Category: Society

Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Justice, Military, Politics, Society, Things That Tick Me Off

Just Who Gains From Voter ID Laws?

Respectfully submitted by Lawrence Rafferty (rafflaw)- Guest Blogger

It seems that almost everywhere you look, some State is trying to reduce the number of early voting days, purging the voting rolls and making it harder for citizens to cast their votes.  The State of Florida has recently attempted to remove legitimate voters off its voter rolls and the State of Georgia recently attempted to restrict the time when a military absentee ballot can be counted as I wrote about earlier on this blog. Georgia  Now, we have some hard evidence of just who is getting removed or impacted by the various State’s attempts to cure the imagined Voter fraud problem! Continue reading “Just Who Gains From Voter ID Laws?” →

Bizarre, International, Society

China’s Medal Mill

By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger

The sign above the gym floor contains one word, “Gold.” It’s a stark, relentless reminder to the children beneath it as to just what their mission requires. China’s obsession with winning Olympic gold has turned gymnasiums into dungeons for its youngest and most promising athletes.  Starting at age five, children are subjected to strenuous training techniques like hanging on rails with their arms extended backwards, swinging on beams, and being given painful lessons on what it takes to beat all comers and particularly Americans.  And the work seems to be paying off at the London games, as 16-year-old Ye Shiwen swam her way to a world record in the 400 meter individual medley beating the old record by almost one second. Her teammate, Sun Yang, won the 400m freestyle. Both attribute their success to “hard work and training.” And in China, that’s no sports cliché.

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Constitutional Law, International, Society

Big Foot Busts? Toronto Police Sued For Allegedly Profiling Women Based On Hairy Legs

Seven protesters are suing Toronto police for $1.4 million, claiming they were unfairly arrested and abused after being profiled by police, who looked for such things as “hairy legs.” That allegedly was one of the ways used to spot protesters — presumably those women with shaven legs were allowed to pass freely by the officers.

Continue reading “Big Foot Busts? Toronto Police Sued For Allegedly Profiling Women Based On Hairy Legs” →

Academia, Constitutional Law, Politics, Religion, Society

Princeton Professor Calls On Five Largest Hotel Chains To Block Access To Pornography To “Re-Stigmatize” Porn

Princeton University jurisprudence professor Robert P. George has launched a campaign to pressure the five top hotel chains to block access to pornography to “re-stigmatize” the industry. George is the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University. His view of a free and pluralistic society is strikingly different from my own. While George discusses his deep Catholic faith and fears for the morality of his neighbors, he believes that the solution is deny millions of travelers the right to choose their entertainment each year at these hotels.

Continue reading “Princeton Professor Calls On Five Largest Hotel Chains To Block Access To Pornography To “Re-Stigmatize” Porn” →

Environment, International, Politics, Society

A Cold Wind Blows: Romney To Kill Support For Wind Power In The United States

In Germany the country is setting records in its reliance on alternative energy sources like solar power and record wind power installations. Japan is now building the country’s biggest solar park which make it one of the world’s largest markets for solar power (Newscientist). Here in the United States, of course, we continue to let the world take the lead in such efforts. Mitt Romney’s campaign has announced that he intends not only to reject calls for greater investment in our wind power industry but to actually kill federal support for wind power.

Continue reading “A Cold Wind Blows: Romney To Kill Support For Wind Power In The United States” →

Congress, Politics, Society

House Ethics Committee Finds Rep. Richardson Guilty of Destroying Evidence, Witness, Tampering And Other Violations

The House and Senate Ethics Committees are notorious for their lack of serious enforcement of ethics rules — more often serving to deflect criticism of members. For that reason, when one of the committees actually takes action it is a notable moment. In the case of Rep. Laura Richardson, the Committee found an array of seven disturbing violations including improperly pressuring her official staff to campaign for her, destroying evidence and tampering with witness testimony. In addition, the Committee found that Richardson showed “utter disdain” for the committee and its investigation. Yet, despite this shocking list of alleged violations including destruction of evidence and witness tampering, the Committee is only seeking a reprimand and $10,000 fine.
Continue reading “House Ethics Committee Finds Rep. Richardson Guilty of Destroying Evidence, Witness, Tampering And Other Violations” →

Bizarre, International, Society

South Korean Weightlifter Snaps Elbow In Lift: Are Athletes Pushing Weight Loads Beyond Their Physical Capacities?

