Dear Justice Scalia...

As a born again American who has taken the pledge to make my citizen's voice heard, I'd like to offer my heartfelt thanks to Justice Antonin Scalia and his four conservative cohorts on the Supreme Court. God bless them, yesterday they voted 5-4 to uphold the FCC ban on the use of "fleeting" expletives on broadcast TV, expletives which Scalia, who wrote the prevailing opinion, referred to in court as the "s-word" and the "f-word." Maybe now those pesky kids in schoolyards across the country will cease their fleeting use of those appalling words. Or, since the kid likely never lived who used a filthy word just "fleetingly," perhaps the Supreme Court will consider issuing a second ban on the wall-to-wall use of s- and f-words in the schoolyard.

It could happen. I'd put nothing past the cultural wisdom of Justice Scalia whose prevailing brief included these stunning insights: "We doubt that small town broadcasters run a heightened risk of liability for indecent utterances... their down-home local guests probably employ vulgarity less than big city folks, and small town stations generally cannot afford or cannot attract foul-mouthed glitterati from Hollywood."

Look how he nails us all -- kids; small-town folk; big city creeps; trashy Hollywood types -- does this man know his Americans, or what?! Certainly better than silly Justice Stevens, who in his dissenting opinion, finds it ironic that "while the FCC patrols the airwaves for words that have a tenuous relationship with sex or excrement, commercials broadcast during prime time frequently ask viewers whether they are battling erectile dysfunction or having trouble going to the bathroom."

I can just hear Justice Scalia heaving a righteous sigh and thinking: "Give me erectile dysfunction to the f-word any time!"

Comments

[joeyfoto]

No one in the future of broadcasting will ever commit an obscenity equal to that committed by Antonin Scalia and his four co-conspirators, when they elected the worst president in US history by a vote of 5-4. Justice Scalia, is in touch only with his inner Torquemada; he lives in a fixed world of absurd certainties, which have led to an unbroken litany of abysmal decisions. Why should anyone be surprised by this relatively insignificant misapplication of the constitution at the expense of liberty?

Examine the harm done to by Justice Scalia's entire judicial history, then tell me while this little insult reaches the level of significance.

[pmag88]

From the time I was just a small child, I always wondered why it was considered obscene to see two people making love, while it was fine to show people being cut in half by a machine gun? I always wondered why the true definition of obscenity was so biased towards language, sex and art? To me it seems we've been sensitized and desensitized in ways that are most insidious, and Scalia and the other straight jacketed minds of his ilk are nothing more than captives waiting to be free. Sort of like an American Taliban, they stand resolute until the time when they no longer have to protect us from evil and God will step in and purify us.

[pmag88]

Artistic integrity and honest expression don't always require vulgarity, but when they do, taking a meat cleaver to the work is far more vulgar and destructive than a few rough words, etc.
In the bigger scheme of things, the downward pressure that Scalia and his ilk offer provide no counterbalancing upside of any kind. They are a menace to free thinking and self expression and creativity itself.

[Isis N]

Yes they are!

[neoprimordial]

What value does Antonin Scalia bring to the Supreme Court? More and more he's coming off like a Justice Rush Limbaugh with these thinly veiled or outright blatant biases of his. He needs to resign, just on general principle. He does a disservice and a dishonor to the position. Maybe we can impeach him?

[Isis N]

Don't I wish!

[oldschoololdsoul]

Banning swear words will hardly put a dent in a foul mouthed, reality show generation which thinks that obnoxious behavoir, histrionic conflict and social chaos is quality primetime entertainment. Banning profanity in an entertainment world of no talent or taste is like telling those who sell TV defecation that they can't call it the "s" word. Big deal. The nature of dreck is still dreck with or without bad language.

[allgrams713]

So much for "original intent."

[freeethnkr]

Respectfully, I'd advise Mr. Lear to focus future posts on topics with which he as at least a fleeting familiarity.

Any person who has had even a brief course in First Amendment law knows that extremely different standards are applied to broadcast speech and "schoolyard" speech. The slippery slope that Mr. Lear depicts is unfathomable; not even the dissenting justices thought this was a colorable argument.

