tics & People: Teen Violence Spawned by Guns and Cultural Rot" clearly depicts a rot of culture in the United States by letting anything go because of the First Amendment. He explains, with disappointment, that our country has fallen into a hole of violence with movies, television, video games, and "the music industry is a real villain for pandering to the worst instincts of kids by glorifying sexual obscenities and bestial brutality," (Hunt, A23).Music puts us in a mood, so if we encourage more positive attitudes by music, then we may be able to influence minds to think positively and not violently. There are, though, many followers and protectors of this very important allowance. Jay Rosenthal, author of an article entitled "Music Industry should rally against NEA ruling" clearly defines his faith in the First Amendment when he turns down a decency proposition for music. He urges that "the arts community must be heard on this issue during nominating processes, with a hope that a future court will be dominated by justices inclined to protect the First Amendment," (Rosenthal, 4). His article is clearly depicts the suffering that the art community will undergo with the decision to "take into consideration general standards of decency and respect for the diverse beliefs and values of the American public,"(Rosenthal, 15). Rosenthal is right in backing up artists for freedom of expression, but he seems to be caught up in only that issue and unconcerned about a society that is turning violent because of the strong vulgar lyrics of these artists songs. He needs to reconsider his thoughts and agree that todays music is in need of censorship. To get an idea of the songs that make censorship of lyrics a necessity, we can take a look at a few popular songs that glorify violence and degrade women. Some popular rap songs have titles such as "Smack My Bitch Up" and "Dont Trust a Bitch." One might ask Rosenthal if he has seen these titles or heard th...
