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joker44

In the wind

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Yeah, I know we&rsquo;ve flogged this topic a lot recently but I think this article adds some new local perspective AND info for TUSCLers in many other states.<br />
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I recently paid a visit to KC&rsquo;s Bazookas Showgirls SC. Am writing a review of that visit. Preview: I went with really low expectations of post-law activity but was very pleasantly surprised. However, part of the time I talked with the mgr on duty about the law&rsquo;s effect.<br />
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To say his mood was glum would be an understatement. He predicted that more clubs were still likely to close while pointing unhappily to the dozen or so patrons present. He said they&rsquo;d lost business to Kansas but predicted that some guys would return after passage of KS law. [which for now is in KS senate limbo] Bazookas, he said, had more staying power because of other revenue streams -- Upper Deck video rental and mini theaters upstairs and the BullDog Bar &amp; Grill next door. However, if traffic and $$ did not improve Bazookas would be forced to close [or more likely stay open as some other entertainment venue]. The rest was some colorful language characterizing the bill&rsquo;s supporters. lol<br />
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Below I&rsquo;ve quoted a section from a June, 2010 article [from a local KCMO alternative rag called The Pitch] that appeared after passage of the MO SC Law but before it took effect.<br />
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The quoted section has more relevance for TUSCLers in many other states.<br />
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The rest of the article provides more local color and background about the impact of the law, especially how the appearance of bribery and a state legislator&rsquo;s over-the-top sexual kink opened the door for the bill&rsquo;s successful passage. [file under &lsquo;mistakes were made&rsquo;]<br />
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The full article is entitled: &ldquo;The anti-boobies bill of Missouri Sen. Matt Bartle strikes closer to home than he knows&rdquo; The title refers to the fact that a distant relative of the former senator works as a bartender in a KCMO strip club.<br />
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The article has since been referred to as &quot;Exit Boobies&quot; Here&rsquo;s a link:<br />
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<a href="http://www.pitch.com/2010-06-24/news/bar…" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.pitch.com/2010-06-24/news/bar… />
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And here&#39;s the relevant section [file this under &#39;know your enemy&#39;]:<br />
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&ldquo;Legislation like [MO&rsquo;s Strip Club Law] has been introduced in Kansas, Tennessee, Colorado, Minnesota, Kentucky, Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, Georgia and Florida. It has failed in all of those statehouses except Ohio&#39;s, where a variation finally passed in 2007 without restrictions on nudity or alcohol sales but with a mandated midnight closing time. [Ohio TUSCLers please comment]<br />
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The man responsible for the template is Scott Bergthold, a lawyer in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Bergthold didn&#39;t return The Pitch&#39;s calls, but his practice, according to his web site, is the &quot;nation&#39;s only law firm focused exclusively on drafting and defense of municipal adult business regulations.&quot; He has made a lot of money closing small businesses, and his history suggests how much Missouri might have to pour into a courtroom fight.<br />
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City officials in Johns Creek, Georgia, paid Bergthold $238,000 ($250 an hour) to litigate its attempt to shut down the city&#39;s sole adult business, a video and novelty store called the Love Shack. Including fees paid to another firm, the effort ate up more than a third of Johns Creek&#39;s annual legal budget.<br />
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Bergthold is nothing if not thorough. He drafts his rules to cover every inch of a business, including sales percentages, zoning and the amount of floor space taken up by dirty movies and rubber assholes.<br />
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As recently as this week, Bergthold told The Wall Street Journal that Missouri&#39;s legislation was on solid constitutional ground. But he has said that before and been wrong. Five years ago, Sioux City, Iowa, shelled out more than half a million dollars to an adult bookstore after hired-gun Bergthold failed to put it out of business. According to court records, &quot;Because of the City&#39;s ill-conceived, illegal, and unconstitutional actions in targeting and attempting to trample the plaintiff&#39;s First Amendment rights, the taxpayers have already paid dearly, to the tune of over $600,000.&quot;<br />
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That&#39;s pocket change to the people who are paid to fight the adult industry. Besides his law practice, Bergthold runs the Alliance Defense Fund, a nonprofit that defends the legislation he has written when the adult industry mounts lawsuits against it. Last year, Bergthold&#39;s group counted $30 million in donations. Because of the ADF&#39;s 501(c)3 status, it doesn&#39;t have to disclose who donated the money.<br />
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Bergthold has also been the executive director and general counsel of the National Family Legal Foundation, testifying around the country about the perceived negative effects of strip joints. The group now calls itself the Community Defense Council and is funded by donations from Bergthold&#39;s ADF. Every link in his long, incestuous chain of anti-porn groups stands to make money off a protracted legal fight over breasts in the Show Me State.&rdquo;<br />
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A more recent blog post [Feb 2011] from The Pitch reports on Kansas&rsquo; attempt to enact a similar law. Yeah, I know this has been reported on TUSCL, especially by beaverbandit69 &amp; me but read this blog post for some small comic relief. After briefly stating the facts it launches into an [over-the-top?] satirical commentary on the bill and its supporters. The Cosby fellow mentioned is a known leader of a decency group that tried unsuccessfully to shut down adult bookstores in the recent past. Here&rsquo;s that link:<br />
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<a href="http://blogs.pitch.com/plog/2011/02/kans…" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://blogs.pitch.com/plog/2011/02/kans… />
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Enjoy at least a little lol.</div>