Book Description
Sullivan and Gunther's First Amendment Law included important recent developments in areas such as the regulation of sexually indecent speech on the Internet and other new communications media, the constitutional law of political money and campaign finance, the government's constitutional leeway to regulate liquor and tobacco advertising, the constitutionality of decency restriction on national arts grants, and the use of public funds to subsidize parochial school education. One volume.
Book Description
Expert authors summarize the principles set forth in case law and explore the philosophical foundations of First Amendment law. Current theories are examined to explain the rationale behind constitutional protection for free expression and freedom of religion. The debate between separationists and religious accommodationists in establishment clause jurisprudence is featured in this text as well.
Customer Reviews:
Highly recommended.......2004-12-05
"Congress shall make no law...," but on this subject at least, the Supreme Court gets to do pretty much whatever it wants. First Amendment doctrine is notoriously serpentine and challenging. While this nutshell doesn't change that, it does explain the law in a crisp, well-organized fashion, with a good balance of case summary and explanation/analysis. The authors are concise without dumbing down the law. While there are big treatises out there for practitioners or for in-depth reference use (e.g., Smolla and Nimmer), there aren't very many First Amendment study aids out there. I think this one is the best.
Book Description
Written by a leading national scholar, Farber's coverage of the First Amendment is clear and accessible. All of the major areas of this complex doctrine are reviewed, including religion clauses. The text also serves as an introduction to the major debates over controversial issues such as pornography and hate speech.
Customer Reviews:
Well-Written Coverage of a Complicated Subject.......2003-11-12
This is a very rewarding and well-written text on all the issues concerned with the First Amendment, which are far more complicated than you might think. The book starts strongly with in-depth coverage of the original language of the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights, different schools of thought on the nature of free speech, and how the doctrine of free speech developed over time. Key concepts such as the "content distinction" are then introduced, followed by distinct chapters on problematic free speech issues such as hate speech, sexual material, and speech in public schools. Farber does a good job of detailing important court cases in which relevant free speech rules were defined, as well as interesting contemporary cases in which new issues have been raised. The best aspect of this book is Farber's very strong writing about ethical issues, social problems, and unclear court doctrines. He's very good at coming up with hypothetical situations to illustrate loopholes in First Amendment law, and his examination of the social issues behind hate speech and pornography are outstandingly written and evenhanded, and are the impressive highlights of the book. This is highly recommended for anyone studying the unexpectedly complicated realm of free speech in America. [~doomsdayer520~]
Thought provoking.......1999-11-25
Farber takes the first amendment and in an easy to understand fashion explains how the Supreme Court interprets laws regarding our free speech as American Citizens.
Product Description
This book is designed for a two or three unit course in the First Amendment. The authors present the materials in a way that permits instructors to depart from the organization of the casebook with relative ease. The authors also try to expose students to original perspectives or perspectives they might otherwise miss. Notes and questions enable students to study the variety of competing views embodying the First Amendment as they emerge from concrete cases rather than from abstract characterization and classification imposed on the student at the outset of the study.
Customer Reviews:
Concise information and generally excellent editing.......2007-03-27
It's hard to write a good, concise First Amendment text - there's just too many nuanced areas of free speech law, church and state, and miscellaneous protections like expressive association. But Chopper does a pretty good job of covering what he wants to cover and also covering all that those areas need covered.
First, the cases are well-edited and deliver the essential information in the cases. There have been many times where I've gone to read the rest of the case, but that's because -as someone who likes to write on the topic- I'm more interested in the full versions than a short version. But often, the core of the case holdings are in the textbook effectively, which is what I think most comprehensive law school classes are aiming for.
Second, the book is pretty good (though not perfect) at avoiding bombarding the reader with questions to promote thought on various topics ("Should the First Amendment protect [insert difficult item here]?"). Generally, I've found that law students just don't have time to stop and contemplate all the questions that text book "notes and comments" sections ask. Other books certainly take this too far, but Choper does well in keeping it pretty reduced.
Finally, the case selection is generally excellent. I haven't yet encountered any sections that are lacking a foundational case. Sometimes cases are given only footnote or comments and notes status, but again, in First Amendment law that may be inevitable (unless you want to do a multi-volume set).
All in all, a pretty good book and review of the applicable law. First Amendment litigants or those specializing in First Amendment law will obviously need to read beyond the pages of this book.
[...]
Amazon.com
The center does not hold. The rise of customizable media has mainstream thinkers, used to a near-monopoly on attention, running scared. Legal scholar Cass R. Sunstein makes the case for a more robust information diet from a slightly left of center point of view in Republic.com. Building on the ideas of the Technorealist movement, Sunstein focuses on the increasing volume of extremist voices as people choose to read or listen to only those points of view they already share. Though it seems that he occasionally overstates his case--it seems unlikely that we'll ever really be able to filter every unwanted or unexpected opinion--he does score some solid blows against the current, more or less laissez faire system. His prose is clear and accessible--exactly the kind of reasoned discourse he values and wants to preserve. His proposed program of government-sponsored and mandated public media spaces probably won't rouse many readers to wholehearted endorsement, but the suggestion that we have problems brewing ought to be enough to spur further thought. Since everyone from the American Nazi Party to the Zapatistas has found a stronger voice via the Internet, it's little wonder that we're starting to hear concerned prophets warning of a new Babel. Whether we can--or should--do anything beforehand is an open question; Republic.com makes a strong and pointed case against the status quo. --Rob Lightner
Book Description
See only what you want to see, hear only what you want to hear, read only what you want to read. In cyberspace, we already have the ability to filter out everything but what we wish to see, hear, and read. Tomorrow, our power to filter promises to increase exponentially. With the advent of the Daily Me, you see only the sports highlights that concern your teams, read about only the issues that interest you, encounter in the op-ed pages only the opinions with which you agree. In all of the applause for this remarkable ascendance of personalized information, Cass Sunstein asks the questions, Is it good for democracy? Is it healthy for the republic? What does this mean for freedom of speech?
