Category: Bizarre

Academia, Bizarre

Massachusetts School Sued Over The Use of “Commonwealth” In Its Name

UnknownOne school is an elite school found in 1957 in Boston’s Back Bay that costs $40,000 a year in tuition. The other is an academy in Springfield (90 miles away) for low income and minority students charging $1,200. Few people would confuse the two institutions but the elite Commonwealth School has sued the Commonwealth Academy for the use of the word “Commonwealth.” The school claims “great harm” from sharing the word and even refused an offer from the academy to add “Springfield” to the name.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Environment, Media, Politics

California Woman Defaces Seven National Parks with Graffiti and Then Brags About Her Crimes On Social Media . . . Given Only Probation and Community Service

B0urbxhCEAAuM69We have previously discussed the increasing appearance of graffiti in our national and state parks. As is well known on his blog, hiking is my passion and there is nothing more crushing than to see juvenile carvings and writings on trees and rocks in parks. Indeed, today I am heading to New Mexico for a speech and hope to hike in the wonderful trails outside of the city. I have written that the scourge of graffiti is due to the low detection rate and even lower penalties for those committing these crimes. The most recent case demonstrates vividly how the government still treats the crime as a minor matter. Recently, Actress Vanessa Hudgens posted a picture of her carving of a heart into a red rock wall during a trip to Sedona, Arizona on federal park land. However, when nabbed by the federal government, they allowed her to walk with just $1000 donated to a charity. Now we have another egregious case of a San Diego woman, Casey Nocket, 23, who defaced a series of national parks with graffiti and bragged about on social media. Yet, Nocket was sentenced to only two years’ probation and 200 hours of community service. The laughable sentence vividly illustrates why the destruction of our parks continues without any meaningful deterrence.

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Bizarre, Lawyering, Society

ThankYou For Suing: Citigroup Claims Ownership of the Use of “ThankYou”

150px-Citi.svgAT&T-logo_2016We have had a running discussion of how copyright and trademark laws have continued to grow to encompass common terms and images. The latest insanity comes from Banking giant Citigroup, which is suing AT&T for its use of “Thank You” in ads to its customers. That’s right, Citigroup claims to own the trademark on “THANKYOU.” So now even the most common expression of civility is claimed as “unlawful conduct” amounting to wanton trademark infringement.
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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Free Speech, Media, Politics, Society

London Mayor Announces Ban On “Body Shaming” Advertisements With Skinny Models

220px-Sadiq_Khan170px-Fitness_Model_Britt_2007London’s new mayor, Sadiq Khan, has signaled early in his term that he will continue the state regulation of speech and images that have ravaged free speech in England. He announced an end to the appearance of what he calls “body shaming” advertisements in London’s public transport, advertisements featuring skinny bodies viewed as unrealistic for most women. While some publications have suggested the that move reflects Khan’s Muslim background (he is the first Muslim mayor of London), in my view it reflects a long and disturbing trend in Europe (and particularly England) to regulate and criminalize speech. What some people may view as unrealistic or even demeaning for women, others view as artistic expression in advertising. While this may be the only way I could end up a Benetton model, I have long opposed such rules, which puts the government in the position of policing images to determine what is not demeaning for women.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Maine Musik: Rapper Arrested After Making Anti-Trump Video Featuring Stolen Guns From Reality Show

1465571086051We have another arrest brought about by social media . . . and breathtaking stupidity. Demarcus Davis, 22, a local rapper who goes by “Maine Musik,” decided to do an anti-Trump video and posted it on Instragam. Davis’ Instagram account has 53,000 followers and, in the video, Davis waves around various guns like a total thug. The former “Sons of Guns” reality TV star Joe Meaux happened to see the videotape. Meaux owns a Baton Rouge store, Meaux Guns and Ammo, that was burglarized in July, 2015. He recognized the distinctive, custom-made guns in the video (and later identified a Ruger 10/22 Krinker Plinker that Davis showed on his Facebook account) and called police. His call however did not start the investigation since the Secret Service had already seen the videotape and was investigating Davis for threatening a presidential candidate. He has now been arrested and faces a long stretch in prison.

