Perhaps this helps:
http://movetoamend.org/learn-more
the source of the Justice Stevens quote. BTW, in the face of declining investigative journalism in the US there has been some talk of government sponsored news media in much the same way PBS has some public funding but with a legal mandate to be independent. You can look at the BBC News as another model. Corporate Personhood may be a bigger problem [threat to our democracy].
Thanks
Robert

On 5/14/10 7:16 PM, Chris Feola wrote:

No problem, Robert-help me into the boat.

Who is press? Who isn't? Who decides?

cjf

Christopher J. Feola
President, nextPression
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/cjfeola

*From:* [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Robert J. Cordingley
*Sent:* Friday, May 14, 2010 5:20 PM
*To:* The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group
*Subject:* Re: [FRIAM] What you can do.

Actually Chris, I think you are also missing the boat by focusing on the technicalities of a legal argument most of us would have to pay someone to help us with.

So see this quote:

Justice Stevens, in dissent, was compelled to state the obvious:

    /. . . . corporations have no consciences, no beliefs, no
    feelings, no thoughts, no desires. Corporations help structure and
    facilitate the activities of human beings, to be sure, and their
    "personhood" often serves as a useful legal fiction. But they are
    not themselves members of "We the People" by whom and for whom our
    Constitution was established.///


Thanks
Robert

On 5/14/10 3:35 PM, Chris Feola wrote:

Actually, Sarbajit is quite on point. If you read the decision you will see
that one reason the law was struck down was it tried to get around its
obvious violation of the 1st Amendment by carving out an exemption for
"media" since the press is, largely, corporate. Overturning this decision
therefore leaves two largely unpalatable choices:
1. The government decides what Fox News can broadcast and The New York Times
can print, since corporations do not have a 1st Amendment rights.
2. The government decides who and what are "media" and therefore get 1st
Amendment rights.
Both seem to be somewhat outside the spirit of "Congress shall make no
law..."
But don't take my word for it. Here's noted 1st Amendment lawyer Floyd
Abrams, who won the Pentagon Papers case for The New York Times:
"And my reaction is sort of a John McEnroe: You cannot be serious! We're
talking about the First Amendment here, and we're being told that an
extremely vituperative expression of disdain for a candidate for president
is criminal in America?"
"I think that two things are at work," Mr. Abrams says. "One is that there
are an awful lot of journalists that do not recognize that they work for
corporations. . . .
"A second is an ideological one. I think that there is a way of viewing this
decision which . . . looks not at whether the First Amendment was vindicated
but whether what is simply referred to as, quote, democracy, unquote, was
vindicated. My view is, we live in a world in which the word 'democracy' is
debatable . . . It is not a word which should determine interpretation of a
constitution and a Bill of Rights, which is at its core a legal document as
well as an affirming statement of individual freedom," he says. "Justice
Potter Stewart . . . warned against giving up the protections of the First
Amendment in the name of its values. . . . The values matter, the values are
real, but we protect the values by protecting the First Amendment."  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
    
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.ht  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
ml  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
    
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
    
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
cjf, recovering journalist  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
    
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
Christopher J. Feola  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
President, nextPression  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/cjfeola  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
    
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
-----Original Message-----  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
Of Merle Lefkoff  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
Sent: Friday, May 14, 2010 1:39 PM  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
Subject: Re: [FRIAM] What you can do.  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
    
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
merle lefkoff wrote:  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
    
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
Sarbajit misses the boat completely.  The reason that the government  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>
"  
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704094304575029791336276632.htmlcjf,recoveringjournalistChristopherJ.FeolaPresident,nextPressionFollowmeonTwitter:http:/twitter.com/cjfeola-----OriginalMessage-----From:[email protected]%5bmailto:[email protected]%5donbehalfofmerlelefkoffsent:Friday,May14,20101:39PMTo:TheFridayMorningAppliedComplexityCoffeeGroupSubject:Re:%5bFRIAM%5dWhatyoucando.merlelefkoffwrote:Sarbajitmissestheboatcompletely.Thereasonthatthegovernment>may
 not suppress that speech altogether" is because under U.S. law
corporations have the same rights as people.  This is the problem,
because corporations are NOT by any stretch of the imagination a
person.  Using the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution to gain the
legal financial takeover of the electoral process is a disaster for
democracy.  What needs to be changed, however, is not the recent Supreme
Court decision, but the legal definition of "corporation."
sarbajit roy wrote:
    Dear Group,

    As a non-US member I also find this interesting.

    As an ordinary citizen who has personally argued and won some cases

    before the Supreme Court of my country (India) on Free Speech issues

    (one coincidentally involving large corporations and television

    broadcasting), I was actually quite impressed with the reasoning in

    the majority ratio handed down by your Supreme Court (although to be

    frank, I am not up to speed on the case law of your country).in

    "*Citizens United vs Federal Election Commission*". The message I got

    from the judgement is that the Court is adamant on ensuring that

    citizens are fully informed no matter what the source of information

    is so long as the mandatory disclaimers are in place and the bias is

    spelled out up front. "*/The Government may regulate corporate

    political speech through disclaimer and disclosure requirements, but

    it may not suppress that speech altogether/*." Heck, now Osama-BL Inc.

    has the right to buy air-time and tell you what he thinks of the

    Georges Bush,

    I also find that the petition you signed is based on a limited and

    incorrect understanding of the judgement,  and is designed on the

    premise that "*you can get at least one half of the American public to

    sign anything if you word the question properly*".

    It would be instructive to those interested to read the actual

    majority opinion summarised here

    http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/08-205.ZO.html

    Just in passing, if some people imagine that a "Constitutional

    democracy" is a good thing, read this for an alternative view from one

    of the greatest philosophers of our age .. its brilliant in parts.

    http://www.mathaba.net/gci/theory/gb1.htm

    Sarbajit

    On Thu, May 13, 2010 at 7:42 PM, Robert J. Cordingley

    <[email protected]  <mailto:[email protected]>  
<mailto:[email protected]>>  wrote:

         Given the opining in this list, US members might find this site of

         interest:

         http://movetoamend.org/

         Perhaps a chance to actually do something?

         Thanks

         Robert

         ============================================================

         FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv

         Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College

         lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps athttp://www.friam.org

    ------------------------------------------------------------------------

    ============================================================

    FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv

    Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College

    lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps athttp://www.friam.org

============================================================
FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps athttp://www.friam.org
============================================================
FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps athttp://www.friam.org

============================================================
FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org
============================================================
FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv
Meets Fridays 9a-11:30 at cafe at St. John's College
lectures, archives, unsubscribe, maps at http://www.friam.org

Reply via email to