Republic.com exposes the drawbacks of egocentric Internet use, while showing us how to approach the Internet as responsible citizens, not just concerned consumers. Democracy, Sunstein maintains, depends on shared experiences and requires citizens to be exposed to topics and ideas that they would not have chosen in advance. Newspapers and broadcasters helped create a shared culture, but as their role diminishes and the customization of our communications universe increases, society is in danger of fragmenting, shared communities in danger of dissolving. In their place will arise only louder and ever more extreme echoes of our own voices, our own opinions.
In evaluating the consequences of new communications technologies for democracy and free speech, Sunstein argues the question is not whether to regulate the Net (it's already regulated), but how; proves that freedom of speech is not an absolute; and underscores the enormous potential of the Internet to promote freedom as well as its potential to promote "cybercascades" of like-minded opinions that foster and enflame hate groups. The book ends by suggesting a range of potential reforms to correct current misconceptions and to improve deliberative democracy and the health of the American republic.
Chat with Cass Sunstein in a Message Forum hosted beginning April 1, 2001.
Download Description
See only what you want to see, hear only what you want to hear, read only what you want to read. In cyberspace, we already have the ability to filter out everything but what we wish to see, hear, and read. Tomorrow, our power to filter promises to increase exponentially. With the advent of the Daily Me, you see only the sports highlights that concern your teams, read about only the issues that interest you, encounter in the op-ed pages only the opinions with which you agree. In all of the applause for this remarkable ascendance of personalized information, Cass Sunstein asks the questions, Is it good for democracy? Is it healthy for the republic? What does this mean for freedom of speech?Republic.com exposes the drawbacks of egocentric Internet use, while showing us how to approach the Internet as responsible citizens, not just concerned consumers. Democracy, Sunstein maintains, depends on shared experiences and requires citizens to be exposed to topics and ideas that they would not have chosen in advance. Newspapers and broadcasters helped create a shared culture, but as their role diminishes and the customization of our communications universe increases, society is in danger of fragmenting, shared communities in danger of dissolving. In their place will arise only louder and ever more extreme echoes of our own voices, our own opinions. In evaluating the consequences of new communications technologies for democracy and free speech, Sunstein argues the question is not whether to regulate the Net (it's already regulated), but how; proves that freedom of speech is not an absolute; and underscores the enormous potential of the Internet to promote freedom as well as its potential to promote "cybercascades" of like-minded opinions that foster and enflame hate groups. The book ends by suggesting a range of potential reforms to correct current misconceptions and to improve deliberative democracy and the health of the American republic.
Book Description
Words, like sticks and stones, can assault; they can injure; they can exclude. In this important book, four prominent legal scholars from the tradition of critical race theory draw on the experience of injury from racist hate speech to develop a first amendment interpretation that recognizes such injuries. In their critique of "first amendment orthodoxy," the authors argue that only a history of racism can explain why defamation, invasion of privacy, and fraud are exempt from free-speech guarantees while racist and sexist verbal assaults are not.
Customer Reviews:
thoughtful writing on critical race theory and the law.......2000-03-10
this book examines how free speech in this country intersects with assaultive speech.it challenges the thought that all speech should be protected, and engages you to examine the intent behind many words that we take for granted.
matsuda is known as a constitutional scholar and passionate inquisitor into the blurry intersection of race, gender, the law, and language. whether you agree with her views or not, this book and the ideas put forth will challenge you to examine your own beliefs and expectations of what your civil rights are.
Amazon.com
By Geoffrey R. Stone's estimate, America has lived up to the ideals encapsulated in the First Amendment about 80 percent of the time over the course of its history. Perilous Times's focuses is on the remaining 20 percent, when, during war or civil strife, the better instincts of the public and its leaders have been drowned out by a certain kind of repressive hysteria. Stone, the former dean of law provost at the University of Chicago, identifies six periods of widespread free-speech repression, dating back to the administration of the nation's second president, John Adams, and continuing through the Vietnam era. In between, two of history's greatest presidents, Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt, were involved in constitutionally questionable efforts to suppress dissent.
