Supreme Court Backs FCC's Ban On "Fleeting Expletives"

The Supreme Court ruled in a 5 to 4 decision on April 28th that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had acted properly when it modified its policy to hold even fleeting words actionable for indecency violations. The court said the FCC's policy on "fleeting expletives" was neither "arbitrary" nor "capricious."

The case got rolling when, in 2006, the FCC declared that Fox had violated decency standards during two separate broadcasts of the Billboard Music Awards. In 2002 Cher, picking up her BMA for best doesn't-matter-what, prattled on merrily about how people had been saying for years she was so over and what she had to say to those people was "[expletive] 'em." The next year, Nicole Richie at the same trophy show, while presenting a trophy to explained to millions of viewers at home that it was not so [expletive] easy to get [poo] out of a Prada purse.

In between these two Billboard verbal assaults, Bono, picking up a trophy at the Golden Globe Awards on NBC, pronounced his win "[expletive] brilliant." Initially, the FCC turned down the "Bono" complaint at the enforcement-bureau level, declaring it not warranting a fine since it was neither indecent nor obscene because Bono had not said the word to describe a sexual act, but just intense happiness. But about a year later, in 2004, after Americans saw Janet Jackson's right breast,the full commission realized its enforcement bureau was not tough enough and announced that fleeting expletives were fair game in the United States of America.

"Even when used as an expletive, the F-word's power to insult and offend derives from its sexual meaning," Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia wrote, thus endorsing the FCC on expanding its enforcement to include "fleeting expletives." (The Wash Post, 4/29/09)

The Red House in High Point, North Carolina

The video speaks for itself. It is hilarious. Only in America would race be satirized with the capitalist motivation of selling furniture.

Eddie Murphy, Cheryl Lee Ralph and Earth Day

In the end of the movie The Distinguished Gentleman (1992), Eddie Murphy, right, cons, exposes and humiliates a powerful and unscrupulous Congressman, Dick Dodge (Lane Smith), in an update on Claude Rains’ crooked senator from Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.

Congressman Dick Dodge is corrupt and working for the interests of greedy businessmen. But there’s also an environmental issue added onto the list of offenses made by Dodge. As Chairman of the Power and Industry Committee, he helps to cover up a situation in which power lines near a school are giving children cancer.

This movie was based in the 1990's and today would probably pit unscrupulous environmentalists scheming to block the very high power electricity lines that they say they support to bring wind and solar electricity from the plains to cities.

Cheryl Lee Ralph, who costarred with Murphy in this movie, lobbies Congress on serious issues and appeared before a hearing sponsored by Dallas Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson last year [videos].

AAEA President Says "NO" to Anika Noni Rose

AAEA President Norris McDonald, left, is denying rumors linking him romantically to Anika Noni Rose, right. Says McDonald:

"Anika is an incredible talent, but she could be my daughter. So any tabloid accounts suggesting any sort of romantic linkage are just trash. I particularly enjoy her current work on HBO in "The No. 1 Ladies' DetectiveAgency."

McDonald has been linked to several Hollywood beauties, but notes that he is dedicated to environmental protection and has very little time for socializing.

DJ Spooky Rocks Soul at Earth Day on the National Mall

DJ Spooky, left, rocked the National Mall on Earth Day by mixing a sampler-based performance that blended Jimi Hendrix's "The Star-Spangled Banner" from Woodstock with Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech and combined it with recorded hip-hop instruments. Spooky said:

"I want y'all to put your fist up for the Earth!"

DJ Spooky (born Paul D. Miller, 1970), was born in Washington DC. He is an electronic and experimental hip hop musician. DJ graduated from Bowdoin College in Maine, where he earned degrees in French literature and philosophy. DJ Spooky also composed the score for the 1998 film "Slam." In 2004 DJ Spooky released a book, Rhythm Science published by MIT Press. DJ Spooky is also a professor of music mediated art at the European Graduate School. (Wash Post, 4/20/09,Wiki)

The Washington Post Video of Earth Day on the National Mall

Let's Green Beverly Hills Too Chairman Waxman

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman was recently on the Tavis Smiley Show and Tavis asked him about greening the ghetto first. Chairman Waxman responded:

"Well, there are a lot of different levels of activity that we're going to generate for jobs. In order to become more efficient in our use of energy we're going to have to do a lot of remodeling of houses and ... and provide greater insulation. A lot of construction work. So we're going to get jobs for moving toward a more efficient use of energy, we're going to get more jobs in terms of the new technologies that we're going to have."

Excellent. While we are greening inner city and other low-income areas, we think that Hollywood and Beverly Hills should be greened too. When it comes to big residential energy and carbon dioxide savings, the super deluxe and luxurious mcmansions in Chairman Waxman's district should be prime targets.

Maybe there could be a cooperative program whereby residents of Beverly Hills and Compton could help each other. The stimulus money for weatherization and efficiency could be used in Compton. Although the Beverly Hills residents make too much money to qualify for weatherization assistance, they can just pay for the retrofits needed to make their homes more efficient. If they want to, they can also take advantage of some of the tax credits for efficiency retrofits too. We can see Congresswoman Maxine Waters, right, who represents Compton, and Chairman Waxman, left, who was born and raised in Watts, leading their respective constituents to achieve the energy and CO2 reductions that President Obama has so eloquently described. We will work with both members of Congress to assure that their districts are as efficient as possible.

Disney to Release "Earth" on Earth Day 2009

The Walt Disney Studios will celebrate Earth Day 2009 (April 22nd) with the debut of "Earth," the first feature-length nature documentary from its new production banner, Disneynature. This new film is from award-winning British producer/director Alastair Fothergill, whose credits include the Emmy and Peabody award-winning "Planet Earth" series (BBC and The Discovery Channel) and The Blue Planet.

Earth, which is produced by BBC Worldwide and Greenlight Media (a Berlin Atlantic Company) and co-directed by Mark Linfield, takes moviegoers on an extraordinary tour of our home planet. The film will be narrated by renowned actor James Earl Jones. Disney will offer company-wide support for this and every Disneynature release. In addition to providing compelling entertainment that audiences of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy, Disney also hopes to raise awareness of the many ways that everyone and anyone can do their part to help our planet. (Source: The Walt Disney Studios)

Earth Day on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Earth Day is on April 22. The Earth Day Network will commemorate Earth Day 2009 with a large-scale event on the National Mall in Washington, DC. On April 19th from noon to 6pm people gather in the nation’s capital to show their support for a clean environment. The event will bring together families, adults of all ages, civic leaders, entertainers and other community members to celebrate Earth Day and share a common commitment to make greener life choices and stem the tide of climate change.

The event will feature top talent The Flaming Lips, moe., Los Lobos and Dj. Spooky. Confirmed speakers and celebrities include: Chevy Chase, Matthew Modine, Representative Edward Markey, Reverend Yearwood of The Hip Hop Caucus and others. The event includes an Eco-Roadshow with exhibits from non-profits, companies striving to go green, government agencies and foreign embassies. Exhibitors will be located in the main event area, between 4th and 7th streets on the National Mall, and also on the corner of Maryland and Independence avenues, right by the Museum of the American Indian.

Image: NOAA