Not Safe for Work!
Murder is illegal. But, you take a picture of somebody committing the act of murder and they'll put you on the cover of Newsweek. You might even win a Pulitzer Prize. And yet . . . sex is legal. Everybody's doing it, or everybody wants to be doing it. Yet, you take a picture of two people in the act of sex of just take a picture of a woman's naked body and they'll put you in jail. Now, I have a message for all you good, moral, Christian people who are complaining that breasts and vaginas are obscene. Hey, don't complain to me, complain to the manufacturer. Okay and although Jesus told us not to judge, I know you're going to judge anyway so judge sanely--judge with your eyes open.I think the real obscenity comes from raising out youth to believe that sex is bad and ugly and dirty. And yet, it is heroic to go spill guts and blood in the most ghastly manner in the name of humanity. With all the taboos attached to sex, it's no wonder we have the problems we have. It's no wonder were angry and violent and genocidal. But, ask yourself the question, what is more obscene: sex or war?
Larry Flynt on Reverend Gerry Falwell: "I always appreciated his sincerity even though I knew what he was selling and he knew what I was selling."
From transcript
ReplyDeleteI have a thought.
Murder is illegal...
but you take a picture of somebody
committing the act of murder...
they'll put you on the cover
of Newsweek.
You might even win
a Pulitzer Prize.
And yet...
sex is legal.
Everybody's doin' it,
or wants to be.
Yet you take a picture of two people
in the act of sex...
or of just a woman's
naked body...
and they'll put you in jail.
Now, I have a message for all you
good, moral, Christian people...
who are complaining
that breasts and vaginas are obscene.
Don't complain to me.
Complain to the manufacturer.
Okay? And although Jesus told us
not to judge, I know you will anyway...
so judge sanely.
Judge with your eyes open.
What do you consider obscene?
Is this obscene to you?
Or perhaps that's obscene to you.
Maybe this is obscene to you.
But what is more obscene,
this...
or this?
This...
or this?
You know, politicians
and demagogues like to say...
that sexually explicit material
corrupts the youth of our country.
And yet they lie, cheat
and start unholy wars.
Look at them. They call themselves men.
They're sheep in a herd.
I think the real obscenity
comes from raising our youth...
to believe that sex is bad
and ugly and dirty...
and yet it is heroic
to go spill guts and blood...
in the most ghastly manner
in the name of humanity.
With all the taboos
attached to sex...
it's no wonder
we have the problems we have...
that we're angry and violent
and genocidal.
But ask yourself the question...
What is more obscene...
sex or war?
Reverend Falwell, you're a preacher.
ReplyDeleteIs that right?
Yes, I am.
As a preacher, you speak
to a fairly broad audience.
I mean, you preach on television
and on your Old Time Gospel Radio Hour.
I do.
So you've achieved
a certain notoriety...
one might say a national reputation,
for your sermons...
and opinions and ideas...
and your leadership
of the Moral Majority.
Yes. Our membership
is now over five million.
But even beyond
your membership, really...
you've been recognized...
and awarded for your efforts
all over America.
I have a number
of honorary degrees.
In a recent poll
of Good Housekeeping magazine...
I was voted
second most admired American...
behind President Reagan.
Good Housekeeping.
That's... That's...
I mean, hey, you're famous.
Right?
Well, I suppose
you could say that.
Have you ever had sex
with your mother?
Absolutely not.
Never?
Never in the outhouse,
as Hustler magazine suggested?
That is an absurd question.
My mother
was a very godly woman...
and as close to a saint...
as anyone I have ever known.
I'm sure she was.
Have you ever preached
while drunk?
Drunk? Never.
You never had too many at lunch
and went back on the radio?
That is a totally outrageous
suggestion.
- "Totally outrageous"?
- Totally.
You don't think that some people,
despite your reputation...
might believe
you could do that?
I would find that
very difficult to believe.
So what you're telling me is
nobody could reasonably think...
that these statements about you
were true.
That's what I'm saying.
Reverend Falwell,
at the beginning of this trial...
Judge Kirk gave very specific
instructions to this jury.
She said,
"If a reasonable person...
could not believe
that Hustler magazine...
describes actual facts
about Jerry Falwell...
then you must dismiss
the libel claim."
Do you remember
these instructions?
Obviously not,
so I'm gonna ask you one more thing.
Why are you suing my client
for libel?
