. The upshot: According to AVN.com [WYB], the online home of Adult Video News, the adult movie industry’s trade publication, Hilton’s March 15 post, “Chuy Is an Official Porn Star!” [WYB], does not follow 18 U.S.C. § 2257 guidelines. The code requires websites that post explicit sexual content
Ninth Circuit denies 1st Amendment protections to brothel advertisements
By J. DeVoy Last week, the Ninth Circuit ruled in Coyote Publishing Inc. v. Nevada that Nevada’s restrictions on brothel advertising are lawful, holding that the state has an interest in regulating commoditized sex. This decision overturned the U.S. District Court of Nevada’s decision, which held that such regulations were unconstitutionally overreached pure commercial speech, and that the state had
Best puppy name?
By J. DeVoy Fenrir, or Cerberus? If you’re getting several female puppies, or a succession of them, make sure to work Gorgon into their names. Easily the most prestigious sisterhood in all antiquity. Have any national sororities tried to lay claim on the Gorgon name and legacy?
D.C. leads nation in cyber-criminals
By J. DeVoy According to the Internet Crime Complaint Center’s 2009 report on internet crime, the District of Columbia is home to more cyber-criminals per capita than any other state or district. With 116 cyber-criminals per 100,000 residents, D.C.’s concentration of such perpetrators is higher than neighboring Maryland (29.72 per 100k) and Virginia (24.12 per 100k). More information is available in
Court sentences Erin Andrews's stalker to 30 months
By J. DeVoy Yesterday, Judge Manuel Real of the Central District of California sentenced Michael Barrett, a 48-year-old insurance executive from Chicago, to 30 months in prison for his infamous peephole video of ESPN sportscaster Erin Andrews. Barrett had agreed to a 27-month term, but Real imposed the harshest possible sentence under the Federal guidelines. Barrett offered a teary apology
Memo to the Left: The Right now has your playbook
Ken at Popehat critiques the Texas State Board of Education’s decision to soviet-style remove Thomas Jefferson from the state’s history curriculum. You see Jefferson was a deist, and that fucks with right wing dipshits’ fairy tale that we are a “christian nation.” But… Ken stabs right through the Right wing, and hooks around to skewer the left too: What happened
Judicial Hi-Five of the Day
by Christopher Harbin In an order granting defendant Sony’s motion for summary judgment on a copyright infringement suit, Judge Marilyn Hall Patel drops this choice nugget: Notably, some of the characters that plaintiffs allege to be similar across the stories are Greek gods like Ares, Zeus and Athena. These are stock figures not only of many contemporary stories, movies and
What does law school really cost?
By J. DeVoy This weekend, my facebook and e-mail discussions focused on a New York Times piece about for-profit trade schools and their questionable value to students. Many likened the trade schools at issue to law schools, which require a substantial investment for returns that, even in the best of times, are uncertain for all but the most elite law students.
James Brown as the second coming and other weekend updates
By J. DeVoy He is risen? James Brown’s body is missing, and his daughter claims it’s to prevent an autopsy. LaRhonda Petit, the 48-year-old progeny of the singer, said “My daddy’s body has disappeared. I have no clue where it was taken, but I need to know where…I’m convinced his death was suspicious and I want the people responsible brought
At least your kids aren't playing with this
By J. DeVoy From Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job. “I don’t need your dinner, I have Oh-Hungee!”
How to take a profile picture
One of the many reasons that I am glad that Jennifer took me off the market: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcbZ0v8Mpvk]
The French can't handle their buzz
On August 16, 1951, the inhabitants [of a quiet French Village] were suddenly racked with frightful hallucinations of terrifying beasts and fire. One man tried to drown himself, screaming that his belly was being eaten by snakes. An 11-year-old tried to strangle his grandmother. Another man shouted: “I am a plane”, before jumping out of a second-floor window, breaking his
9th Circuit Reverses its Position on "Under God"
Apparently, acknowledging the existence of someone else’s imaginary friend is a “patriotic exercise.” I find few things that make me feel less patriotic than the sight of a group of kids lined up into rows fetishizing a piece of cloth while acknowledging the existence of a fairy tale. The opinion is an abomination, but not something that surprises me when
Biglaw Bignews
One of my most famous misquotes was in an otherwise awesome interview with Bitter Lawyer. I was quoted as saying: I’d rather drive a stake through my balls than work in BigLaw, where it’s all about being a billing machine and ethics aren’t important. What I actually said was I’d rather drive a stake through my balls than work in
Indian Court Rules Against Blanket Prohibition on Sexually Themed Websites
An Indian NGO filed a petition before the Bombay High Court seeking a blanket prohibition on websites that display any “material pertaining to sex.” The justification for the proposed ban was that this material “is harmful to the youth of this country in their formative years.” (Op. at 1). The Indian Information and Technology Act (ITA) prohibits sexual content in
Is a third creative commons-licensed Nine Inch Nails album forthcoming?
By J. DeVoy Something’s happening at the official Nine Inch Nails website. In the past, such pictures portended the release of Ghosts I-IV and The Slip (available for free download). Both of those albums were released under a creative commons license, a move praised by Harvard Law professor Lawrence Lessig. The band’s move to creative commons licensing and self-distribution isn’t
Short, cool video on black holes
By J. DeVoy [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYKyt3C0oT4&hl=en_US&fs=1&] Around age four, I had great anxiety about black holes and their ability to destroy the planet. Some parents have to convince their children that they won’t be eaten by monsters; mine had to constantly reassure me that I, along with the rest of the world, wouldn’t be torn apart on an atomic level and sucked
Who will look after the dog when God comes for us?
There are an estimated 20-40 million cult members whose beliefs have come into conflict with their love of their pets. This cult is commonly known as “christianity.” Some cult members believe that their leader is a guy who lives in space (sort of like Xenu) and that on the day of “rapture,” he is going to come and pick them
