I have seen a few angry lawyers in court, but Chicago Thomas Guadagno, 66, may take the cake. Guadagno has agreed to a month suspension of his license after calling opposing counsel “gay scum” and a “child molester,” among other bizarre statements.
Continue reading ‘Chicago Lawyer Faces Suspension Over Calling Other Attorney “Gay Scum” and “Child Molester”’
Chicago Lawyer Faces Suspension Over Calling Other Attorney “Gay Scum” and “Child Molester”
Published 1, October 11, 2011 Bizarre , Lawyering Leave a CommentEU Bans Unsupervised Children Blowing Up Balloons
Published 1, October 11, 2011 Bizarre , International , Society 1 Comment
For those who have complained about the growing “nanny state” laws in the European Union, it may not come as a surprise that your kid now needs a nanny to blow up your balloon or blow a whistle. Under new EU rules, balloons can no longer be blown up by unsupervised children under the age of eight as well as prohibitions on other party favorites for young children like whistle blowers.
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Toddler or Terrorist? Father Detained For Taking Picture of Daughter in Mall
Published 1, October 11, 2011 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , International , Politics , Society 5 Comments
Chris White, 45, has become the latest victim in a trend in the United States (here) and England cracking down on citizens taking pictures in public. In White’s case, he was simply taking pictures of his daughter at a shopping center in Glasgow, Scotland when he was detained as a possible terrorist threat.
Continue reading ‘Toddler or Terrorist? Father Detained For Taking Picture of Daughter in Mall’
Obama and Civil Liberties: Talk of the Nation
Published 1, October 10, 2011 Constitutional Law , Courts , International , Media , Politics , Supreme Court 47 Comments
Today, I will appearing on the National Public Radio (NPR) program, Talk of the Nation to discussing my column in the Los Angeles Times on Barack Obama’s disastrous impact on civil liberties in the United States. The piece has generated some interesting discussion on the LA Times blog as well as other blogs. Despite my disagreement with some of the commenters, any discussion of civil liberties is welcomed in this political atmosphere. Ironically, the day of the column (which specifically discussed the President’s assertion of his right to kill citizens he considers terrorists), President Obama ordered the killing of U.S. cleric Anwar al-Aulaqi and reportedly a second U.S. born cleric.
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Iran Responds to Film on Repression of Artists By Ordering The Flogging and Jailing of Actress
Published 1, October 10, 2011 Constitutional Law , Free Speech , International , Politics , Religion , Society 14 Comments
The Iranian courts have responded to a film detailing the repression of artists in Iran by ordering the flogging and imprisonment of an actress, Marzieh Vafamehr. Vafamehr will be given 90 lashes and imprisoned for a year for her role in “My Tehran for Sale,” a film that tells the story of a young actress in Tehran who cannot perform due to government repression.
United Nations: Afghan Government Torturing Prisoners
Published 1, October 10, 2011 International 32 Comments
For years, civil libertarians have objected to the United States losing lives of our military personnel and hundreds of billions of dollars in Afghanistan as the country imposed rigid religious laws, suppresses minority groups, and denies women basic freedoms and protections. Now the United Nations has found Afghans returning to another prior habit: torture.
Continue reading ‘United Nations: Afghan Government Torturing Prisoners’
Obama Administration Awards $120 Million To Promote Marriage
Published 1, October 10, 2011 Politics , Religion , Society 26 Comments
There is an interesting debate occurring in Washington — not over the continuing cuts in core health and environmental programs, but one of the programs that was protected from cuts. The Obama Administration has continued the funding of programs encouraging marriage and promoting fatherhood . . . to the tune of over $120 million. It was part of a large effort of the Bush Administration funding both faith-based programs and family-oriented projects.
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Law Professor Files Ethics Complaint Against Crowell & Moring Lawyers For Inbreeding Remark
Published 1, October 10, 2011 Bizarre , Courts , Lawyering , Media , Politics , Society 30 Comments
An assistant law professor Jason Huber of the Charlotte School of Law in North Carolina has filed an ethics complaint against four Crowell & Moring lawyers in a rather novel case. He accuses the lawyers of suggesting that inbreeding could be responsible for Appalachian birth defects found in a study of mountaintop mining.
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I wanted to thank the faculty and students at the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service for the honor of receiving the Dr. Mary Ann Quaranta Elder Justice Award this weekend in New York. This is the first year of the award, which is named after one of the great public interest figures and academics of our age.
Continue reading ‘Fordham and the 2011 Quaranta Award’
The Mercatus Center: A Tentacle of the Deregulation-Loving Kochtopus Helping in the Effort to Deny Climate Change and Eviscerate the EPA
Published 1, October 10, 2011 Academics , Environment , Politics , Science , Uncategorized 54 Comments
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
From Climate Science Watch (March 18, 2010): To the libertarians, the widely-shared scientific assessment that human-caused climate change will likely produce major harmful consequences — and the communication of this evidence to the public by the leading climate scientists — poses a particularly serious threat. An informed public concerned about the likelihood of harmful impacts of unchecked global climatic disruption is more likely to call for significant government action to curb greenhouse gas emissions. In order to block proactive government policymaking and keep corporate interests unregulated, libertarian groups have focused a significant part of their efforts on climate change on distorting the science to confuse public opinion, denying the seriousness of the problem, and, most recently, impugning the integrity of the climate science community. The Koch brothers have stepped forward with deep pockets to bankroll such efforts.
Continue reading ‘The Mercatus Center: A Tentacle of the Deregulation-Loving Kochtopus Helping in the Effort to Deny Climate Change and Eviscerate the EPA’
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
In a desperate attempt to distract the media away from the “Niggerhead” story, the Perry campaign used Rev. Robert Jeffress to claim that Mormonism is a cult. Jeffress, pastor of Dallas’ First Baptist Church, introduced Perry at the Values Voter Summit in Washington, D.C. Perry hasn’t been doing too well recently and his latest problem was the revelation that his family’s secluded West Texas hunting camp was known by the name painted on a flat rock near its gated entrance: Niggerhead.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
The Smoot can be found on Google Earth and Google Calculator. It’s a unit of distance named after Oliver R. Smoot, the five-foot-seven-inch Chairman of the American National Standards Institute and President of the International Organization for Standardization.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Written and produced by Holland-Dozier-Holland, we have The Supremes in glorious STEREO!
Here is our picture of the week from our erstwhile colleague in the City of Light, Eric Tenin.
Continue reading ‘Sunday in Paris with Eric’
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
“There is no gambling like politics,” Benjamin Disraeli used to say, and this week’s Values Voters Summit inWashington was the biggest poker game in town with all 7 Republican candidates at the gaming table.
