After a criminal plea, national ridicule, and a failed political career, Senator Larry Craig is probably not quaking after receiving a “letter of admonition” from the Senate Ethics Committee. It was a pathetic effort of his colleagues to appear to be doing something about the scandal despite the fact that there was precious little that involved any official matter. Continue reading “Craig Admonished for Bathroom Incident by Senate Ethics Committee”
Justice Antonin Scalia has long been criticized for his habit of discussing pending issues before the Court and abandoning a long tradition of restraint by justices in their public appearances. His most recent defense of torture in a BBC interview has caused yet another controversy over Scalia’s disturbing lack of self-restraint. Continue reading “Scalia Holds Forth on the Proper Use of Torture — As Experts Debate the Propriety of Such Public Statements”
Given the most recent public controversy involving statements made by Justice Scalia on torture, this prior column may be of some interest: Continue reading “Scalia and the Advent of the Celebrity Justice”
An investigation has begun into this disturbing video of a Florida deputy dumping a quadriplegic man out of his wheelchair while he is being booked on Jan. 29. Deputy Charlotte Marshall Jones is shown on the video as she cruelly tosses the man, Brian Sterner, 32, out of his wheelchair and on the floor. Continue reading “Video: Florida Deputy Shown Dumping Quadriplegic Man On to Floor”
Florida judges are in the grips of an expanding scandal involving accusations of perjury, physical threats, and ethical violations. One judge, District Court Judge Michael E. Allen, is facing possible perjury charges and other, Judge Charles J. Kahn is accused of serious breaches of ethics as well as being unstable and injudicious in his personal conduct. Continue reading “Court Fight: Florida Judges Trade Accusations of Perjury, Threats, and Lies”
The Senate voted today to defeat an amendment by Senator Dodd to strip the FISA bill of immunity for telecommunication companies. It was the latest in a series of perceived betrayals by Democratic voters of their leadership, which helped Sen. Jay Rockefeller guarantee immunity for the companies. Sen. Hillary Clinton did not even show up for the vote, one of the most important civil liberties votes of this Congress. Continue reading “Senate Votes to Give Immunity to Telecom Companies: Hillary Clinton Skips Vote”
This video shows a disturbing moment where a Baltimore police officer goes ballistic after confronting teenagers on the skateboards. He gets increasingly angry and then physical over a lack of respect. Continue reading “Video: Baltimore Cop Abuses Teenager Verbally and Physically for Not Showing Enough Respect”
While you may not be tall enough to ride all of the roller coasters at Disneyland, you may soon be able to take a high-powered rifle into the forest and bang away at animals in South Dakota. The legislature is concerned about a drop in hunting, so it is considering dropping the age for hunters to 10. If this trend continues, South Dakota toddlers may soon be able to lock-and-load with specialized Tickle-Me-Elmo-22 rifles. Continue reading “South Dakota Legislators Propose Lowering the Age of Hunters to 10”
British citizens and wallpaper designers can now walk with the heads high after roughly 200 years of scurrilous claims that they caused the death of Napoleon. The Italians have published results that show that Napoleon did indeed die from stomach cancer and not arsenic poisoning. Continue reading “Italians Confirm Napoleon Died of Stomach Cancer — A Cover-up for Wallpaper Conspirators?”
It has been well-known that Speaker Nancy Pelosi has insisted that there will be no impeachment of President Bush during her term. Activists, however, have reported that John Conyers may be considering confronting Pelosi and starting such proceedings after a meeting in his office. They have started a campaign to show Conyers that he will have the support of the Democratic base, even if he lacks the support of Democratic leadership. Continue reading “Campaign Starts to Push John Conyers to Begin Impeachment Proceedings — Against the Wishes of Nancy Pelosi”
David Wise, a worker at a Firestone facility in North Carolina, will be forced to chose between his faith and his job under an important ruling from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. A member of the the Living Church of God, Wise is required to take a greater number of days off than most employees and sued when he was terminated for these practices as violative of his religious rights. The Court ruled against him and held that Firestone could refuse to accommodate such religious practices. Continue reading “Word to the Wise: Fourth Circuit Rules that Firestone Employee Not Entitled to Extra Days Off Due to His Faith”
President Bush is trying to use his final eleven months in office to guarantee that someone — anyone — will be convicted in his controversial military commission tribunal system. After millions of dollars, international scorn, and years of litigation, the Administration wants to try six detainees in the system. Some are reportedly victims of torture. Having destroyed evidence of the torture, it appears that the subjects could also be terminated — the military indicated it will seek the death penalty and Bush himself is the ultimate appellate “decider.” Continue reading “A Tribunal in Search of a Purpose: Bush Seeks to Execute Six in Cuba in His Final Eleven Months”
With the Bush Administration seeking to execute six detainees at Cuba including one identified as the “20th hijacker,” this prior column on the line of previously identified “20th hijackers” might be helpful. Continue reading “Bush Administration Seeks to Execute the Latest “20th Hijacker””
Exorcism is hot. At least, that is the view of Church officials in Poland who are planning to build an exorcism center in a potato field in Poland to deal with rising demand. The announcement came after the fourth International Congress of Exorcists. Continue reading “Vatican Approves Exorcism Center to Deal with Rising Demand From the Demonically Challenged”
Leave it to Hugo Chavez to make people actually feel sympathetic for Exxon Mobil. Cementing his reputation as an enemy to the rule of law, Chavez is threatening the United States with an oil cutoff if the company wins in a court of law over Chavez’s effort to seize billions of dollars in assets. Since taking over as Venezuelan president, Chavez has tried to model himself after Fidel Castro, including the latter’s contempt for checks on his power and the independence of the court system. Continue reading “Hugo Chavez Threatens to Cut Off Oil to U.S. — If He Loses in Court”