I am not a lawyer,
Mr. Isaacman.
I am a lawyer,
and I can't figure it out either.
Hustler Magazine
ReplyDeleteand Larry C. Flynt...
vs. Jerry Falwell.
Mr. Isaacman, you may proceed
whenever you're ready.
Mr. Chief Justice,
and may it please the Court...
one of the most cherished ideas
that we hold in this country...
is that there should be
uninhibited public debate...
and freedom of speech.
The question you have
before you today...
is whether a public figure's right
to protection from emotional distress...
should outweigh
the public interest...
in allowing every United States citizen
to freely express his views.
But what was the view expressed
in Exhibit "A"?
Well, to begin with,
this is a parody of a known Campari ad.
I understand. Go ahead.
Also, and importantly,
it was a satire of a public figure...
of Jerry Falwell...
who, in this case, was
a prime candidate for such a satire...
because he's such an unlikely person
to appear in a liquor ad.
This is a person we are used to seeing
at the pulpit, Bible in hand...
preaching with a famously
beatific smile on his face.
But what is the public interest
you're describing?
That there is some interest
in making him look ludicrous?
Yes, there is a public interest in
making Jerry Falwell look ludicrous...
insofar as there is a public interest
in having Hustler magazine...
express the point of view
that Jerry Falwell is full of B.S.
Hustler magazine has every right
to express this view.
They have the right to say...
that somebody who has campaigned
actively against their magazine...
who has told people
not to buy it...
who has publicly said that it
poisons the minds of Americans...
who, in addition, has told people
sex out of wedlock is immoral...
that they shouldn't drink...
Hustler magazine
has a First Amendment right...
to publicly respond
to these comments...
by saying that Jerry Falwell
is full of B.S.
It says, "Let's deflate this stuffed
shirt and bring him down to our level."
Our level, in this case, being,
admittedly, a lower level...
than most people would like
to be brought to.
I know I'm not supposed to joke,
but that's sort of the point.
(continued from above ...)
ReplyDeleteMr. Isaacman, the First Amendment
is not everything.
It's of very important value, but
it's not the only value in our society.
What about another value
which says...
that good people should be able
to enter public life and public service?
The rule you give us says
if you stand for public office...
or become a public figure
in any way...
you cannot protect yourself
or, indeed, your mother...
against a parody of your
committing incest with her.
Do you think that George Washington
would've stood for public office...
if that was the consequence?
It's interesting that you mention
George Washington, Justice Scalia...
because very recently I saw
a -year-old political cartoon.
It depicts George Washington
riding on a donkey being led by a man...
and the caption suggests...
that this man is leading an ass
to Washington.
I can handle that.
I think George can too.
But that's a far cry from committing
incest with your mother in an outhouse.
There's no line between the two?
No, Justice Scalia,
I would say there isn't...
because you're talking about
a matter of taste, not law.
As you yourself said,
I believe...
in Pope vs. Illinois...
"It's useless to argue about taste
and even more useless to litigate it"...
and that is the case here.
The jury has already determined that
this is a matter of taste, not of law...
because they've said
there's no libelous speech...
that nobody could reasonably believe
that Hustler was actually suggesting...
Falwell had sex with his mother.
So why did Hustler
have him and his mother together?
Hustler puts him and his mother
together in a...
example of literary travesty,
if you will.
And what public purpose
does this serve?
The same public purpose...
as Garry Trudeau saying Reagan has
no brain or that George Bush is a wimp.
It lets us look at public figures
a little bit differently.
We have a long tradition in this country
of satiric commentary.
If Jerry Falwell can sue when
there has been no libelous speech...
purely on the grounds
of emotional distress...
then so can other public figures.
Imagine, if you will, suits
against people like Garry Trudeau...
and Johnny Carson,
for what he says on The Tonight Show.
Obviously, when people
criticize public figures...
they're going to experience
emotional distress.
We all know that.
It's easy to claim
and impossible to refute.
That's what makes it
a meaningless standard.
Really, all it does is allow us
to punish unpopular speech.
This country is founded,
at least in part...
on the firm belief that unpopular speech
is vital to the health of our nation.
Hey, are the same person who comments in Sujai blog ?
ReplyDeleteMadhav.. Sometimes.
ReplyDeleteHaha! Nice to see you write of other issues! Since the trademark seriousness was missing I just wanted to confirm...Great work you have put up here..
ReplyDelete