A Barney Fife Free Speech Moment
Published 1, October 8, 2011 Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Free Speech , Politics , Society 57 Comments
Submitted by Gene Howington, Guest Blogger
How many of you know the difference between a right and a privilege? As most of the audience for Res Ipsa Loquitur have an interest in law and/or politics, I’m going to hazard the guess that most of you have at least a rudimentary understanding of the difference in terms although it is a deceptively complicated subject on a philosophical level. However, just so there is no mistake in fundamental terms, we’ll start with basic relevant definitions.
rights, n.,
1) plural of right, which is the collection of entitlements which a person may have and which are protected by the government and the courts or under an agreement (contract).
privileges and immunities, n.,
the fundamental rights that people enjoy in free governments, protected by the U.S. Constitution in Article IV: “The citizens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities in the several States,” and specifically to be protected against state action by the Constitution’s 14th Amendment (1868): “No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.” The definition of “privileges and immunities” was first spelled out by Supreme Court Justice Bushrod Washington in 1823: “protection by the government, with the right to acquire and possess property of every kind, and to pursue and obtain happiness and safety, subject, nevertheless, to such restraints as the government may prescribe for the general good of the whole.” However, the exact nature of privileges and immunities which the state governments could limit has long been in dispute, with the U.S. Supreme Court gradually tipping toward protecting the individual rights of citizens against state statutes that might impinge on constitutional rights. [emphasis added]
rights given or reserved to the people by the U.S. Constitution, and in particular, the Bill of Rights (first ten amendments). These rights include: writ of habeas corpus, no bill of attainder, no duties or taxes on transporting goods from one state to another (Article I, Section 9); jury trials (Article III, Section 1); freedom of religion, speech, press (which includes all media), assembly and petition (First Amendment); state militia to bear arms (Second Amendment); no quartering of troops in homes (Third Amendment); no unreasonable search and seizure (Fourth Amendment); major (“capital and infamous”) crimes require indictment, no double jeopardy (more than one prosecution) for the same crime, no self-incrimination, right to due process, right to just compensation for property taken by eminent domain (Fifth Amendment); in criminal law, right to a speedy trial, to confront witnesses against one, and to counsel (Sixth Amendment); trial by jury (Seventh Amendment); right to bail, no excessive fines, and no cruel and unusual punishments (Eighth Amendment); unenumerated rights are reserved to the people (Ninth Amendment); equal protection of the laws (14th Amendment); no racial bars to voting (15th Amendment); no sex bar to voting (19th Amendment); and no poll tax (24th Amendment). Constitutional interpretation has expanded and added nuances to these rights. [emphasis added]
Now what would you say if you knew that state senators were proposing legislation that would convert Freedom of Speech from a right to a privilege? This is not a theoretical question. Four state senators from New York are currently considering proposing such legislation. Fortunately, the 1st Amendment gives us the right to discuss what a bad and scary idea it is that they propose.
Civil Rights Giant Dies
Published 1, October 8, 2011 Constitutional Law , Free Speech , Justice , Politics 13 Comments-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Rev. Fred L. Shuttlesworth is ranked alongside Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and the Rev. Ralph David Abernathy as one of the nation’s civil rights leaders. He was 89 when he died on Oct. 5 in Birmingham, Alabama. Shuttlesworth survived bombings, beatings, and the business end of a fire hose that left him chest injuries. Shuttlesworth was often on the front lines of civil rights protests.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Proving that talent skips a generation, we present Hank Williams in glorious STEREO!
No Honor But Perhaps A Little Decency
Published 1, October 8, 2011 Bizarre , Criminal law , Society 20 CommentsSubmitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Victim or Victimizer? Kraig Stockard
Two California teens tipped police off to a cache of child pornography allegedly owned by 54-year-old Kraig Stockard. Nothing too novel about that, except that the teens learned of the illicit material after burgling Stockard’s barn. Breaking into the Dehli, California property was easy enough and the pair thought they were taking 50 blank CDs as part of the loot. When they got home to divvy up the booty, they noticed about 30 of the CDs had pornographic images, many of them of children. The two thieves, age 19 and 15, contacted Merced County Sheriff”s deputies and fessed up.
U.S. Airlines Lose Effort To Avoid Paying European Pollution Tax
Published 1, October 7, 2011 Congress , Environment 33 Comments
U.S. airlines lost a critical fight this week to avoid paying the costs of pollution caused by their aircraft in Europe. Foreign airlines are required to pay for their carbon pollution by the European Union, but American airlines insisted that they should not be required to pay for their share of pollution. It is the type of argument that received rapturous applause in Congress and immediate waivers of liability. However, American executives were shocked when the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg actually ruled that the companies should pay their environmental tax. The Obama Administration has supported the companies in fighting the pollution tax.
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Cruel and Unusual Punishment? Woman Sues Over Arrest and Being Forced To Listen To Rush Limbaugh
Published 1, October 7, 2011 Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Media , Politics , Society 12 Comments
The Eighth Amendment clearly states “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” Bridgett Nickerson Boyd found a new meaning to that prohibition after Deputy Sheriff Mark Goad pulled her over on a Texas highway. After she had to go to the hospital with a racing heart, she was handcuffed and, she alleges, required to listen to Rush Limbaugh on the radio. By any measure, that would shock the conscience as cruel and unusual punishment.
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Florida Legislator Seeks To Legalize Dwarf-Tossing
Published 1, October 7, 2011 Bizarre , Politics , Society 27 Comments
Florida may be facing rising unemployment, funding cuts of major social programs, and environmental threats, but Rep. Ritch Workman (R-Melbourne) has stepped forward to tackle an issue that few have even acknowledged, let alone addressed, in the halls of power: dwarf-tossing. Workman is seeking to lift the ban on dwarf-tossing and to return Florida to a competitive position in the sport.
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Convenience Store Loses Employment Case After Boss Asks Workers To Bet On Who Will Be Fired Next
Published 1, October 7, 2011 Bizarre , Society 20 Comments
Call it Survivor: Bettandorf. There is an interesting employment case out of Bettandorf, Iowa where a former convenience clerk was able to secure unemployment benefits after quitting an owner called “the boss from hell.” William Ernst, the owner of a Bettandorf, Iowa-based chain of QC Marts, created a contest where employees would guess which one of them will be the next one fired. The prize was $10. Misty Shelsky of Davenport, Iowa, quit rather than play along and recently won a ruling from an administrative judge to secure unemployment benefits.
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Ten Years in Afghanistan: America’s Marks A Milestone With a Shrug and a Shutter
Published 1, October 7, 2011 Congress , International , Military , Society 42 Comments
Today, our country passes an important anniversary, which (unlike the 9-11 anniversary) will be largely ignored by politicians and the White House. We have now been in Afghanistan for ten years. That’s right, ten years. We have had 2 million troops in the country and lost roughly 1,700 lives. We have spent hundreds of billions of dollars. Yet, the President and other politicians would prefer to have the anniversary pass without much notice for good reason. It has been a disaster and it is not improving. In the meantime, the public is heavily opposed to our presence in the country. In the meantime, a general has used the anniversary to assure the American people we are now halfway to meeting our goals.