As to the quote regarding "down-home local guests" and "big city folks," it seems quite clear to me that Justice Scalia's tongue was firmly planted in his cheek when he wrote that. Perhaps sarcasm is inappropriate in SCOTUS opinions, but I find Lear's careless arguments to be the worse infraction in this case.

[Cubancoffee]

Um, did you ever consider that Mr. Lear's suggestion about policing playground language might be tongue-in-cheek, too? As a way, perhaps, of making a point? (That's what that zooming sound was that you heard going over your head.)

[freeethnkr]

Yeah, thanks, I realize Mr. Lear was being silly. But, by following the schoolyard example with "It could happen," he explicitly contends that the decision sets a precedent in that direction. If Lear's entire argument about the slippery slope is nothing more than a joke, then I'm not sure what the point of his post as a whole is. In sum, Mr. Lear condemns Scalia (as one of five who signed the opinion) but doesn't score a single valid point against his reasoning or conclusion.

[strawberryjulius]

I would prefer Scalia to base his opinions on the constitution rather than his personal standards of decency.

[Isis N]

So would those of us who are SUPPOSED to be represented by our government!

[sodisenchanted]

Scalia hasn't hung out much with that Good Ol' Boy Dick Cheney, who was very fond of using one of those words on the floor of the Senate to tell his Democratic colleagues what to do.

This is just one more example of how out of touch conservatives are.

[T Pol]

Justice Scalia obviously has never played softball with Billy Bob in one of those small towns. Eeeeyyup, no fleetin' about it. But wait! In the next small town, you'll never hear Billy Bob say those kinds of words.

But you might from the local judge.

What a silly crock this is, not to mention the stereotyping. Scalia should spend his time wisely, like reviewing Disney programs that teach kids how to be smart-mouthed to their parents.

[1man1voicenovote]

Scalia has more in common with Tipper Gore than he knows...
I would like to see him share the bench with Al Gore!
Justice of the Peace...The Nobel Peace...would counter-balance Scalia's little Branch.

[Democrab]

I'm both a "big city creep" and a "hollywood trashy" citizen; perhaps a little trailer trashy too and whatever else an elitist right wing judge can look down his nose at. But Scalia knows whats best for us. After all, he forced the brilliance of W on us. What a man!

[Chuckwheat]

First, Obama came to take away our guns. Next, it will be our bibles. And then he'll take away our F-words.
waaahhh!!

[T Pol]

How you could blame this on Obama is beyond me.

[Anthro]

It's a joke (as in satire).

[max]

the voice.....­..........­..........­..........­.of a genius....

[sodisenchanted]

There are medications for paranoia now.

[Temsi]

Scalia et al need to be forced to watch Penn & Teller's "Bullshit!" episode about profanity.

Yes, I'm using the full title of their show, as I don't feel like using BS or Bull "s-word" to appease Scalia and his ilk. So,moderators, if you feel you must moderate this message, keep that irony in mind and kindly replace anything you find offensive (to me, that means replace Scalia).

[gallimaufry03]

I find the sanctioned invasion and killing of citizens of a country that never attacked us way more obscene than any uttered vulgarity -- fleetingly or full-throatedly.

[nolabels]

Well, then... You must be SANE.

[Isis N]

Well said, Mr. Lear!

Just why is profanity considered so bad? Does it physically harm others to hear someone say it? It's a restriction of our collective 1st Amendment rights!

[LegalCat]

It's for The Children. Isn't that enough to justify anything whatsoever? Don't you know that there's a pre-preamble to the Constitution that says "the following provisions apply except when it's for The Children"?

[Isis N]

And these children haven't heard the words from the mouths of others that they know? LOL

[MathIsTruth]

Yes, it's extremely important (and very American) for children not to learn about the existence of pee and poop until they're 21 years old.

[BeachBubbaTex]

Love the "born again American," Norman! Plucking brilliant, you little schmidt.

[BeachBubbaTex]

Sorry, I should have added that I signed up this morning (I know you all were wondering).