Alana Newhouse has an interesting op-ed in the New York Times about a move in the Israeli Knesset that would give the Orthodox rabbinate control of all conversions in Israel. The authority (extending to matters of all Jewish births, marriages and deaths) would allow ultra-Orthodox (or Haredi rabbis) to define who is Jewish under standards that could exclude a significant portion of the population.
Category: Constitutional Law
In an interview with Raw Story, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) denounced President Barack Obama for blocking any investigation or prosecution of torture under the Bush Administration as inviting ‘tyranny.”
Continue reading “Nadler Denounces Obama’s Failure to Prosecute Bush Officials For Torture”
In an astonishing concession under pressure from the Catholic Church, the New Zealand Human Rights Commission has agreed to remove language from a draft report that simply stated that New Zealand is a secular state and that religion was only for the “private sphere.”
Continue reading “Human Rights Commission To Remove Language Referring to New Zealand as Secular State Under Pressure From the Catholic Church”
The French Parliament has voted to become the second country (Belgium) to ban full burqas. The lawmakers voted to make it illegal for women to wear a full burqas or nijab in public. It is a direct assault on religious freedom from a nation that helped define the basic rights of all humans.
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There is an interesting controversy at the University of Illinois where the university has fired adjunct professor Dr. Kenneth Howell for teaching why homosexual acts violate natural moral law under the tenets of the Catholic church. Howell taught courses on the Catholic faith at the St. John’s Catholic Newman Center. He was fired after a student labeled his statements “hate speech.”
Continue reading “Illinois Professor in Catholic Studies Fired After Student Objects That Teachings Constitute Hate Speech”
In a major ruling, United States District Court Judge Joseph L. Tauro has struck down the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) defining lmarriage as a union exclusively between a man and a woman. The bill was supported and signed by former President Bill Clinton. Tauro was appointed to the bench by President Nixon back in 1972.
Continue reading “Federal Court Strikes Down Defense of Marriage Act As Unconstitutional”
The Obama Administration is continuing to feel the heat over its decision to challenge the Arizona immigration law — a move making immigration a rallying cry for the November elections. With polls showing that citizens oppose the federal lawsuit two to one and that over sixty percent want similar laws in their own states, some Democrats are complaining that the Administration has put a nail in their political coffins. The level of anger on the issue is reflected by the astonishing level of financial support donated to Arizona: roughly $500,000 to pay for the state to fight the federal lawsuit.
Continue reading “Citizens Donate Half a Million Dollars to Arizona to Fight Federal Lawsuit”
Two prominent art curators in Moscow, Yury Samodurov and Andrei Yerofeyev, are facing three years in prison for showing art that insulted the Russian Orthodox Church. It is the latest example of blasphemy prosecutions, a growing trend in the West and industrialized nations.
Continue reading “Criminalizing Art: Two Prominent Art Curators Face Three Years in Jail for Offending Orthodox Church”
The Obama Administration filed a challenge of the Arizona immigration law in a move that comes with great legal and political risks. As noted in a recent column, the Arizona law remains quite popular around the country and the Administration will be in the unenviable position of arguing that increased enforcement conflicts with its own policies. Legally, the Justice Department will have to make out a case for implied preemption.
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We often run Iranian blogs to show clown-like policies such as requiring Islamic haircuts or mannequin mascetomies. However, it is important to remember the plight of women and dissidents under Iran’s medieval Sharia system. There is no more frightening example than the scheduled stoning of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, 43, for conducting an “illicit relationship outside marriage.” Convicted in May 2006, Ashtiani has already been given 99 lashes under her Sharia sentence.
Continue reading “Iran Set to Stone Woman To Death — After Giving Her 99 Lashes — For Adultery”
Leaders of the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir met in Australia this week to call on Muslims to reject Democracy and moderate Islam as “haram” or forbidden under the Koran (Qur’an). British Hizb ut-Tahrir leader Burhan Hanif told an audience that Democracy is a lie and that no laws but those in the Koran could govern mankind.
Continue reading “Islamic Leaders In Australia Denounce Democracy and Call on Muslims to Accept Only Sharia Law”
U.S. District Judge Michael M. Baylson has issued a major decision in favor of free speech and free association. In a 68-page decision, Baylson struck down Pennsylvania’s blasphemy law.
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We have another outrageous case involving the government using eminent domain to take property from one private citizen to give to another. This case comes from New York where the Court of Appeals has upheld the right of the Empire State Development Company to seize the Tuck-It-Away Self-Storage building in Manhattanville and give it to Columbia University. It is part of the troubling legacy of the Supreme Court’s 2005 Kelo decision.
Continue reading “New York Court Upholds Use of Eminent Domain To Benefit Columbia University”
A German man may go to jail for six months over a ringtone. The man has been using a Hitler speech as his ringtone on his cellphone. In Germany, it is a crime to display Nazi symbols or Nazi works.
Continue reading “Mein Ringtone: Man Arrested For Having Hitler Speech As Ringtone”
In another 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court ruled against Christian law students at Hastings Law School in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez. Justice Ginsburg ruled that Christian students must adhere to non-discrimination policies if they are to accept funding or benefits from the school.
Continue reading “Supreme Court Rules Against Christian Law Students”