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Death Panel: Obama Delegates Hit List To Panel of Unnamed Officials
Published 1, October 6, 2011 Criminal law , International , Military , Politics , Society 149 Comments
I recently ran a couple of columns (here and here) and postings criticizing President Obama’s assertion of the right to kill citizens as a presidential prerogative. It now appears that he has delegated the selection of targets for killings to a panel of unnamed officials who determine which people should be killed without a trial or even a charge. When it comes to citizens like Anwar al-Awlaki, the killings raise serious constitutional problems that are being kept from the courts by the Administration.
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Surprise! Nancy Grace Proclaims Knox Guilty and Denounces Acquittal as “Miscarriage of Justice”
Published 1, October 6, 2011 Bizarre , Justice , Lawyering , Media 104 Comments
Nancy Grace took time away from her dancing stint on Dancing With The Stars to rally the mob in condemning an acquitted person. Grace called the acquittal of Amanda Knox a “miscarriage of justice” despite the few of many (including myself) that the case was riddled by mistakes, false statements by the police or prosecutors, and open speculation. Nevertheless, in Grace’s preference for “sentence first — verdict afterwards,” the Italian jury was the outrage by looking at the evidence and standard of proof.
Putin’ On A Show: Russian Aide Admits Putin Discovery of Ancient Urns Was Staged
Published 1, October 6, 2011 Bizarre , International , Politics , Society 3 Comments
In a previous, I expressed profound doubt over the latest installment of “Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin: Action Hero.” If you recall, after his being featured a race car driver, great white hunter, jet pilot, oceanologist, martial artist and Hell’s Angel, Putin was shown as a scuba diver. While only having dived three times, Putin was filmed at an ancient Greek Black sea site and . . . you guessed it . . . he “discovered” two sixth century urns under the water — one of which was in pristine condition with nary a seaweed adhering to its surface. Most of us laughed at the display of unrestrained megalomania, but the Russians insisted that it just shows how superhuman Putin is. Now, after ridicule outside of Russian, an aide admitted it was staged.
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My son Benjamin showed me this video since his earlier penguin video went over so well on the blog. These is always one penguin (or person) who is just a little braver or crazier in facing life’s challenges. I would love this penguin anywhere . . .
I was very saddened to very of the loss of Steve Jobs, one of the most influential and brightest minds of our generation. I had the first Apple computer and have had every major model since the start of the company. In other words, he had me at hello.
Continue reading ‘Farewell and Well Done’
Justice Department Appeals Alabama Immigration Ruling
Published 1, October 5, 2011 Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law 30 Comments
The Obama Administration is moving against the new Alabama law on illegal immigration — as it has the Arizona law. I have discussed the novelty of such challenges, which may soon include other states. I will be discussing the Alabama law on NPR’s Diane Rehm Show on Wednesday, October 5th.
Continue reading ‘Justice Department Appeals Alabama Immigration Ruling’
PM Cameron Calls For Fat Tax To Prevent England From Becoming . . . Well . . . Us
Published 1, October 5, 2011 Bizarre , Politics , Society 29 Comments
Well, we finally have been cited as the inspiration for reforms in England. Prime Minister David Cameron is suggesting a “fat tax” on foods to combat obesity and to avoid becoming like the United States — a nation of fat people. He appears to be unaware that we prefer to call ourselves a Rubenesque nation.
Continue reading ‘PM Cameron Calls For Fat Tax To Prevent England From Becoming . . . Well . . . Us’
Topeka District Attorney Refuses to Prosecute Domestic Abuse Cases After His Budget is Cut
Published 1, October 5, 2011 Bizarre , Criminal law , Politics , Society 28 Comments
Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor has created a firestorm of controversy in Topeka, Kansas by announcing that his office will no longer prosecute domestic abuse cases and other misdemeanors due to a lack of funds. Notably, Taylor was faced with a 10 percent budget cut, but elected to simply bar prosecution of crimes like domestic abuse.
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New Images of the Asteroid Vesta Reveal Massive Mountain
Published 1, October 5, 2011 Science 5 Comments
I have long declined to climb Mt. Everest and now my decision has been vindicated. It turns out that Mt. Everest is a mere ant hill in comparison to the peak on the asteroid Vesta. NASA’s Dawn probe captured the image of the mountain which not only dwarfs Mt. Everest but almost ties the shield volcano Olympus Mons on Mars — which still holds the record. It turns out that Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay ascended to the top of what Vestans call a foothill.
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The Hit List: The Public Applauds As President Obama Kills Two Citizens As A Presidential Prerogative
Published 1, October 4, 2011 Columns , Congress , Constitutional Law , International , Military , Politics , Society , Supreme Court , USA Today 135 CommentsBelow is today’s column in USA Today (to run in paper form on Wednesday) on President Barack Obama’s claim to the right to kill citizens as dangers to the nation. Ironically, the day after I wrote the Los Angeles Times column on Obama’s disastrous impact on the civil liberties movement in the United States (including his assertion of the right to kill citizens on his own authority), the U.S. killed two citizens in Yemen. Notably, Ron Paul (who has emerged as the only candidate discussing these issues from a civil libertarian perspective) suggested an impeachment inquiry based on the killing of the two citizens. Below is the column in USA Today.
Continue reading ‘The Hit List: The Public Applauds As President Obama Kills Two Citizens As A Presidential Prerogative’
MIT Researchers Invent Artificial Leaf
Published 1, October 4, 2011 Academics , Science , Society 56 Comments
Researchers led by MIT professor Daniel Nocera have announced the creation of “artificial leaves” that can convert the energy of sunlight directly into a chemical fuel that can be stored and used later as an energy source. The leaf uses abundant material and could prove a breakthrough in the search for new fuel systems.
Dalai Lama Blocked For Second Time in Visiting South Africa — After a Visit of South African Delegation To Beijing
Published 1, October 4, 2011 Free Speech , International , Religion , Society 13 Comments
For the second time in two years, a visit by the Dalai Lama has been blocked by the South African government — only a week after South Africa’s Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe visited with Chinese leaders in Beijing. However, the government insists that it was under no pressure from China and the visa was simply not processed fast enough.
Gonzales Hired To Teach At Unaccredited Belmont Law School in Tennessee
Published 1, October 4, 2011 Academics , Bizarre , Justice , Lawyering 54 Comments
While former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has been able to escape investigation and prosecution for his role in the torture program, no law firms or ranking law schools wanted to touch him as he sought gainful employment. Gonzales has been struggling to find someone who wants to be represented or taught by an individual ridiculed for politicizing the Justice Department and bringing in hacks who were accused of a variety of criminal and ethical violations. Well, he finally found one school. Belmont University has created an unaccredited law school in Tennessee. Its new Doyle Rogers Distinguished Chair of Law is no one else than Alberto Gonzales.