Stone examines these pivotal episodes with a lawyer's attention to detail and precedence and a writer's focus on character and story structure. From Adams's secretary of state, the "grim-faced and single-minded" Timothy Pickering (who scanned the papers daily looking for seditious language) through John Ashcroft on one side, and the cheeky late-18th-century congressman Matthew Lyon and the Yippies of the 1960s on the other, there are plenty of characters enlivening these pages. Given its publication during the War on Terror, Stone's work feels particularly timely and vital. He devotes only a few pages to the post-9/11 environment, crediting George W. Bush for his refusal to scapegoat Muslims in the immediate aftermath of the attack, but castigating his administration for "opportunistic and excessive" actions centering around the Patriot Act. One wonders if Stone will some day be forced to update Perilous Times with a full chapter on the early 21st century. --Steven Stolder
Book Description
"A must-read for all who treasure the First Amendment."—Alan M. Dershowitz, Boston Globe
Geoffrey Stone's Perilous Times incisively investigates how the First Amendment and other civil liberties have been compromised in America during wartime. Stone delineates the consistent suppression of free speech in six historical periods from the Sedition Act of 1798 to the Vietnam War, and ends with a coda that examines the state of civil liberties in the Bush era. Full of fresh legal and historical insight, Perilous Times magisterially presents a dramatic cast of characters who influenced the course of history over a two-hundred-year period: from the presidents—Adams, Lincoln, Wilson, Roosevelt, and Nixon—to the Supreme Court justices—Taney, Holmes, Brandeis, Black, and Warren—to the resisters—Clement Vallandingham, Emma Goldman, Fred Korematsu, and David Dellinger. Filled with dozens of rare photographs, posters, and historical illustrations, Perilous Times is resonant in its call for a new approach in our response to grave crises.
Hailed as "the most important book of its kind since Zechariah Chafee Jr. first published his heralded Freedom of Speech in 1920," Perilous Times, in the words of Studs Terkel, is "must reading for every citizen interested in something called the First Amendment." Michiko Kakutani of the New York Times wrote that Perilous Times is "an important, indeed necessary book on freedom indispensable…to the discovery and spread of political truth," and Bob Woodward proclaimed Perilous Times to be "a lively, masterful history—and reminder—of the essential role of the First Amendment during the stresses of war." Perilous Times incisively investigates the First Amendment in wartime like no previous book and, according to Elena Kagan, the dean of Harvard Law School, "promises to redefine the national debate on civil liberties and free speech." Finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize; A New York Times Notable Book, a Philadelphia Inquirer Top 10 Book, a Washington Post Book World Rave, a Los Angeles Times Best Book, and a Chicago Tribune Best Book of 2004. 63 illustrations.
Customer Reviews:
A Masterful History of First Amendment Freedoms, and their supression in time of war.......2007-08-31
~Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime: From the Sedition Act of 1798 to the War on Terrorism~ is an erudite constitutional analysis of First Amendment freedoms to speech and assembly. Throughout American history, free speech and freedom of assembly has been adversely affected by rationalized wartime suppressions in the name of security. Justice Robert Jackson in the mid-20th century declared, "It is easy, by giving way to passion, intolerance, and suspicions of wartime, to reduce our liberties to a shadow, often in answer to exaggerated claims of security." Sadly, overzealous wartime suppression of liberty has plagued the United States throughout much of its history.
Geoffrey R. Stone has put together a well-written account of American constitutional history from the time of the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 to the Patriot Act of 2001. His focus is First Amendment Freedoms. In 1798, ostensibly to guard against the threat of a counterpart "French Revolution" spearheaded by imagined American Jacobins from emerging on American soil, Federalist Party officials marshaled the Alien and Sedition Acts as an effective counterpoise. Its constitutionality was clearly suspect. In reality, it was a shameless partisan attempt to prosecute and suppress critics of the Federalist administration. Virginia and Kentucky responded by protest and state interposition through their Resolutions of 1798, which threatened state nullification of unconstitutional acts.
With much of the major wars throughout American history from the Civil War of the 1860s to the Great War, World War II, Vietnam, and now the Iraq War, shameless attempts emerged to intimidate, stifle and suppress political dissent. Lincoln was the precedent setter for unconstitutionally suspending the writ of habeas corpus, and found a follower to his dubious doctrines in George W. Bush. During the Great War, resident aliens were deprived of the right to due process prior to deportation. The Cold War paranoia was so absurd that the FBI drew up reports citing the classic 1946 Frank Capra movie like It's A Wonderful Life as being evidence of subversive communist propaganda. And thus began the McCarthy era. The 1970s felt the tragedy of the Kent State Massacre in Ohio as National Guard troops shot and killed students protesting the war in Vietnam. In the 1970s, ostensibly the FBI and CIA were reigned in on by Congress for running astray in anti-war activities, but those restrictions came loose following 9/11 when somehow unbridled federal power became more trustworthy.
James Madison judiciously reminds us: "The freemen of America did not wait till usurped power had strengthened itself by exercise, and entangled the question in precedents. They saw all the consequences of the principle, and they avoided the consequences by denying the principle." It was to secure against suppression of freedom of conscience that the First Amendment was framed. It was flatly a negative against Congress to legislate on such matters, hence the interpretative keystone, "Congress shall make no law..."
Speech in Wartime.......2006-11-08
Geoffrey Stone's Perilous Times is a great book for understanding how free speech is affected during times of war and other periods of unrest. Specifically, Stone looks at episodes in American history including the Sedition Act of 1798, the Civil War, World Wars I and II, the Red Scare and the Cold War, the Vietnam-Watergate era, and very briefly on the war against terrorism. This is an excellent book in my opinion and written in an eminently readable and engaging style.