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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Politics, Society

Oregon Judge Approves First Known “Non-Binary” Gender Classification While Georgia Judge Rejects Name Change For Transgender Male

Transgender_Pride_flag.svgThere were two decisions last week that show the current legal tensions over transgender rights. In Oregon, Jamie Shupe, 52, who identifies as neither a male or female was allowed to change from a “female” to a non-binary classification. This is believed to be the first such order in the country. Across the country, Rowan Feldhaus, 24, (who was born a female but identifies as a male) was denied a name change by a judge. These cases follow a decision last month Haque said her organization increasingly hears from non-binary people. Last month, the Gresham-Barlow School District in Oregon paid an elementary school teacher $60,000 after the non-binary teacher complained of no gender neutral bathrooms and colleagues continuing to refer to “he” or “she” rather than using “they” in reference to the teacher.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Media, Politics, Society

Embracing Mob Rule: Columnist Calls For Violence Against Trump Supporters

800px-1891_New_Orleans_Italian_lynchingAs many on this blog know, I have been highly critical of Donald Trump. However, there has been a campaign of violence against Trump supporters that is highly unnerving and dangerous. While there were a few incidents of Trump supporters acting violently, there has not been the same level of outrage at the widespread violence against Trump supporters and police at these events. Now, a liberal Huffington Post columnist Jesse Benn has defended the “violent response” to Trump — a reckless and provocative column that seeks to legitimate mob justice. What Benn is describing is not democracy but ochlocracy — a sad statement of the state of affairs in our country. While I recently wrote about liberals finding “their inner Nixon,” this seems to be a case of finding Benn’s inner Mao.  Benn insists “Violent resistance matters. Riots can led to major change.”  Perhaps but what is certain is that violent resistance always leads to violence.
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Bizarre, Criminal law, International

English Student Given 15 Months For False Rape Claim

PrisonCellBritish student Natasha Uttamsingh, 22, has been found guilty of lying about being raped by her boyfriend and sentenced to jail for 15 months. We have previously discussed how false rape accounts are often not punished (as in the case of the infamous Duke Lacrosse rape case) or lightly punished. There has been a variation of sentences for false rape charges but they vary greatly, including just a few weekends in jail. (here; here; here; here; here; here; here; here; and here).

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Environment, Society

Warrants Issued For Members of “Full of Life” Who Have Videotaped Their Damaging National Park Areas

Screen Shot 2016-06-08 at 11.09.30 PMWe have been discussing the growing number of idiots who are leaving graffiti and destroying national and state parks. now, a group of infamous Canadian juveniles who called themselves “High on Life” are under investigation after videotaping themselves water skiing behind an RV on the Booneville Salt Flats. This is an area that strictly prohibits vehicles during periods when the area is wet because of the damage to the area. What is particularly disturbing is that this group has repeatedly violated such rules at national parks with little punishment or sign of reform. We previously discussed how our rules protecting national parks are meaningless due to the lack of enforcement or serious punishment. We need to pursue a formal banishment law for our parks to apply to such individuals.

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Bizarre, International

The Thin Line Between Vanity and Insanity: Emirati Man Pays $5 Million For Number 1 License Plate

3801293144An Emirati man has taken vanity to a disgusting extreme — spending $5 million for a plate with the number 1 on it. For the vast majority of people struggling to feed their families, the auction price is obscene. Yet for local businessman, Arif Ahmad Al Zarouni, it was just something that he had to have as a matter of pride.

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Academia, Bizarre, Media, Politics, Society

The Clinton University Problem: Laureate Education Lawsuits Present Problem For Clintons [Updated]

225px-Laureate_International_Universities_Logo220px-Clinton_and_jiangWhile largely ignored by the media, the Clintons have their own university scandal. Donald Trump has been rightfully criticized and sued over his defunct Trump University. There is ample support for claiming that the Trump University was fraudulent in its advertisements and operations. However, the national media has been accused of again sidestepping a scandal involving the Clintons that involves the same type of fraud allegations. The scandal involves a dubious Laureate Education for-profit online college (Walden) and entails many of the common elements with other Clinton scandals: huge sums given to the Clintons and questions of conflicts with Hillary Clinton during her time as Secretary of State. There are distinctions to draw between the two stories, but the virtual radio silence on the Clinton/Laureate story is surprising. [I have updated the original column with some additional thoughts, links, and clarifications for readers].

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Bizarre, International, Politics, Religion

Ultra-Orthodox Rabbi Bans Girls Older Than Five From Riding Bikes As “Provocative”

imgresIn yet another example of how similar extreme groups in Judaism and Islam can be, an ultra-orthodox Jewish leader has reportedly banned girls aged five and older from riding bicycles;claiming it is “immodest” and too “provocative” for men watching girls as young as six on a bicycle.You may recall the outrageous move by the city of New York to remove bike lanes in an area in New York to protect the sensibilities of Hasidic men. Previously, an influential rabbi moved to block women from driving –just as his Islamic counterparts have done in places like Saudi Arabia.

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