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Editorial: Air Boats and the Golden Rule
February 2nd, 2004

Editorial: A Year of Opportunity
January 24th, 2004

Editorial: Sports on TV
January 15th, 2004

Editorial: Mad Cow Disease in the US
December 26th, 2003

Editorial: Jeb`s Water War
November 25th, 2003

Editorial: Citizen Input Needed
October 27th, 2003

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October 17th, 2003

Editorial: Remember Owens Valley
September 29th, 2003

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September 21st, 2003

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August 27th, 2003

Editorial: A Fable: The Great Guano Concord
July 24th, 2003

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May 26th, 2003

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May 15th, 2003

Editorial: Parking: Our Biggest Problem?
May 2nd, 2003

Editorial: Vote and Vote Well
April 22nd, 2003

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Editorial: The Obscenity Conundrum

Editorial: The Obscenity Conundrum

Editor

Obscene, adj., based on the Latin word for filth. 1. offensive to one`s feelings, or to prevailing notions of modesty or decency; lewd. 2. disgusting; repulsive.

Complaints from citizens of Cedar Key about allegedly obscene signs have inundated city hall recently. The stimulus of the complaints is the name of a yet-to-open restaurant on Dock Street. The complaints are an echo of complaints about the name of a chain of restaurants called Hooters. The name Hooters as well as the local instance have been judged to be insulting to women, disgusting and repulsive.

Debates about obscenity arise from content of radio programs, newspaper cartoons and works of art. Deciding what is legally obscene depends on "one`s feelings or prevailing notions of modesty, etc." Gainesville radio station Rock 104 includes the Lex & Terry program, a nationally syndicated show, in which Lex and Terry use presumably simulated sounds of flatulence and recommendation of giving women physical abuse. This passes for entertainment and airs despite complaints from Floridians. On the international scene, a Danish cartoon depicting Allah caused an outcry and death threats from offended Islamic people far from Denmark. These examples demonstrate the difficulty in getting a consensus of what is obscene. Locally it is hard, globally it is impossible.

The U.S. Supreme Court has great difficulty in deciding what is obscene. The Cedar Key City Commission plans to have the obscenity issue on the agenda of a meeting in the near future. The current sign ordinance may or may not be adequate to limit the contents of commercial signs. If the ordinance is unenforceable then it should be modified.

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