These episodes I just outlined are the main areas where Stone gives us an idea of just how serious freedom of speech was threatened by our leaders in government as well as by our citizens. The Federalist period in the late 1790s saw a vagrant attempt to suppress political dissent expressed by the Republicans, i.e. those who followed Jefferson and Madison. Judge Chase is a key figure in this blatantly political attempt to suppress the opinions of those who politically dissented from the Adams Administration. The Civil War period also saw some controversial excesses, most notably in Lincoln's suspension of the writ of habeas corpus ,as well as the enactment of martial law (in certain circumstances) by military officers, who did on occasion act contrary to Lincoln wishes. But Lincoln, overall, did prove to tolerate those who voiced opposition to his administration.
President Wilson did use the tool, quite popular with many politicians even today, in branding (or at least inferring) those who voice dissent against a war as being disloyal and unpatriotic. The Espionage and Sedition Acts during his administration helped demonstrate the willingness of political leaders and the courts to undermine freedom of speech. In addition to all these events and the others which I will only touch on, Stone traces the evolution of the Court's handling and deciding of cases (during these historical periods in question) that involved or challenged the right of free speech in wartime. In addition to leaders like Adams, Lincoln, Wilson, Roosevelt, Truman, Nixon and so forth and the courses of action they took in these crisis, he examines various justices of the Supreme Court like Holmes and Brandeis to lower court justices like Judge Hand, to noted scholars, lawyers, attorney generals and others who played major roles in cases involving freedom of speech. You see those who bravely did the right thing and those who succumbed to their own prejudices and fears.
This book sheds light on terms used in regards to deciding what represented protected and unprotected speech, such terms as bad tendency, express advocacy, clear and present danger and so forth are all used to shed light on the decision making processes involved in the cases discussed in this book. This serves to illuminate and reveal the level to which the courts had to decide some of the more controversial cases involving freedom of speech. Sometimes the courts reflected the mood of the times and as a result could react in a negative way and sometimes it acted more wisely.
Stone is fairly balanced in his treatment of those who faced these questions, though he does scold some while lauding others. He is sensitive to the times they lived in and how even those serving on the courts (who we all think of as being above the fray) succumb to the same feelings and emotions all people do, especially in times when fear runs rampant. The other periods in question include World War II , which saw the internment of Japanese Americans, the period known as the Red Scare often symbolized by Joseph McCarthy with his over-the-top accusations that helped fan the flames of fear and suspicion that threatened free speech, the Vietnam conflict and the period of government coverups, to the present day war against terrorism.
There are many things I'm leaving out, but the point to this is that in all these important periods in American history, our leaders and institutions have often failed to live up to the ideals of the First Amendment right to free speech, though as Stone discusses, we have come a long way from years such as 1798 and 1918. The times do influence all of us, but we must hope that cooler and wiser heads prevail. A very good book.
book.......2006-11-06
Perilous times is an in depth review of the repression of free speech and assembly and political affiliation from unmasking Lincolns assumed good intentions, the debauchery of the cold war and mccarthy era until the consolodation of views by the media today. dense read. good to smarten up and learn the truth.
Cooler heads did prevail...........2006-06-22
As recent history attests to, some people act irrationally when under conditions of stress, and frequently do not hesitate to deny others basic human rights or even react violently. This kind of behavior does not occur under normal conditions of life, so the trick is get back into mental equilibrium as soon as possible after the shocks have occurred. The time needed to do this varies considerably between individuals, and the individuals who are having trouble calming themselves put undue burdens on those who do not. Therefore there is usually a considerable amount of tension between these two types of people, and this in fact creates more stress on top of what was experienced by the original shocks.
One can see this type of conflict throughout the history of the United States, as the author of this book shows in great detail in this book. Superbly written and full of helpful references and footnotes, the author narrows his discussion to the effects of war, or rumors of war, or invented threats of war, on free speech. When reading the book one is amazed to learn the low degree to which citizens of the United States have placed on the First Amendment, even as early as 1798. The First Amendment was not really thought of as sacrosanct as it is at the present time (outside of the government). This may explain why early on in U.S. history, the populace was quite willing to stifle speech they thought as treasonous or threatening in time of war (or false threats of war). And the stifling of speech was not unique to a particular political party, newspaper, magazine, or pamphlet. Both the left and the right, and in between, took their turns in the suppression of speech at various times in U.S. history.