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Cat Burglar: MP Wife Convicted of Stealing “Beauty”
Published 1, October 4, 2011 Animals , Bizarre , International , Politics , Society 11 CommentsChristine Hemming, 53, may be the ultimate cat burglar. The wife of Member of Parliament John Hemming is allegedly shown in this video breaking into the mistress of her husband and stealing her kitten, Beauty.
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An appeals jury in Italy this afternoon overturned the convictions of Amanda Knox and Raffaele Sollecito in the killing of Knox’s roommate Meredith Kircher four years ago. While it has shocked many, it was a victory for the rule of law given the lack of evidence and serious mistakes of police in the course of the investigation. What was interesting, however, was the fact that slander convictions against Knox and Sollecito were upheld.
Federal Judge Criticizes Lack of Response of California Police Department To Allegations of Sexual Abuse By Officer
Published 1, October 3, 2011 Criminal law , Politics , Society 21 Comments
U.S. District Judge Andrew J. Guilford verbally lashed the Fullerton Police Department in its handing of allegation by sexual misconduct of an officer, calling the police department actions as “shocking” in its failure to take serious steps to preserve and act on evidence.
Continue reading ‘Federal Judge Criticizes Lack of Response of California Police Department To Allegations of Sexual Abuse By Officer’
Video: Woman Hears Own Voice For First Time in 29 Years
Published 1, October 3, 2011 Society 25 CommentsI was just sent this video by a friend of a 29-year-old woman who is filmed as she hears her own voice for the first time with the use of an ear implant.
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Ballistic Burials: Alabama Conservation Officers Sell Ammunition Filled With the Ashes of Your Loved One
Published 1, October 3, 2011 Bizarre , Society 31 Comments
Thad Holmes and Clem Parnell are Alabama conservation enforcement officers . . . and part-time human ballistic burial experts. Holmes and Parnell have founded Holy Smoke, LLC, a company that loads the ashes of your fried or loved one in shotgun shells, and rifle and pistol cartridges to be used in one last hunting trip or just target practice. For a small sum, it is resurrection and reload . . .
Continue reading ‘Ballistic Burials: Alabama Conservation Officers Sell Ammunition Filled With the Ashes of Your Loved One’
Here is what you are missing.
Continue reading ‘Ever Tickle a Penguin?’
“For God So Loved The World, He Gave You Bargains, Bargains, Bargains”: Texas Mechanic Offers Cheap Oil Changes For Christian Recitals
Published 1, October 3, 2011 Bizarre , Politics 11 Comments
Charlie Whittington, owner of the Kwik Kar oil-change shop in Plano, TX, no doubt accepts the promise in Hebrews 1:9 that “God, even your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows,” but he wants to throw in a discount oil change for good measure. Whittington has achieved national notoriety by offering customers an oil change for $19.99 if they recite a Bible verse to him or his staff. They must recite John 3:16: “For God so loved that world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Continue reading ‘“For God So Loved The World, He Gave You Bargains, Bargains, Bargains”: Texas Mechanic Offers Cheap Oil Changes For Christian Recitals’
As someone who loves garlic and uses massive amounts in most everything that I cook, I found this video intriguing.
Continue reading ‘How To Peel An Entire Head Of Garlic In 10 Seconds’
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
So…I get this baby gift recently from one of my Grammy’s good friends. It’s a pink Red Sox hat. My mom—who happens to be a big fan of the Boston baseball team–loved it. She put it on me and made my grandma take a picture. Mom wanted me to wear it proudly every time she took me for a walk.
Little did my mom know when I got that gift that the Red Sox would collapse like a pup tent in a hurricane at the end of the regular baseball season. What a bunch of losers! From what I’ve overheard my parents talking about this week—the curse of the Bambino must have been reactivated! I wonder how long the curse will hang around this time???
Have Ladle, Will Travel: Texas Chef Calls State’s Hand On Canning Last Meals
Published 1, October 2, 2011 Politics , Society , Things That Tick Me Off 13 CommentsSubmitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Chef and Humanitarian Bruce Price
Ex-con Bruce Price is a principled guy. He spent a decade as a prison chef while serving time for assault. Many of those meals were for condemned men in the Texas penal system. We’ve recently discussed Texas’ knee-jerk abandonment of the Last Meal for condemned prisoners here on the blog. Seems Price was reading about it, too.
Continue reading ‘Have Ladle, Will Travel: Texas Chef Calls State’s Hand On Canning Last Meals’
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Bank of America is leading banks all across the country in instituting new monthly fees for customers who use debit cards. BoA will start charging customers $5 a month while Wells Fargo and Chase are testing a $3 a month fee, Regions a $4 a month fee, and SunTrust a $5 fee.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Today we have Dickey Lee in glorious STEREO!
Separation of Church and State? Not on the 2012 Campaign Trial
Published 1, October 2, 2011 Constitutional Law , International , Politics , Religion , Society , Supreme Court 83 Comments
Below is today’s column in the Washington Post (Sunday) exploring the growing infusion of religious pitches and policies in the presidential campaign. With the anniversary this week of the Danbury letter, this is a particularly good time to take account of the condition of the wall of separation. Today is also the day of the “Red Mass,” the annual religious service held with members of the Supreme Court before the start of their term and leading Republican and Democratic politicians. While the separation of church and state is not mentioned in the Constitution, this exchange cemented the phrase in our legal and cultural lexicon. The piece below does not delve into the meaning of the First Amendment and whether it can be read broadly or narrowly given its language and history. Even if one accepts that the establishment clause was only designed to prevent the creation of an official church, there remains the long-standing principle in politics and government against the intermingling of church and state. To put it simply, religion is back in politics. While the targeted religious minorities may have changed from Baptists to Muslims, the fight over separation has resumed with the same politicized piety that once tore this country apart.
Continue reading ‘Separation of Church and State? Not on the 2012 Campaign Trial’
Here is our picture of the week from our erstwhile colleague in the City of Light, Eric Tenin.
Continue reading ‘Sunday in Paris With Eric’
Call of Crazy: Gamer Attackes Teen Who Killed His Character
Published 1, October 1, 2011 Bizarre , Courts , Criminal law 48 CommentsSubmited by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
We’ve known for years that exposure to violence makes humans more likely to commit violence themselves. TV violence is especially pernicious and can have effects lasting decades. Now that applies to participatory virtual violence as well.
Mark Bradford, a 46-year-old resident of Plymouth, England attacked a 13-year-old boy who had just “killed” his virtual fighter in the wildly successful computer game, Call of Duty:Black Ops. The two were playing the game over the Internet when Bradford’s character was shot during a battle scene. The enraged father of two promptly raced over to the boy’s nearby home and grabbed the young man by the throat using both hands. The child’s mother fought him off and called police.
