Californian Engineer Charged With Blasphemy After Allegedly Turning Off Loud Speaker At Mosque

In our ongoing coverage of blasphemy prosecutions, the case of Gregory Luke, 64, in Indonesia is a standout. The retired Californian engineer is charged with blasphemy for allegedly turning off a speaker system during Ramadan playing prayers throughout the night. He denies that he did so, but the allegation was enough for a crowd to tear apart his home on Lombok island and Luke to be arrested.
Continue reading “Californian Engineer Charged With Blasphemy After Allegedly Turning Off Loud Speaker At Mosque”

Eye for An Eye: Iranian Supreme Court Upholds Sentence To Pour Acid In Eyes of Defendant

We have been following the grotesque sentencings handed down under Sharia law’s medieval principle of “an eye for an eye,” including the recent variation of a spine for a spine. One such case previously discussed involved an Iranian court ordering that acid be dropped in the eyes of an Iranian man after he blinded the husband of his lover. Now, that sentence has been reviewed and upheld by Iran’s highest courts as perfectly proper under Sharia law.
Continue reading “Eye for An Eye: Iranian Supreme Court Upholds Sentence To Pour Acid In Eyes of Defendant”

Shelton: Clinton Cabinet Member Wanted To Sacrifice American Pilot To Start War With Iraq

This week, I watched the Daily Show interview with former Joint Chiefs of Staff retired General Hugh Shelton about his new memoir. What was most striking was his disclosure that a Clinton cabinet member suggested ordering a U.S. pilot to fly low in a U2 surveillance flight over Iraq in order to be shot down. The U.S. would then use the staged pretext to start a war with Saddam Hussein. What Shelton described is a proposed crime of horrendous proportions. However, he has not revealed the name of the cabinet member or whether Bill Clinton was aware of this proposed criminal act.

Continue reading “Shelton: Clinton Cabinet Member Wanted To Sacrifice American Pilot To Start War With Iraq”

Mandatory Health Care Provision Struck Down As Unconstitutional

U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson in Richmond, Virginia had struck down the centerpiece of the national health care plan: the mandatory requirement that all citizens get health care coverage. The lengthy 42-page opinion details how the law falls outside of interstate commerce jurisdiction — the concern that I previously voiced in a column.

Continue reading “Mandatory Health Care Provision Struck Down As Unconstitutional”

When You’re a Jet, You’re A Jet All The Way . . .: Can Jets Assistant Coach Alosi Be Sued For Battery?

It is well known that I watch football games for the torts and New York Jets assistant coach Sal Alosi supplied a perfect case for battery this weekend. Despite the interesting legal dispute over the “one cheek, two cheek” rule in my Bears game, the jackbooted thugs at the network switched over to the “more competitive game” between the Dolphins and the Jets. I was quickly satiated, however, with the picture of Alosi tripping Miami’s Nolan Carroll on the sideline.

Continue reading “When You’re a Jet, You’re A Jet All The Way . . .: Can Jets Assistant Coach Alosi Be Sued For Battery?”

UC Berkeley Police Officers Allegedly Arrest Journalist for Taking Their Picture

We have yet another arrest of a citizen for simply photographing police officers. We have been following this trend of abusive arrests (here and here and here and here), which are tolerated by legislators and police officers in clear violation of constitutional rights and good public policy. David Morse, 42, is a photojournalist who was arrested when he took pictures of a protest. Two UC Berkeley police officers allegedly wrongfully arrested him for taking their pictures.

Continue reading “UC Berkeley Police Officers Allegedly Arrest Journalist for Taking Their Picture”

Pachyderms and Packy Don’ts: Man Caught At Dulles International Airport With Elephant Tails and a Case of Horrors

I have long complained that U.S. customs forms are missing obvious boxes to check for elephant tails, dried hedgehogs, chicken blood, and the like. That appears to be the defense of a man caught traveling from Ghana with a case filled with a horror show of animal parts.

Continue reading “Pachyderms and Packy Don’ts: Man Caught At Dulles International Airport With Elephant Tails and a Case of Horrors”

Columbia Professor and Huff Post Blogger Accused of Incest

In academia, we often like to study and report on the crimes and controversies in society as if our world is separate and apart from matters. The arrest of well-known Columbia professor David Epstein, 46, has shattered any such illusions. Epstein, who teaches political science and writes for Huffington Post, is accused of incest –stemming from a sexual relationship with a relative over a three-year period. Some are reporting that it was a relationship with his daughter, 24.
Continue reading “Columbia Professor and Huff Post Blogger Accused of Incest”