Everything in the book is fascinating, and those readers who are not aware of the events discussed may be shocked that they actually took place in a country that so prides itself on freedom, both in speech and association. The author though is not content to merely report facts. He analyzes the different attitudes about free speech, both in the minds of the citizens, the press, and in the courts. Legal issues in constitutional law are all discussed in great analytical detail, and the author does not hesitate to express his own opinions on how the different cases should have been decided. A book like this definitely stands out against the hype and yellow journalism that so frequently is labeled as objective analysis these days. It is a welcome part of the political and legal literature, and all readers willing to take the time to its study will walk away with a massive amount of information and insight, and be better equipped to grapple with the issues of free speech as even now they are being debated (and suppressed). Cooler heads did prevail throughout the U.S. constitutional history of free speech, as this book proves without question. One can only hope this will continue to be the case.
compelling, inspiring analysis of free speech during times of war.......2006-03-10
Throughout Geoffrey Stone's engrossing examination of free speech during times of war, two crucial conclusions emerge. Both drive from an explanation articulated by Justice Louis in 1927: "fear breeds repression" and "courage is the secret of liberty." Exquisitely researched, gracefully written and forcefully argued, "Perilous Times" is a compelling exploration of the First Amendment in wartime. Professor Stone, through argument and anecdotal evidence, develops a convincing thesis that the American people, hesitatingly and often with frustrating slowness, have embraced not only the right, but the need, to honor dissent during times of national emergency. This is a hard-earned victory for free speech, one gained only through the raw and open courage of dissidents and the often underestimated and unseen courage of jurists who stood for principle when it mattered most. "Perilous Times" is an unusual historical analysis; its scholarship is meticulous, making it an academician's treasure, and its narrative drive is irresistible, welcoming a large audience to its research and understandings.
Wartime political dissent invariably brings charges of disloyalty and suspicions of motivation. Stone chronologically analyzes six periods of the condition of free speech during times of war; from the nation's first attempts to thwart free speech during the "half war" with France in the late 1790s to its coming of age in respect for the First Amendment in the Vietnam War era, those in power have had an uneven approach to the First Amendment. Within a decade of writing the First Amendment, a repressive congress passed the nefarious Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, blatant contradictions to the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech. During World War I, the purportedly scholarly Woodrow Wilson unleashed an unprecedented assault on free speech through government-issued propaganda and outright prohibitions of "disloyal" speech. Of all the wartime presidents, Wilson's record receives the greatest criticism. At the onset of the Cold War, President Truman vacillated between steadfast commitment to First Amendment rights to outright capitulation to regressive legislation. His tolerance of "loyalty oaths" helped unleash McCarthyism.
Genuine heroes and heroines emerge in battle for free speech. There's the firebrand Mollie Steimer, whose outspoken opposition to capitalism and World War I earned her a fifteen-year prison sentenced for violating the Espionage and Sedition Acts of 1917. Her crime: distribution leaflets that proclaimed: "there is only one enemy of workers...and that is CAPITALISM." During the Great Depression, the "boy wonder" of academia, Robert Maynard Hutchins, steadfastly championed free speech and thought at the University of Chicago. With extraordinary elegance and quiet courage, he breathed life into the need for more, not less, speech during times of duress. It's not difficult to measure the author's respect for David Dellinger -- pacifist, activist and advocate -- who used the First Amendment to help create movements for social justice and change.
Despite the existence of rogues -- and there are many of them who degraded the First Amendment in times of war -- Professor Stone reserves his greatest disappointment for the American people, who often responded apathetically or with outright encouragement when the government enacted repressive measures. No government of free people can reduce rights to rubble without their tacit approval. "Perilous Times" painstakingly confirms the conclusion that wartime restrictions on free speech reflected contemporary public opinion.
This distressing conclusion does not daunt the author. In a stirring final chapter -- one in which the Bush administration receives harsh reviews -- Stone argues that our government needs some institutional procedures that safeguard civil liberties during times of war. When passions run highest and calls for restricted free speech ring loudest, Professor Stone offers a series of guidelines that each of the three branches of government would be wise to adopt so that basic liberties may not be impaired.
"Perilous Times" is an important, triumphant work. Celebrating often overlooked heroes (like Judge Learned Hand, probably the greatest twentieth century jurist never to sit on the Supreme Court) and quixotic characters (for instance, Congressman Matthew "Spitting" Lyon, jailed for dissent in the 1790s), this lucidly written analysis of free speech should achieve its desired end. Professor Geoffrey Stone summons us to have the courage to stand for the principles of the First Amendment when the fear-laced winds of repression blow hardest.
Average customer rating:
- Destruction of the Moral Fabric Review
- Do the times really change?
- The Destruction of the Moral Fabric of America
- Legal and Historical Value
|
The Destruction of the Moral Fabric of America
Steven Toushin
Manufacturer: Wells Street Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Nonfiction
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ASIN: 188476004X
Release Date: 2006-10-12 |
Book Description
Destructions author Steven Toushin shares his first-hand experiences with obscenity-law; corruption and immorality within the federal government; and the conservative religious agenda that threatens our constitutional guarantees of religious freedom and freedom of speech. Destruction is for anyone who values liberty, who loves America, who doesn't want to be bullied by right-wing political and religious extremists. It is for people who are interested in individual sexual freedom, law, politics, morality, and a better America for all people.
Destruction of the Moral Fabric of America revolves around the first S/M-obscenity trial following the 1985 Meese Commission on Pornography which ignited a decade of persecution of the adult industry. The trial includes a debate of the issues among recognized members of the BDSM community Tony DeBlase, Guy Baldwin, Goeff Mains, Gayle Rubin, John Roberry, Jim Ward, GMSMA, sociologists, anthropologists, mental health experts, and legal experts. Along with Steven's personal experiences, it also includes chapters on the social, political, and legal history of sexuality and pornography in America.