Continue reading ‘Call of Crazy: Gamer Attackes Teen Who Killed His Character’
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Ten bonus points to anyone who can find the kitteh. Solution below the fold.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Break out the headphones/earbuds for The Showmen in glorious STEREO!
Did Obama Just Assassinate A U.S. Citizen? Aulaqi Killing Raises Questions Over Presidential Powers
Published 1, September 30, 2011 Constitutional Law , International , Military , Politics , Society 107 Comments
Few people would mourn the passing of radical U.S. cleric Anwar al-Aulaqi. However, his reported death from a U.S. air strike raises the long-standing question over President Obama’s insistence that he can unilaterally label a citizen as a terrorist and order his killing. It is one of the policies (of many) that Obama continued from his predecessor, George W. Bush, and was one of the subjects of my column yesterday in the Los Angeles Times.
Texas Sheriff Sends Transgender Porn To Political Opponent By Mistake
Published 1, September 30, 2011 Bizarre , Politics , Society 7 Comments
Awkward. Primera (Texas) Police Chief Joe Rodriguez recently sent his opponent for the office of constable, Robert Lopez, text that contained transgender porn. Oops.
Continue reading ‘Texas Sheriff Sends Transgender Porn To Political Opponent By Mistake’
Laying Hands Upon The Faithful (and Available): Study Finds 80 Percent of Unmarried Evangelical Young Adults Have Pre-Marital Sex
Published 1, September 30, 2011 Academics , Politics , Religion , Society 58 Comments
A new study from the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy has identified an area of young adults who have been overlooked by prior campaigns: young evangelicals. The study found 80 percent of unmarried evangelical young adults have had sex. That is virtually the same (8 percent below) the national average. With a campaign infused with religiosity this year and all of the talk of “real America” versus urban America, the study challenges stereotypes.
Continue reading ‘Laying Hands Upon The Faithful (and Available): Study Finds 80 Percent of Unmarried Evangelical Young Adults Have Pre-Marital Sex’
The Bear Necessities of Murder: New York Man Planned Murder of Ex-Girlfriend While Wearing Bear Pelt
Published 1, September 30, 2011 Animals , Bizarre , Criminal law 15 Comments
In New York, Clyde Gardner, 57, hatched a unique plan to kill his ex-girlfriend that involved skinning a bear, hiding among garbage cans, and walking on all fours. After the plan proved a bit too complex, he returned to that old favorite: the car crash. It all ended without an injury when Gardner was accused by the would-be hit man. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced this week.
Georgia Woman Reportedly Detained For Taking Photo Of Ground Zero
Published 1, September 29, 2011 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Free Speech , Media , Politics , Society 20 Comments
Earlier today, I posted another case out of Illinois where an officer arrested a citizen for recording him in public — only to have the charges later dropped without any disciplining of the officer. Now in New York city we have another alleged case where an officer detains a citizen over public videotaping — not of him, mind you, but of ground zero. Meredith Dodson of Georgia says that Officer Mark DeSimone not only detained her but became threatening with her and other citizens who objected to his arbitrary action over her taking a photo of the famous site.
Continue reading ‘Georgia Woman Reportedly Detained For Taking Photo Of Ground Zero’
Pakistani Religious Elders Order The Killing of Teenage Rape Victim For Losing Her Virginity Before Marriage
Published 1, September 29, 2011 Criminal law , Politics , Religion 58 Comments
A family in Pakistan is living in poverty and avoiding neighbors calling for their deaths. Their offense? The oldest daughter was raped and the family did not kill her as demanded as a matter of honor. Unlike hundreds of such girls killed in honor killings each year, Kainat Soomro, 17, is being supported by her family and refuses to back down in demanding justice for her kidnapping and gang rape.
Continue reading ‘Pakistani Religious Elders Order The Killing of Teenage Rape Victim For Losing Her Virginity Before Marriage’
Police Arrest Illinois Man For Videotaping Traffic Stop
Published 1, September 29, 2011 Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Free Speech , Media , Politics 16 Comments
We have yet another person arrested for recording a police officer in public. Louis Frobe felt he was wrongly stopped for speeding and decided to use his phone to videotape and record the stop and its surroundings. When he held the phone outside of the window to videotape the surrounding area, the officer proceeded to arrest him and charge him with a felony in Illinois. The arresting officer is identified in a lawsuit as Ralph H. Goar of the Village of Lindenhurst.
Continue reading ‘Police Arrest Illinois Man For Videotaping Traffic Stop’
Saudi King Revokes Flogging Punishment For Female Driver
Published 1, September 29, 2011 Constitutional Law , International 6 Comments
Saudi King Abdullah has again taken a step toward modernity. Yesterday, he revoked a sentence of 10 lashes imposed on a woman who drove a car. This follows his earlier decision to allow women to vote. The problem is that there is no law criminalizing driving by women. It is a religious edict which continues to apply to citizens with the same force of the law.
Continue reading ‘Saudi King Revokes Flogging Punishment For Female Driver’
Obama and the Decline of the American Civil Liberties Movement
Published 1, September 29, 2011 Columns , Congress , Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , International , Media , Politics , Society 192 CommentsBelow is today’s column in The Los Angeles Times on the record of Barack Obama on civil liberties and his impact on the civil liberties movement in the United States.
Continue reading ‘Obama and the Decline of the American Civil Liberties Movement’
Does Al Qaeda Have A Case For Defamation Against Ahmadinejad?
Published 1, September 28, 2011 Bizarre , Media , Society , Torts 8 Comments
When Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has expressed doubt over the official account of the 911 attacks and accused the U.S. government, he has been condemned by other leaders and countries. However, it turns out that the most aggrieved party may be . . . al Qaeda and its allies and sympathizers. Inspire Magazine, a publication founded by Anwar al-Awlaki and often tied by the U.S. to Al Qaeda figures, has come out with a cover story attacking Ahmadinejad for suggesting that al Qaeda was not responsible or someone used in the attacks by U.S. intelligence. It appears that al Qaeda views this “truther” account as nothing short of defamation or at least product disparagement.
Continue reading ‘Does Al Qaeda Have A Case For Defamation Against Ahmadinejad?’
New York Police Arrest Seven In Alleged SAT Cheating Ring
Published 1, September 28, 2011 Academics , Bizarre , Criminal law 12 Comments
In the high-pressure competition to ranking colleges, Sam Eshaghoff, 19, was a solution for those who long for high scores but lack of the ability or time to secure them. Eshaghoff and six students were arrested on criminal charges for a scheme in which Eshaghoff pretended to be other people to take the SAT exam for them — at the cost of $1,500 to $2,500.
Continue reading ‘New York Police Arrest Seven In Alleged SAT Cheating Ring’
Germany Calls U.S. Plan To Save Euro “Stupid”
Published 1, September 28, 2011 Academics , Bizarre , International , Politics 65 Comments
German finance minister Wolfgang Schauble left little question about his view of the wisdom of the economic policies of the Obama Administration. Schauble called the U.S. plan to pour trillions of dollars into the bailout fund “stupid” and said it would destroy the AAA ratings for the members — precisely what occurred to the U.S. this year. There is rising criticism of the economic views of Timothy Geithner, who some view as steering the U.S. into massive and unproductive spending.
