The Aftermath of the POM v. Coca-Cola, Co. Decision: FDCA No Longer Protects Companies from False Advertising Lawsuits

In a recent decision, POM Wonderful LLC v. Coca-Cola Co.,  the US Supreme Court ruled that private parties could bring Lanham Act claims against packaging labels that otherwise satisfied the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. 

This decision reversed a Ninth Circuit "battle of the beverages" decision, and paved the way for an increase in lawsuits amongst companies against their competitors whose products satisfied the FDCA, but could be seen as "misleading" to consumers. 

This decision means that companies may need to monitor court decisions following the POM case, conduct closer audits of their existing product labels to ensure that they are in compliance with the Lanham Act, and pay much closer attention to all advertisements prior to publication for compliance with the FDCA and Lanham Act. 

What are your thoughts? 

Celebrating the Civil Rights Act of 1964

On this day, July 2, in the year 1964 (50 years ago) President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law.

The reform against discrimination was started by President John F. Kennedy. President Kennedy, the first U.S. President to propose such legislation during the Civil Rights era, rightfully and strongly felt that

"giving all Americans the right to be served in facilities which are open to the public—hotels, restaurants, theaters, retail stores, and similar establishments" and "greater protection for the right to vote"

was extremely necessary. Unfortunately, President Kennedy did not get to see the law come to pass, but President Johnson picked up where he left off and signed the proposed legislation into creation.
   

Today marks 50 years of a legacy worth celebrating. Let us all as Americans go forth today, and the rest of this Fourth of July weekend, commemorating, celebrating and  remembering all the hardships and sacrifices that it took to bring forth this bit of our history.

Quote of the Day

Most men lead lives of quiet desperation

and go to the grave with the song still in

                                them.                     

- Henry David Thoreau

The Country Confidential Understanding of This Quote: Live your life and showcase your talents and your opinions.

Q. Why a quote of the day?

A. I often look up quotes for a source of encouragement throughout my days. I think that it is important that I share inspiring quotes with my readers; therefore, as often as possible I will post a Quote of the Day for you all. I really hope they help and you enjoy !

The Hobby Lobby Supreme Court Decision: No Hobbying in this Lobby

On Monday, June 30, 2014, the United States Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that some employers cannot be required by the government to provide insurance coverage for birth control if doing so goes against the employer's religious beliefs. Many critics of this decision believe that it is both a blow to the Affordable Care Act and Women's Rights. Clearly the three women sitting on the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg , Justice Sotomayor and Justice Kagan, are in unison with those critics, as they both dissented.

So what does this mean for women? Well I have listed some changes this decision will create:

1. Women working at certain types of for-profit companies may no longer have insurance that covers the cost of any contraception that the for - profit employer says violates their religious beliefs.

2. The Justice Ginsburg written dissent argues that this limits women's rights.

3. This ruling may decrease the use of IUDs at some privately held corps. whom look to it as a form of emergency contraception.

4. The three female Supreme Court Justices are not the only women that feel like this is a hit to women's rights autonomy, many women's rights groups are upset by this ruling.

5. This ruling may lead the way for some corporation to attempt to refuse coverage for other, non - contraceptive medications and procedures that they feel "violate" their religious belief.

Wow! As an American woman I am not sure just how this decision makes me feel, but I do not think that I like it a lot. Of course I will have to read the official opinion before really judging.
Click HERE to READ The OPINION


What are your thoughts.

Whitney Houston and Aaliyah Biopic Troubles

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" - Charles Caleb Colton

Lifetime has ran into quite the drama in its efforts to air biopic for late songstresses Whitney Houston (Queen of Pop) and Aaliyah.

Neither biopic is receiving high regards from the families of the great, late singers. Furthermore, the casting for both biopics is causing an uproar amongst both family members and fans of the singers.

As far as the Houston biopic, actress Angela Bassett is set to make her directorial debut with the Houston biopic. However, she too has been unable to avoid the drama. YaYa DaCosta, former America's Next Top Model, has been cast to play Whitney Houston. It appears the casting has caused a riff between Houston's former Waiting to Exhale castmate, Bassett, and Houston's daughter, Bobbi- Kristina because Bobbi -Kristina was not cast to play her mother.

In so many words, Bassett revealed that she did not cast Bobbi-Kristina because the 21-year old daughter of Whitney Houston and singer Bobby Brown, is simply not a seasoned actress. Bobbi - Kristina did not take lightly of Bassett's opinion, and she took to Twitter in a slanderous tweet session about Bassett.