Told with a touch of humor and a great deal of passion, the story of this unusual trial is interwoven with Steven's thoughts on BDSM and the Sexual Future, his theory on Certifying Masters, Mistresses, Slaves, and Prodommes, his insight into the Power of the word "NO," his experiences in federal prison, and other thought-provoking topics. Steven's conception of morality is uniquely presented as a conversation between himself and Thomas Jefferson as if they are sitting together on a park bench.
In the current political and religious climate of repression Destruction of the Moral Fabric of America is a wake-up call for all Americans. With its unique perspective, it will inspire you to think, to view the world through a different lens, and it will have you arguing and debating its issues with your friends.
Customer Reviews:
Destruction of the Moral Fabric Review.......2007-06-13
Wow! The Destruction of the Moral Fabric of America has me speechless. Where to begin talking about this volume? You could say it's about the history of gay porn, or BDSM, or it is a memoir of Steven Toushin's colorful and intensely lived life, or an expose by someone dedicated to their principles no matter what morality police do. All are correct. It is about all these things, needless to say it is not a light read but it is an important one.
Steven is well-armed with historical facts, trial transcripts, and interviews. The reader is led circuitously through his first-hand experience with governmental repression and intimidation, his arrests, trials, jail time, his ruminations on pornography, BDSM, and the government. He covers a lot of territory. It is sobering! One cannot walk away from this book without feeling a little queasy about our government and its insistence on overseeing American's sexuality and desires. Steven likes to let the actual correspondences, court documents, and interviews speak for themselves; not that he doesn't express his opinions, there is plenty of that, but he backs up those opinions with cold hard facts. Be warned, nobody is off the hook in this book. Steven takes a cold hard look at the BDSM culture and lays out what he sees as the pitfalls and what his suggestions are for remedying these problems. Including what a certified Master/Mistress may look like and what the criteria for such a certification would entail.
Toushin has waited over 30 years to spill the beans so there's quite a mess of beans on the floor! What are we going to do with the mess? My suggestion, keep this book as a reference point for the long fight ahead...it is far from being over. Those that forget history are doomed to repeat it is the phrase that comes to mind. If we are to fight for our rights, to live our lives as we see fit then we have to build upon the blood, sweat, and tears of those who sacrificed and fought so hard because they had not other choice if they were going to lead life on their own terms. Sleep with one eye open America. As the government likes to keep parroting "freedom isn't free". Damn straight, we've got an internal war going on folks, right here in our bedrooms. Be prepared to fight! Don't worry, there have been warriors that have gone before us. We are not alone...read and prepare yourselves.
Do the times really change?.......2006-11-09
October 20, 2005 - Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has announced that his office will specifically target "bestiality, urination, defecation, as well as sadistic and masochistic behavior" in pursuing new obscenity prosecutions. The Department of Justice began recruiting in late July for a new anti-obscenity squad to pursue obscenity prosecutions, and the FBI announced in September that it was forming an anti-obscenity task force to crack down on pornography. Any website that has content containing...these acts...should be forewarned that prosecution is possible. Additionally, Federal sentencing guidelines state that any obscenity- related punishment should be "enhanced for sadomasochistic material..." from The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom website.
As some may recall, President Ronald Reagan tossed his religious conservative base a prize in the form of Attorney General Edwin Meese in the late 80's. Meese plunged headlong into controversy when he appointed the "Meese Commission" to investigate pornography in the United States; their report, released in July 1986, was highly critical of pornography and the effects it had on people. Essentially rewriting earlier government studies that pronounced that there were no harmful links between pornography and behavior to suit their conservative agenda, Meese gave the Reagan Administration license to attack the adult entertainment industry and they did so with zeal. Toushin became one of their primary targets.
In 1987, Toushin was arrested as part of "Operation PostPorn," holding him and his staff for twelve hours as some 40-odd shotgun and handgun toting FBI agents searched and stripped his office (after some two weeks of covert surveillance on your tax-dollars.) Under Meese, the Department of Justice had made pornography crackdowns a priority, and had arranged for men in two states to order the hardest of hard-core SM videos. This forced the trials to meet the "community standards" of the locations the items were mailed to (Tennessee and Utah) and eventually laws were amended to include pornography under RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations).
What follows in "Moral Fabric" is a panorama of how the government turned all of its energies on Toushin using movies that were as far afeild or disgusting to a jury of vanilla citizens as the times probably had (including fisting and scat), and how the prosecution was perfectly willing to exaggerate their claims in order to make their case. (The Attorney General of Utah claiming that Toushin was selling child-porn and bestiality being the most flagrant.)
Toushin is more documentarian than judgmental (but not completely outside the realm of zinger-tossing). The bulk of the book deals with how Toushin winds through the court system and prison, yet is also willing to name names. "The Destruction Of The Moral Fabric Of America" is not a light read. In fact, it isn't even an easy read. But frankly, Toushin made history and set precedent for those of us who may forget that battles were fought and at the cost of lives ruined and liberties compromised. While he may still be around to run a successful Theater in Chicago, his book is a reminder that not everyone walks through fire unscathed.