Continue reading ‘Germany Calls U.S. Plan To Save Euro “Stupid”’
Presidential Hit and Run? Obama Sued For Trashing Massachusetts Airport
Published 1, September 28, 2011 Torts 28 Comments
Now this is an interesting lawsuit. In Massachusetts, Marlboro Airport wants payment of $676,048 for damage caused by “negligent” use of its facility, including unauthorized vehicles that tore up its field. The problem is that the culprit is the U.S. government. In 2010, President Barack Obama descended on the airport and brought with him a huge entourage, including a massive vehicles that were too heavy for the tarmac. After trashing the field, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security refused to compensate the company that runs the field.
Continue reading ‘Presidential Hit and Run? Obama Sued For Trashing Massachusetts Airport’
Saudi Arabian Court Orders Woman Flogged For Driving
Published 1, September 28, 2011 Bizarre , Courts , Criminal law , International 9 Comments
Just after we ran a rare congratulatory piece on the Saudi King giving the right to vote to woman, the Saudi courts gave a chilling reminder of the plight of women in the Kingdom by sentencing Shaima Ghassaniya to be flogged for driving.
Continue reading ‘Saudi Arabian Court Orders Woman Flogged For Driving’
20,000 Heat-Seeking Missiles Disappear From Libyan Warehouse
Published 1, September 28, 2011 Criminal law , International , Military 8 Comments
Just when you thought flying could not get more stressful . . . ABC has learned of a secret White House report alerting U.S. officials of the theft of an estimated 20,000 portable, heat-seeking missiles from an Army warehouse in Libya.
Continue reading ’20,000 Heat-Seeking Missiles Disappear From Libyan Warehouse’
Toro Taking? Bullfighting Promoters Sue Over Ban in Barcelona
Published 1, September 27, 2011 Bizarre , Environment , International 29 Comments
Now this is a takings case. Last week saw the last bullfight in Barcelona, Spain. This week there is talk of a lawsuit by bullfighting companies who want compensation for the ban on killing bulls slowly in a ring for the enjoyment of thousands of fans of the blood sport.
Continue reading ‘Toro Taking? Bullfighting Promoters Sue Over Ban in Barcelona’
De Jesus Loves You: Hit Man Stages Killing After Falling In Love With Target
Published 1, September 27, 2011 Bizarre , Criminal law , International 16 Comments
Let no one say that criminal lawyers and their clients are not romantic. This picture is a staged death scene by a hired killer, Carlos Roberto de Jesus, who fell in love with his target in Brazil. Presumably, Sylvester Stallone is taking Spanish in preparation for the film.
Continue reading ‘De Jesus Loves You: Hit Man Stages Killing After Falling In Love With Target’
Police Taser Teenager in Face To Stop Fight With Another Teenager
Published 1, September 27, 2011 Criminal law , International , Society 21 Comments
A Canadian police officer is the focus of an inquiry after a citizen filmed him shooting a Taser in the face of a teenager involved in a street brawl. While the 17-year-old is recovering, he took a surgery to remove the prong from his ear.
Continue reading ‘Police Taser Teenager in Face To Stop Fight With Another Teenager’
Massachusetts Supreme Court Upholds Right To Charge Citizens For Challenging Tickets — Win or Lose
Published 1, September 27, 2011 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , Society 34 Comments
There has long been an reasonable expectation among citizens that, if they are falsely accused of an offense, they will not have to pay either the fine or the cost of a hearing. Indeed, even if found guilty, there is generally not a charge for seeking justice in a court. Not in Salem, Massachusetts. The state supreme court ruled last week that motorists must pay the state even if they win their cases in court. The cost of fighting a ticket is $75, which can be roughly the cost of the ticket itself. It is a system that makes a mockery of the right to challenge a charge. No wonder so many witches were burned in the town . . . most could not afford the cost of an appeal.
U R BdBy: Kuwait Jails Blogger For Tweet Critical of Shiites
Published 1, September 27, 2011 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Criminal law , Free Speech , International , Media 4 Comments
A Kuwaiti court on Sunday sentenced a Sunni Islamist activist to three months in jail for tweeting comments that were deemed derogatory to Shiite Muslims. I have previously written about the increase in such blasphemy prosecutions, including a trend in the West, as well as President Obama’s decision to support a U.N. resolution embracing the concept of blasphemy prosecutions – an abandonment of our long opposition to such laws. As previously discussed in a column and a line of blog stories (here and here and here and here), various Western governments have been curtailing free speech by prosecuting blasphemy and speech against various groups. In this case, Mubarak al-Bathali was convicted over his use of Twitter. It appears that you can blaspheme in 140 words or less.
Continue reading ‘U R BdBy: Kuwait Jails Blogger For Tweet Critical of Shiites’
Alabama Courts Give The Convicted The Choice Between Jail and Church
Published 1, September 26, 2011 Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Courts , Criminal law , Religion , Society 31 Comments
In Bay Minette, Alabama, felons are being given the opportunity to climb the wall. Not the prison wall, mind you. The Alabama court and local police are helping felons over the wall of separation of church and state by giving convicted citizens an opportunity to avoid jail if they volunteer — so long as it is with a church.
Continue reading ‘Alabama Courts Give The Convicted The Choice Between Jail and Church’
Arkansas Judge Barred From Using Her Court For Show . . . Resigns And Rents Courtroom For New Reality Court Show
Published 1, September 26, 2011 Courts , Media , Society 12 Comments
Former Circuit Judge Mary Ann Gunn of Fayetteville has added her name to the expanding number of lawyers who are degrading the legal profession with faux court shows that mete out justice as a form of entertainment. I have previously denounced these shows and the types of lawyers who reduce their profession to the level of farce and freak shows (here). In Gunn’s case, the state bar informed her in 2010 that she was violating ethical rules by arranging to have her hearings filmed and released to shows. Rather than give up her desire for fame, Gunn resigned from the court and created a fake court called “Last Shot with Judge Gunn,” a show criticized by drug law experts as harmful and misleading. The problem with people like Gunn is that these shows are the product by unrestrained and self-consuming egotism built on the ruins of such professional values.
Continue reading ‘Arkansas Judge Barred From Using Her Court For Show . . . Resigns And Rents Courtroom For New Reality Court Show’
Saudi Women Given The Right To Vote
Published 1, September 26, 2011 Constitutional Law , International , Politics , Society 20 CommentsWe often criticize Saudi Arabia for its treatment of women and religious minorities under its extreme religious laws. Accordingly, we should also not hesitate to praise the country when it moves toward giving greater freedoms or embracing tolerance for minority groups. On Sunday, Saudi King Abdullah announced on Sunday he was giving women the right to vote and run in municipal elections.