Yesterday many of us watched in agony as South Korean Olympic weightlifter Jaehyouk Sa snapped his elbow while trying to life 357.15 pounds. The injury again raised the question of whether weight lifters are trying to push weights beyond their physical limitations.

Continue reading “South Korean Weightlifter Snaps Elbow In Lift: Are Athletes Pushing Weight Loads Beyond Their Physical Capacities?” →

Bizarre, Courts, Society

Philadelphia Defies Court Order To Ensure Minimum of Due Process In Parking Citations

Philadelphia appears to be defying a court order to require the most minimal due process protection for drivers in parking violation cases. Common Pleas Judge Leon Tucker issued an order weeks ago that drivers were entitled to some basic protections in ticking such as the right to know where the violation allegedly occurred and to have the right to question the ticket givers. City officials however have declared the protections to be simply not “practical” and appear to be ignoring it according to a columnist. The decision is an important victory for citizens who are often clipped by cities as a source of additional revenue through parking tickets.

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Academia, Animals, Science, Society

Study: Wild Dolphins Are Totally Stuck Up

Still angry about how the jocks shunning you throughout high school? Well, now you know what a wild bottlenose dolphin feels like. For that first time in any other species, scientists have found that the dolphin form cliques based on their skills. The study found that the dolphin engaged in “inclusive inheritability” bonding after observing dolphins in Shark Bay, Australia.

Continue reading “Study: Wild Dolphins Are Totally Stuck Up” →

Bizarre, International, Lawyering, Society

South Korean Fencer Sits Down For An Hour On Piste After Controversial Ruling As Coaches Scramble For Cash To File Challenge

The fencing competition came to a halt yesterday after South Korea fencer Shin A-Lam sat weeping on the piste for over an hour after a controversial ruling in the semi-final. As the father of a couple fencers, I was not surprised by the controversy but I was surprised by one of the reasons for the delay — a lack of cash.

Continue reading “South Korean Fencer Sits Down For An Hour On Piste After Controversial Ruling As Coaches Scramble For Cash To File Challenge” →

Animals, Criminal law, Environment, Society

Florida Alligator Eats Mans Hand . . . Man Charged With Feeding Alligators

This would have seemed a good case for prosecutorial discretion. Wallace Weatherholt, 63, was operating a tour boat when he allegedly dangled a fish in the water to feed the alligators and give his passengers a good picture. The alligator took the fish . . . and his right hand. It was a stupid and illegal act if true. However, I would put the act of having one’s hand bitten off by a nine-foot alligator as sufficient punishment without the need to add a second-degree misdemeanor.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Society, Torts, Uncategorized

Two Teenage Girls Arrested For Fake Facebook Page

There is an interesting case in Granbury, Texas where two middle school students created a fake Facebook page for a 12-year-old classmate. That would normally result in a serious sit down with school officials and parents for the students, aged 12 and 13. In this case, however, the two were arrested for online impersonation, a third-degree felony. The case raises another example of how we have criminalized so much of our society. The over-criminalization of our society has taken misconduct that was once a matter of private or school discipline and converted it into felonies.

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Constitutional Law, Free Speech, Lawyering, Society

Appellate Court Finds Kentucky Bar Violated Attorney’s Rights In Criticism of Judge

The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ruled that the Kentucky State Bar violated the rights of John M. Berry Jr. who was threatened with an ethics charge after criticizing the state Legislative Ethics Commission. In an important victory for free speech, the panel found that the bar violated the first amendment rights of the attorney.

Continue reading “Appellate Court Finds Kentucky Bar Violated Attorney’s Rights In Criticism of Judge” →