The Destruction of the Moral Fabric of America.......2006-10-28
As the title implies, this book is about the current state of morality in America. However, the author's premise is not what one might expect. According to the government and right-wing conservatives, the destruction of morality has to do with pornography and any form of sexual __expression outside of their prescribed norms. On the other hand, Toushin, an owner of adult businesses and practitioner of an alternative sexual lifestyle, proposes that the destruction of morality has to do with the corruption, greed, dishonesty, and self-serving actions of government and religious leaders. I found this an interesting reversal. Using his own life experiences and a federal obscenity trial in which he was a defendant, Toushin very carefully presents evidence for his argument. This evidence includes government documents, trial transcripts and interviews as well as documented history and current affairs exposing the immorality of those who profess to be our moral protectors.
Considering the evidence presented, it seems apparent that the prosecution of pornography and the condemnation of alternative sexual lifestyles is a blatant attempt to direct attention away from real social and political problems. In light of what is happening all around us, this book couldn't't be more timely.
Toushin could have stopped with exposing the corruption and immoral actions of government and religious leaders and he would have had a very good book, but what makes this book excellent is that he takes his argument one step further. His obscenity trial involved films portraying sadomasochistic (S/M or BDSM) scenes, so the prosecution and defense in this case involved much discussion about the BDSM lifestyle. These fascinating discussions (involving legal experts, sociologists, anthropologists, mental health experts, and S/M practitioners) explored and debated the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of the BDSM lifestyle. Early in the book in a chapter entitled "BDSM and the Sexual Future," Toushin lays the groundwork for his proposal that the practice of BDSM is not obscene, but rather it is a higher, more enlightened form of communication, connectedness and healthy sexual __expression that needs to be studied and embraced for its life-affirming value.
It is from this often misunderstood frame of reference that he challenges the reader to objectively evaluate the opinions and testimonies in subsequent chapters.
Another theme of this book is the freedom of __expression and religion as guaranteed in the First Amendment. Although this idea is alluded to throughout the book, it is after the trial is presented that Toushin takes the reader back to the founding of this country and compares his own moral philosophy to that of Thomas Jefferson. The placement of this piece really brings home the point of how far we, as a society, have strayed from the original intent of our founding fathers and how we've allowed the continuous erosion of our individual liberties in subjugation to the increasing power of conservative government and religious leaders. I liked this piece and the creativity of its structure.
In the end, Toushin returns to his premise that BDSM is a legitimate lifestyle and a positive form of sexual __expression. In "Certifying Masters, Mistresses, slaves, and ProDommes," he carefully explains the various levels of commitment to the lifestyle and calls for a process to validate and recognize practitioners with experience and expertise. He basically concludes that a formal certification process will help bring BDSM out of the dark closet of condemnation and eventually into the light of societal acceptance.
This book is very well written and presents a very unique perspective born of first-hand experience. It's a book I plan to read several times in order to fully appreciate and comprehend its meaning and implications. While I may not always agree with Toushin's controversial philosophy and perspective, I have to respect and admire a man who is willing to make both personal and financial sacrifices in order to stand up and fight for his beliefs. I feel he brings important issues to the table for discussion and challenges me to break free from rigid thinking patterns and to evaluate people, ideas, and philosophies objectively.
Legal and Historical Value.......2006-10-18
By and large, Steven Toushin's latest book is about legal problems revolving around four SM films made in the 1980s which accumulated in a trail in 1989. There are a lot of primary documents included in the book that should be of great value to anyone interested in the legal system and how it is used to try and regulate adult sexuality. It may also be interesting to anyone wanting to know more about SM's history and legal standing. It is a massive book and not for a casual reader however. I have some problems with how sections are arranged but the overall excellent value for anyone doing research into these subjects outweights those concerns.
Book Description
The First Amendment puts it this way: "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press." Yet, in 1960, a city official in Montgomery, Alabama, sued The New York Times for libel -- and was awarded $500,000 by a local jury -- because the paper had published an ad critical of Montgomery's brutal response to civil rights protests. The centuries of legal precedent behind the Sullivan case and the U.S. Supreme Court's historic reversal of the original verdict are expertly chronicled in this gripping and wonderfully readable book by the Pulitzer Prize -- winning legal journalist Anthony Lewis. It is our best account yet of a case that redefined what newspapers -- and ordinary citizens -- can print or say.
Customer Reviews:
Fantastic book.......2007-02-08
I thought it would be a boring book. Surprise! It is very well written, and it brings tons of historical facts about freedom of speech and of the press in a context of story telling.
An accessible, left-leaning overview of first-amendment law.......2005-03-26
A very familiar, weak joke among my friends is to preface even the most self-apparent advice with the phrase "I am not a lawyer." For example, "I'm not a lawyer, but I'd advise against punching your neighbor in the face." "I'm not a lawyer, but I'd recommend renting The Incredibles instead of Friday the 13th Part 27."
The amazing thing about Anthony Lewis's Make No Law is that it renders that cliched phrase unnecessary. I truly am not a lawyer, but it didn't seem to make a bit of difference while reading this book; I found it a very accessible and readable overview of the history of the first amendment.
Admittedly, that description may not make this sound like a page-turner, but it actually is. In the way that a good teacher can make any subject seem interesting, Anthony Lewis breathes life into even the dullest moments of constitutional history. And when the situations he's describing are truly dramatic (as with the courtroom showdown in the Sullivan case, around which most of this book is structured), Make No Law creates the suspense and intrigue of a great fictional thriller.