Continue reading ‘Saudi Women Given The Right To Vote’
CERN Reports First Practical Application of Particle Moving Faster Than Speed of Light
Published 1, September 26, 2011 Academics , Science 13 Comments
Physicists did not take long to find the first practical application of the reported success of scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in making a subatomic particle go faster than the speed of light for the first time. The scientists used neutrinos, which were observed smashing past the cosmic speed barrier of 186,282 miles per second (299,792 kilometers per second). Below is the first joke being circulated around by our colleagues in the Physics Departments (and sent to me by one of my colleagues at the law school).
Continue reading ‘CERN Reports First Practical Application of Particle Moving Faster Than Speed of Light’
A Pinch of Satire: Bake Sale Causes Uproar at Berkeley
Published 1, September 26, 2011 Academics , Bizarre , Free Speech , Politics , Society 120 Comments
Campus Republicans at the University of California Berkeley have reportedly received threats after creating a novel form of protests against California schools considering race in admissions. The students created a sale of baked goods priced according to their race: white men for $2.00, Asian men for $1.50, Latino men for $1.00, black men for $0.75 and Native American men for $0.25. All women will get $0.25 off those prices.
Continue reading ‘A Pinch of Satire: Bake Sale Causes Uproar at Berkeley’
Irish Coroner Finds Death Was Case Of “Spontaneous Combustion”
Published 1, September 26, 2011 Bizarre , Criminal law , Science , Torts 15 Comments
In my torts class, we often discuss accounts of “spontaneous combustion” particularly after discussing the case of spontaneous combustion of a hay rick in Vaughn v. Menlove. Such cases have occasionally been reported with people, albeit to skeptical police. The latest comes from Ireland where Michael Faherty, 76, seemed to spontaneously combust.
Continue reading ‘Irish Coroner Finds Death Was Case Of “Spontaneous Combustion”’
Second Amendment Boogey Man
Published 1, September 25, 2011 Constitutional Law , Courts , Justice , Media , Politics 733 Comments
Respectfully Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty (rafflaw)-Guest Blogger
When it comes to the Second Amendment and guns, it seems that President Obama can’t make anyone happy. Ever since Obama announced his candidacy for the Presidency, the NRA has screamed that Obama will be taking away the guns. This scare tactic continued when Obama defeated John McCain for the Presidency. Just what has Barack Obama done to make the NRA and gun owners frightened for their guns? The simple answer to this question is nothing. Continue reading ‘Second Amendment Boogey Man’
Here is our picture of the week from our erstwhile colleague in the City of Light, Eric Tenin.
Continue reading ‘Sunday in Paris With Eric’
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
In his 2010 book, “Fed Up,” Governor Rick Perry called Social Security a “Ponzi scheme.” A Ponzi scheme is an individual investment plan wherein investors are paid “interest” by the principal paid into the scheme by later dupes. A geometrically increating supply of new investor principal is required to pay off the “interest” to previous investors.
The WSJ calls Perry’s claim misleading and PolitiFact terms it False.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
For your listening enjoyment, we present The Drifters in glorious STEREO!
On the Challenging, Banning, and Censorship of Books: My Response to Jonah Goldberg’s Piece “Banned Book B.S. Cont’d” at the National Review Online
Published 1, September 24, 2011 Free Speech 69 Comments
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
Part I
Jonah Goldberg was not pleased with Banned Books Week: Just a Lot of Propaganda Says Jonah Goldberg, the post that I wrote for the Turley blog last Sunday. In my post, I criticized Goldberg’s op-ed titled Banned Books Week is just hype, which appeared in USA Today on September 5th. Goldberg responded to my criticism of his op-ed with a blog post titled Banned Book B.S. Cont’d at the National Review Online (NRO). He said that my effort to come “to the rescue of the Banned Book Week crowd” was “entirely underwhelming.” He added, “A big chunk of her response restates my op-ed while casting her incomprehension as if it’s a rebuttal.”
Goldberg said my insinuation that the threat of book banning is a more serious problem than we realize because of the book challenges that go unreported to ALA (American Library Association) was “incredibly lame.”
Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger
As a suitable companion piece to my last post, I present the less than dulcet tones of Bob Dylan.
As We Careen Towards a Dream of Armageddon
Published 1, September 24, 2011 Columns , Constitutional Law , Free Speech , International , Military , Politics , Religion , Society , USA Today 66 CommentsSubmitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger
To my mind the greatest movie satire on the idiocy of the Cold War and the fear it inspired in humanity, was Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece “Dr. Strangelove, or How I learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb”, released in 1964. The plot in brief was, “An insane general starts a process to nuclear holocaust that a war room of politicians and generals frantically try to stop”. For those unfamiliar with one of the best American movies of all time check this link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057012/
Rent the movie if you haven’t seen it, for it will bring you dark laughter and present you with much to ponder. At the time of its release, some disparaged the movie as being un-credible in its characterizations and not believable in it premises. I hadn’t thought of the movie in years until I came across this article at the website Buzzflash.com titled “The Theology of Armageddon” by Robert Koehler. http://blog.buzzflash.com/node/13024 . The article is relatively brief, but well worth your time.
The article deals with a course titled “Nuclear Ethics and Nuclear Warfare” at Vandenberg Air Force Base, given under Air Force auspices. As the Robert Koehler states:
“(I)t turns out that the point of the mandatory course, which was recently canceled by the Air Force after officers of numerous faiths complained to the Military Religious Freedom Foundation about it and Truthout published an exposé in July, was to give officers in the first week of missile-launch training a Bible-verse-studded indoctrination in faux-Just War Theory (cynically known in the ranks as the “Jesus Loves Nukes” training)”.
What got me thinking of the movie Dr. Strangelove was a quote in the article from Dr. Wehrner Von Braun, which makes credible the satiric reality of the movies title character, Dr. Strangelove, hysterically portrayed as a heavily accented former NAZI, by Peter Sellers. Seller’s character was widely denounced as being unfair to Von Braun, at the time, but seeing this quote from him makes me wonder:
“We knew that we had created a new means of warfare and the question as to what nation . . . we were willing to entrust this brainchild of ours was a moral decision more than anything else,” von Braun is quoted as saying. “We wanted to see the world spared another conflict such as Germany had just been through and we felt that only by surrendering such a weapon to people who are guided by the Bible could such an assurance to the world be best secured.”