As far as the Aaliyah biopic, many fans were shocked when 17- year - old  Zendaya Coleman, best known for her role on Disney's Shake It Up, was cast to play Aaliyah. Many fans rejected Coleman based off her lack of physical resemblance to the late singer. As of today, Zendaya has pulled out of playing one of her biggest influencers, but it is not because the fans were upset-- there's more drama below.

Aaliyah fans were even more upset to learn that Aaliyah's family, like the Houstons, were not on board with the making of the film.

Members of Aaliyah's family, though not her mother or brother, have spoken out about the biopic. In a recent interview, Aaliyah's cousin, Jomo Hankerson, revealed that no one over the production had contacted he or other members of the family in regards to certain masters to some of Aaliyah's biggest hits, like One in a Million, which they are in total possession of.

Sources reveal that Zendaya backed away from the role for that very reason. Because Lifetime does not have those masters whomever plays Aaliyah will have to cover (actually sing) those songs and not lip sync to the track. Zendaya took to twitter to kind of confirm her resignation - stating that if she did it, she wanted to do it right.

In my opinion, this is just too much drama for a straight to tv production. Personally, I feel that both Whitney Houston and Aaliyah's lives are worthy of bigger screens, especially Whitney's (the QUEEN of POP). However, if it must happen like this I hope that both Lifetime and the families can eventually come together.

What are your thoughts?

Salute to the King of Pop

The greatest education in the world is watching the masters at work.
- Michael Jackson

Well, I think it is best that my first "entertaining" post should be something of value, and what better way to start it off than with a post about the King of Pop, Mr.Michael Joseph Jackson.

This day in history, June 25, 2009, the world lost an icon and the Jackson Family lost a father, son and brother. I lost someone whom I had looked up to, artistically, from as far back as I can remember. My household hated the tv movie  "The Jacksons: An American Dream" because, by the time I was 6, I had watched it 50 million times and memorized every line, song and dance move. I wanted to be just like them, and I loved Michael. Why? Because, although I hated rats - and still do, I got him, well his character at least. 

I too was a 'baby child' that wanted to be overly involved in most of the things my older siblings did, I too had a love for and friendship with various animals, and, mostly, I knew at an early age that I was talented and destined to do something grand - I am still on that journey, but the point is I knew. 

Ironically, June 25, 1951 was the date in which the first commercial color TV program was transmitted by CBS from New York to Baltimore, Philadelphia, Boston and Washington, DC. It is ironic to me because one of my favorite parts of  "The Jacksons" was when the boys competed in a singing contest and won a color television. However, their father refused to let them bring it home because they came in second place, and, according to Joe Jackson, "second place is losing." However, that is neither here nor there, I just thought it was ironic. 

Michael Jackson influenced a great deal of today's artist, in many facets of life - through music, dance,style and work ethic. However, his influence did not stop in death - that is the beauty of really talented people. It lives on. Michael's vocals continue to be heard through radio waves, television sets and computer systems across the WORLD. Columbia's Epic has released two posthumous albums since 2010, "Michael" and "Xscape". Just this summer 2014 you can vibe to Michael's single "Love Never Felt So Good" featuring Justin Timberlake. 

 5 Facts About M.J : 

   1.  Michael Jackson is the only artist to chart in the top 10 of Billboard's Hot 100 in five different decades. Michael did it in six decades when you count his Jackson 5 singles.

   2. Jackson is 35th and rising this week on Billboard's "Social 50" chart-- The chart is based mostly on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram followers and conversations. The 75 million "likes" to his Facebook fan page is more than Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars.

   3. "This Is It," showcasing M.J.'s preparation for his never-to-be comeback tour, became the biggest grossing documentary, with box office sales of $263 million 

  4. Michael would be turning 56 this year. 

  5.  Michael broke racial barriers when his music video for "Thriller" appeared on Music Television Channel (MTV) in 1983. In December 2009, that same video was selected for inclusion in the National Film Registry. It was one of 25 films named that year as being extremely important to American Culture and deserving of preservation for all time. It was the first music video to be inducted into the registry. 

COMMENT, COMMENT, COMMENT

     "Keep in mind that I am an Artist and I'm sensitive about my. . . " -Erykah Badu

Lets face it, this blog cannot get any better if viewers never comment. I mean if you're going to come and read the articles, interviews and written pieces anyways you might as well let YOUR voice be heard as well. 