It's worth mentioning that Lewis doesn't seem to strive for strict objectivity. In his observations, he frequently advocates for a liberal interpretation of freedom of the press, praising the Supreme Court justices who advanced his views and criticizing as small-minded those who did not. I personally thought that these sections gave depth and context to the facts of the Sullivan case, but those looking for an unbiased journalistic text might look elsewhere.
That minor concern aside, Make No Law is almost perfect as a text for the layperson who wants to understand how one part of the American legal system ticks.
Another necessary free speech book.......2005-01-30
There is little to add to the other reviews. Lewis writes well, on a important enough subject. He idealizes the court's creation of, and support for, free speech doctrine. The importance of the Sullivan case is the crux of the book. Justic Goldberg summed up the result: "A public official from recovering damages for a defamatory falsehood relating to his official conduct unless he proves that the statement was made with 'actual malice'--that is, with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not." It was, according to Lewis, a victory for free speech and important component in the development of free speech doctrine.
The book is a good read for those interested in free speech issues, the history of which are supremely important in understanding the nature and danger of threats to freedom.
Why press freedom matters..........2003-10-14
A readable account of the libel case that dramatically defined and expanded the scope of press freedom. It's difficult to remember that it was only in the 1960's that these ideas were settled by the Supreme Court. Lewis backgrounds the history of press freedom, or rather government attempts to bridle it by various sedition acts that seemed to appear each generation [Ashcroft's current attempts to inhibit 1st Amendment rights is only the latest in a long series] The last chapters of the book cover libel cases through 1991 when the book went to press. The short section on the Pentagon Papers case is particularly timely.
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An important book for media, civil rights, and legal history.......2003-07-01
As with Gideon's Trumpet, Anthony Lewis (long time New York times columnist who went to Harvard Law so that he could better report on the Supreme Court) manages to explain a complex legal decision, set the decision against its historical background, explain the legal history of the Court's reasoning, and give cogent examples of how the case has been applied--all in a very readable book.
In the early 60's, the struggle for racial justice in the south had reached the boiling point. Bull Connor was using his dogs and hoses against non-violent blacks marching in the streets, and Alabama expelled several university students for sitting in at a restaurant. Martin Luther King had been arrested for tax fraud by the State of Alabama--claiming that SCLC funds had been diverted for his personal use (all charges were eventually dropped). The media was covering these events nationally (and increasingly internationally).
To raise some money, some southern ministers placed an ad in the New York Times, describing some of these events, and asking for money to defend Dr. King against the false charges.
A member of the Birmingham City Council, in a well orchestrated attempt to shut down northern media coverage, sued the New York Times for lible, and won a $500,000 verdict in state court.
These events set the stage for the now famous decision by the United States Supreme Court in New York Times v. Sullivan.
While the decision was unanimous (at least in the result), Lewis digs deeper, and describes the process by which the judges meshed often incompatible views into a coherent rule of law, which continues to be applied today (although, not always as the Court intended).
The intended and unintended consequences which flowed from Sullivan form the third strand of Lewis' book, and are in themselves instructive, but probably not as interesting (they are often both obscure and dated) as those parts of the book (most of it) which focus on the history.
Highly recommended for anyone interested in today's media, the history of the contitution, how the Supreme Court works, or the history of the Civil Rights movement.
Average customer rating:
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Student's Guide to Landmark Congressional Laws on the First Amendment (Student's Guide to Landmark Congressional Laws)
Clyde E. Willis
Manufacturer: Greenwood Press
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Binding: Hardcover
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Book Description
We Americans have enshrined our most cherished rights in the First Amendment to our Constitution, including the freedom of religion, speech and press; the right to assemble; and the right to petition the government for redress of grievances. Since the formation of the republic, Congress has been actively engaged in enacting laws that have a direct and significant bearing on First Amendment rights. This ideal student resource provides the carefully edited and explained text of 31 landmark Congressional laws in all areas of First Amendment rights--from internal security to symbolic speech, campaign financing, obscenity, intellectual property, and freedom of religion. Organized topically for ease of use, this resource allows students to examine and compare the landmark laws on a particular topic across the breadth of American history through the year 2000. For instance, students can compare changes in the laws on obscenity from the Comstock Act of 1873, to the Anti-Dial-a-Porn Act of 1989 and the Child Online Protection Act of 1998. The landmark laws are organized into nine categories: internal security, symbolic speech, election campaign activities, obscenity, intellectual property, labor-management relations, federally funded programs, and freedom of religion. Each category opens with a general overview of the laws covered in that section and a brief summary of how they relate to each other. The entry on each landmark law features a discussion of the historical background of the law, the intent and purpose of the law, an examination of the substance and impact of the law, and a carefully edited actual text of key passages of the law. Each entry concludes with a bibliography of recommended print sources and Web sites for students. An introductory overview of Congressional legislation on the First Amendment, followed by a detailed timeline of milestones in the history of Congressional legislation on First Amendment issues, put the topic in historical context for students. An appendix of tables of the statutes and cases with complete citations will aid student researchers.
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- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
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Books Index
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