To me this is post facto justification by von Braun of his choice of the comfort of an honored life in the U.S. mirroring his NAZI lifestyle and providing a sop to detract from the truth that he was an enthusiastic war criminal. Von Braun had developed the V (I & II) guided missiles for the NAZI’s and became the head of the United States Ballistic Missile Program. Von Braun was a NAZI Party member of distinction and it seems dedication. His missiles fell upon Great Britain in the closing days of WW II as an attempt to cause terror within the British people and were random in their destruction. That he then became an honored man in the U.S., rather than a defendant at Nuremburg, is a tribute to our own hypocrisy in prosecuting the Cold War. A similar mindset seems to have infected some in our Air Force as I will show. Continue reading ‘As We Careen Towards a Dream of Armageddon’
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Porn king Larry Flynt has issued a new bounty. On Thursday, the Hustler magazine publisher, offered $1 million to anyone with proof of “an illicit sexual liaison” involving Republican presidential candidate, Rick Perry. Flynt is not too particular either, he’ll accept both gay and straight encounters.
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
The honeyguide is a bird famous for leading humans to bee hives. The humans raid the hive of its honey and leave some of the spoils in a convenient location for the honeyguide. It’s an incredible example symbiotic behavior. It has also been claimed that honeyguides lead honey badgers to hives. This turns out to be false. The origin of the misconception may have occurred since honeyguides would follow honey badgers and partake of the badger’s leftovers. It’s also a good excuse to embed this cool video:
-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
Today we have The Everly Brothers in glorious STEREO!
Solyndra Executives Plead The Fifth In Deepening Scandal
Published 1, September 23, 2011 Congress , Criminal law , Society 14 Comments
In another bad turn for the White House, Solyndra executives repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment on the company’s financial collapse and its receipt of $535 million federal loan guarantee. President Barack Obama has been criticized for ignoring warnings that the company was poorly structured and in danger of failing before highlighting the company as an example of his program of stimulus funds.
Continue reading ‘Solyndra Executives Plead The Fifth In Deepening Scandal’
Judges Behaving Badly (3): Chief Judge Dennis Jacobs Attacks Civil Libertarians and Lawyers Before Second Circuit
Published 1, September 23, 2011 Constitutional Law , Courts , Lawyering , Society 15 Comments
We recently discussed the shocking outburst by conservative judges on the Seventh Circuit and Fifth Circuits. Now, a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has joined the ranks of jurists engaging in visceral and, in my view, inappropriate commentary from the bench. The circuit sitting en banc split 6-6 Wednesday on whether to grant en banc review on a challenge of the federal wiretap law. What was most striking, however, was not the sharp division but the rhetoric of Chief Judge Dennis Jacobs. Building on a trend of federal judges to so narrow standing as to block any meaningful avenue to challenge government actions. However, Jacobs decided to vent his anger at public interest attorneys and their causes and clients.
Continue reading ‘Judges Behaving Badly (3): Chief Judge Dennis Jacobs Attacks Civil Libertarians and Lawyers Before Second Circuit’
Student Disciplined For Telling Friend In Class That He Views Homosexuality As Wrong
Published 1, September 23, 2011 Academics , Bizarre , Constitutional Law , Free Speech , Politics , Religion , Society 88 Comments
There is an interesting controversy in Fort Worth, Texas where Dakota Ary, an honors student was suspended for turning to another student in his German class and saying that he viewed homosexuality as wrong. The teacher at Western Hills High School became angry in overhearing the comment and accused Ary of being a bully.
Continue reading ‘Student Disciplined For Telling Friend In Class That He Views Homosexuality As Wrong’
Texas Ends Last Meal Tradition After Brewer Execution
Published 1, September 23, 2011 Criminal law , Politics , Society 35 Comments
It has long been a tradition to give a dying man his last requests for dinner. Lawrence Brewer took that request to an extreme, ordering a meal fit for an entire cellblock. That produced a backlash from state Senator John Whitmire who demanded an end to the tradition in Texas. He succeeded and now death row inmates will simply get whatever is served that night at the prison.
Continue reading ‘Texas Ends Last Meal Tradition After Brewer Execution’
Fast Little Neutrino: Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity Challenged By Test Showing Particle Traveling Faster Than Speed of Light
Published 1, September 23, 2011 Academics , International , Science 44 CommentsIt turns out that Einstein was a bit slow after all. Scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) has made a subatomic particle go faster than the speed of light for the first time — something that shattered one assumption of Einstein’s theories. The scientists used neutrinos, which were observed smashing past the cosmic speed barrier of 186,282 miles per second (299,792 kilometers per second).
Continue reading ‘Fast Little Neutrino: Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity Challenged By Test Showing Particle Traveling Faster Than Speed of Light’
Chief Judge Edith Jones Attacks Fellow Judge in Oral Argument And Yells At Him To Shut Up Or Leave The Courtroom
Published 1, September 22, 2011 Bizarre , Courts , Lawyering , Society 27 Comments
Chief Judge Edith Jones of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has long been unpopular with many lawyers and judges. Now her reputation for a certain nastiness has emerged in a public scandal after she screamed at her colleague Judge James L. Dennis to “shut up” or get out in the middle of an oral argument.
Mother Dearest: Man Abandoned By Mother As A Teen Is Sued By Mother For Parental Support
Published 1, September 22, 2011 Bizarre , International , Society 20 Comments
Ken Anderson, 47, is understandably confused. As a teenager, he was abandoned by his mother, Shirley Anderson, 73, and had to live with other families, quit school, and raise himself. Now his elderly mother has filed in British Columbia for parental support.
Continue reading ‘Mother Dearest: Man Abandoned By Mother As A Teen Is Sued By Mother For Parental Support’
Gladiator Games: Police Investigate Cage Fighting For Kids But Find No Legal Violations
Published 1, September 22, 2011 Bizarre , Criminal law , International 16 Comments
In a shocking story below, police have investigated the introduction of children as young as eight into cage fighting events. The children fight as adults cheer while drinking beer and egging them on. The police investigated and found no violations or crimes in such events.
Continue reading ‘Gladiator Games: Police Investigate Cage Fighting For Kids But Find No Legal Violations’
Texas Judge Rules Gay Father Cannot Leave Children With His Husband
Published 1, September 22, 2011 Constitutional Law , Courts , Society 24 Comments
Harris County judge Charley Prine, a Republican judge in Texas, is under fire for a clearly homophobic order barring a gay father from leaving his children alone with his husband. William Flowers (pictured, left below) and Jim Evans (right) were legally married in Connecticut and are appealing the order that says that the children cannot be left alone with with any man who is not related to them by blood or adoption unless his ex-wife consents.
Continue reading ‘Texas Judge Rules Gay Father Cannot Leave Children With His Husband’
Airplane Armrest Leads To Airport Arrest
Published 1, September 22, 2011 Bizarre , Criminal law 12 Comments
And you thought your last seatmate on an airplane was a bit irritating . . . Try David Alan Anderson, 60. Anderson sat down on a Delta flight from Salt Lake City to Las Vegas and immediately began elbowing the passenger next to him and claiming the armrest. It then got worse . . . much worse.
Continue reading ‘Airplane Armrest Leads To Airport Arrest’
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