In an important reaffirmation of the free speech, the Supreme Court has ruled 8-1 in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church. Westboro is infamous for its deranged, homophobic protests at funerals of fallen U.S. troops. In an opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts, the Court refused to allow the universal disgust at Westboro’s views influence its decision. Only Justice Samuel Alito was willing to radically curtail free speech to punish Westboro.
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Category: Society
I have often used this blog (here) to complain about how teachers and administrators have used criminal charges to regulate routine instances of childish behavior. Now, we have the inverse situation of a teacher who has been confronted by police over the rattling of a desk due to an irate parent. The eighth-grade math teacher at Atherton’s Selby Lane School simply rattled a table to get his students’ attention — resulting in police being called to the classroom.
Continue reading “California Teacher Suspended For Rattling a Table to Get Attention of the Class”
We have another case of a police officer arresting a citizen for videotaping him in public . . . with a twist. We finally have a prosecutor, Pinellas (Florida) State Attorney Bernie McCabe who refuses to prosecute such an abusive charge unlike so many other prosecutors who take these cases and perpetuate the abuse against the citizens. What is interesting is the response of Tarpon Springs Captain Jeff Young (left).
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A New York school has suspended a 9-year-old boy in the fourth grade for putting a “kick me” sign on the back of a classmate. The suspension was handed down for “bullying.” While I have written about the need for greater efforts against bullying, I hope that this incident is not just limited to a classic school prank.
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Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has reportedly unleashed an attack on his critics for his violations of disclosure laws and alleged conflicts of interest. He warned law students that these critics are “undermining” the Court and endangering the country by weakening core institutions. As one of those critics, I am flabbergasted by Thomas’ remarks which show an implied disregard that seems to have now reached open contempt for certain principles of judicial ethics. There is not a hint of concern for his own conduct and how it has undermined the Supreme Court as an institution. For a prior column, click here
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The recent United Nation Security Council decision to freeze the assets of the Gaddafi family was heralded as a high-point of international cooperation to fight authoritarian abuse. What has gotten less press attention is the role of the United States in drafting the resolution. The Obama Administration insisted on adding a provision that barred the punishment of mercenaries for war crimes committed in the country — out of concern that the same principle could be used against U.S. contractors in places like Iraq.
It didn’t take long for religious fanatics in the United States to uncover a nugget of prejudicial hate in the ruins of the recent earthquake in New Zealand. Christchurch Quake is registered in Utah and claims that the earthquake was God’s judgment on the people of New Zealand for allowing “lesbians running loose on the South Island as if they own the place.”
Continue reading “U.S. Site Blames New Zealand Earthquake on . . . Gays”
I am always shocked by folks who fail for Nigerian Internet schemes or web cons. The saddest, however, are the ones (as we have seen) that prey upon people looking for companions. A 48-year-old Naperville man has added himself to that lonely hearts club after giving $200,000 to a fake “girlfriend” whom he only knew over the Internet.
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If you want to see a real reporter who asks the tough questions, take a look at Joey, 5, interviewing the Chicago Blackhawks.
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Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Jet-setting canines have a new stop on the luxury hotel circuit. Hoteliers in Paris have opened a new dogs-only luxury hotel. To cater to their four-legged guests, Devi and Stan Burun, have included a heated pool, masseuse, televisions equipped with DVDs, and a doggie workout room with treadmills and a decor adorned with framed doggie prints.
Continue reading “Do The Rooms Come With Fire Hydrants: Paris Has Luxury Pet Hotel”
Submitted by Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Think reality is self-evident. Neuroscientists at Stockholm’s Karolinska Institutet aren’t so sure. Seems recent testing reveals it is quite easy to convince the human mind that it’s body has three arms.
Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger
Last week I wrote up a post titled Scott Walker: A Fiscally Responsible Governor or a Politician Who Is Playing Favorites?. Judging from the number of comments left at that post, it appears that people are very interested in what’s been going on in the state of Wisconsin. I think many people may believe that as Wisconsin goes—so goes the nation…and probably the life expectancy of labor unions and collective bargaining.
What got a lot of press attention was the story of the prank phone call that Governor Walker received from gonzo journalist Ian Murphy. Murphy pretended to be billionaire industrialist David Koch. He talked to Walker for twenty minutes. Murphy reportedly told the Associated Press he made the prank phone call in order to show how candid Walker would be in a conversation with Koch at a time when Democrats claim the governor was refusing to return their calls.
Continue reading “Is the Scott Walker Story Just the Tip of the Koch Brothers’ Political Iceberg?”
Some of us have raised objections for the last two years on President Obama’s conflicting positions on gay rights. Now, White House Spokesman Jay Carney was able to nail down concretely the President’s position on gay marriage: he is still “grappling” with it.
Continue reading “Grappling . . . Grappling . . . I’ll Let You Know: Obama Remains Undecided on Gay Marriage”
There is an interesting case in Los Angeles where David Martin found an all-you-can-eat offer at a Sushi restaurant a bit fishy . . . or perhaps not fishy enough. Martin went to the Studio City restaurant to take advantage of the all you can eat deal for $28. However, because he is a diabetic, he proceeded to eat the fish and leave the rice. That led Restaurant owner Jay Oh to cry foul and demand that he either eat the rice with the fish or pay a la carte prices. That led Martin to file suit.
Filings in Judith Regan’s pending lawsuit have revealed the identity of the person whom she says encouraged her to lie to federal investigators about her affair with former New York police commissioner, Homeland Security nominee and subsequent convicted felon Bernard Kerick. She previously described the person as a “senior fox executive” but papers revealed that she was referring to Roger Ailes, the chairman of Fox News.
Continue reading “Roger Ailes Accused of Encouraging Judith Regan To Lie To Federal Investigators”