I am not one of those people that shys away from criticism. I embrace it because it can either make you or break you, and, in most cases, the strong always survive. In other words, I need it. This blog cannot get any better if my target audience does not tell me what it wants from me. Besides, it would give me something to do as well, by way of reading your responses. 

Also, I am open for suggestions - if you think there's something that I should be writing about on here or if there's something you would love to know more about, just let me know. Like the description says though - I am a retired 'Beginner' so go easy on me if I do not automatically deliver. 

What is Country Confidential

                 Country Confidential is really more than a blog. It is a lifestyle.

Growing up in the South made life tedious enough for me, but growing up in the country made it a little bit more difficult. " 'I am so bored', 'there is nothing to do', 'I can not wait to pack up and leave,' " were all common statements that I often made concerning my rural surroundings. Never for a second thinking of how blessed I was to be living on such beautiful land and enjoying a life of peace and abundance with loving family and animals. 

I will not say that it was all sunflowers and sweet tea, but I will say that it was not all cow manure either. Once I moved to the city as a freshman in college, I came to realize that life in the city was not all that different than life in the country, just more congestion and quicker access. However, what it lacked was the ability to go out in my own back yard and yell -- without a police report being filed--, the opportunity to shield myself from the problems of others, especially when I just did not feel like being bothered - contrary to popular belief everyone knows your business in the city too, and the sound of crickets - it was replaced with ambulance and police sirens, which I came to enjoy as well. 

Now in no way am I ridiculing city life. In fact, I love it. I think it is uber convenient for a lot of things, mostly quick runs to Wal-Mart in the middle of the night. However, I do have a deeper appreciation and love for the life that I am highly accustomed to. The life that I have had my ENTIRE life, and, that is good ole country living. Cowgirls, Cowboys, pointless get-togethers, "Y'all", "Nawl", hunting, tractors, horses, cows, doggies, overalls, boots, flooding rains and green pastures. That is why I created Country Confidential.

Now I know what you are thinking, so this will be a blog dedicated to country life? In quick answer: ABSOLUTELY NOT !!! This will be a blog dedicated to News Updates, Legalities,  Entertainment and other cool things ! However, this will also be a blog that is more than just a blog. This blog represents a side of life that usually either is not talked about altogether or spoke of like a misguided, ugly step-child at best. This blog serves to let the outside world know that country folks are just as talented and driven as those city slickers (no offense). I am excited about this opportunity and vision that GOD has placed on my heart and mind, and I look forward to the future. So join me if you would like - I really wish you would- because once this ball starts to dribbling it's bound to go in that hoop! - See y'all later now, ya hear ! 

A Minute Before Lunch

Well, I wanted to start a new blog to maintain my writing skills, enhance my social media resume and remember a time in my life that was, well, fun.

I added the last statement in order to transition into this brief bio. This is not my first blog. In fact, this is not even my second blog. Years ago, I was devoted to Tumblr, but it was more of a personal journal. Then I found Blogger. Through my second blog on Blogger, I quickly fell in love with writing about current U.S. and Entertainment News and conducting interviews with people, whom I believed to be extremely talented and the next "big thing".

However, that life was short lived. I created it one year and the next year it was all but non-existent. My life became a little more hectic than it was when I first started it, and, sadly, my blog suffered the consequences. However, it was a passion, and passions never just die. Even in my absence, I thought about it - day in and day out. As I connected with different Artists and Professionals I thought about all the amazing interview opportunities that I was passing up. Everyday I saw an article about 'Breaking News' on someone else's site, I thought about all the first to drop opportunities I had let pass me by. This passion, it never died, time just stopped permitting my ability to do it.

I have seen a lot of changes in the "Bloggersphere" since my last hurrah. To be honest, some of those changes are a bit intimidating for a country girl like myself. Now people blog to become famous ! I'm pretty sure TMZ has about 100 bloggers on its radar for the "Next Big Story". Bloggers win awards now, shout out to Necole Bitchie. Bloggers are celebrities now - zero name drops, you know them.

Those things are great, and I am so proud of each and every blogger that has changed the game. I am grateful for their relentless hustle and pure talent for creative writing and self expression. However, one with even the slightest conscious cannot help but feel my sense of insecurity and intimidation. Having stepped away and not being in this world during a time when it was cultivating born WINNERS and success stories. It is a tough welcoming crowd and an even tougher one to please.

However, the passion never died. Therefore, I am back- as well as I know how to be. Not like I never left, but like I left and came back as a beginner. I embrace that. Dear Drake, I'm starting from the bottom, but one day I will see you up there!