Below is today’s column in the U.S. News and World Report on the case for prosecuting torture and responding to the dwindling number of defenders of the Bush torture program:
Continue reading “Three Legal Truths: The Case for The Prosecution of War Crimes By the Bush Administration”
Pete Williams is reporting that Republicans are threatening to expose Attorney General Eric Holder’s role in renditions during the Clinton Administration if he pursues an investigation into torture. Imagine that: raw political retaliation could finally give civil libertarians a full investigation of this country’s long-concealed abuses.
Continue reading “Proceed At Your Own Peril: Holder May Face Congressional Investigation Into His Own Role on Renditions If He Investigates Torture”
It appears that the Florida law firm of Fetterman & Associates not only litigates but spontaneously creates personal injury cases. Robert and Heather Friedrich went to the law firm in search of recovery for injuries from an accident — they found it, albeit for injuries in the law firm itself when Robert sat in a defective chair. A jury has awarded the couple more than $2 million for the injury.
Intelligence officials leaked documents to the Washington Post and ABC News last night that sharply contradict the statements of Speaker Nancy Pelosi who has denied ever being told that torture was being used on detaineees. She previously insisted that the use of waterboarding (aka torture) was only discussed in the future tense — a dubious moral distinction. I discussed the story on this segment of Rachel Maddow’s show.
Continue reading “Report: Pelosi Knew of Use of Torture Despite Earlier Denials”
After living through statewide campaigns of former KKK leader David Duke, Louisiana is now going to consider the former XXX film star Stormy Daniels for the Senate. Daniels is running against Sen. David Vitter, who is ensnarled in his own sex scandal due to his employment of call girls at the same time that he was leading the fight to force good morals on the rest of the nation.
Continue reading “Louisiana’s Political Shift From KKK to XXX: Adult Film Star Stormy Daniels To Run Against Sen. David Vitters”
Our annual Moot Court for elementary kids has made the ABA Journal! We hosted 150 6th grades from Kent Gardens Elementary School in McLean, Virginia this year. They sat through a trial of the three little pigs and a class on forensics led by a detective. The trial was a double murder and attempted murder case based on the Three Little Pigs. B.B. Wolf was acquitted.
Continue reading “George Washington Moot Court Makes The ABA Journal”
While Judge Jay Bybee has declined to speak before the Senate Judiciary Committee to explain his role in the Bush torture program, he is reportedly reaching out to Nevada delegation members to find an alternative forum “to tell his side of the story.” I discussed the story on this segment of Rachel Maddow’s show.
Continue reading “Bybee Reportedly Seeking Forum to Explain His Role in the Torture Memos”
While I first thought this was an item from the Onion, it appears that the Canadian Parliament has voted to mandate that Canadian Olympic athletes should wear wear a seal product — most likely seal skin — as part of their uniforms. This is the response to the opposition by the European Union to the Canadian seal hunt.
Continue reading “Canadian Parliament Mandates Use of Seal Products in Olympic Uniforms”
Todd Marcum, 41, in Oregon has been arrested for putting an electric dog collar on each of his four children and then shocking them because he “thought it was funny.”
Continue reading “A Real Scream: Oregon Father Arrested For Having Fun By Shocking Children With Dog Collar”
There is a story out this week that raises the interesting question: what does it take to be fired as a police officer in El Paso. Police Sgt. Raul Ramirez was captured on television arresting KVIA-New 7 reporter Darren Hunt and photographer Ric DuPont in April. The abusive arrests and use of excessive force by Ramirez appears to be insufficient to remove him from the force. Instead, he will demoted and allowed to continue to enforce the law.
Continue reading “El Paso Police Department Demotes Sergeant Filmed Arresting Television Crew”
The image of women walking down the runway in burqas sound like something from a skit on Saturday Night Live, but Saudi Arabia has launched its answer to beauty contests — Miss Beautiful Morals. Beauty contests have been declared “Islamically unacceptable” so in this contest women compete for the most morally perfect women.
My life long dream was to secure tenure and gradually become a non-productive burden upon by school and colleagues — achieving that perfect deadwood state of zero productivity with maximum profitability. It appears that Matthew Kim has achieved that sacred state. Kim has been paid a full salary and benefits for seven years to do absolutely nothing in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Better yet, this work is performed at home.
Continue reading “Academic Nirvana: California Teacher Paid Full Salary and Benefits to Stay At Home For Seven Years”
Brain Surgeons Dr. Thomas Milhorat and Dr. Paolo Bolognese at North Shore University Hospital have been suspended for roughly a month after they abandoned a patient in the operating room after she was anesthetized and prepped for brain surgery.
Continue reading “No Brainer: Two Leading Surgeons Suspended For Abandoning Patient on Operating Table”
Maine today legalized same-sex marriage — joining D.C. this week in the historic act.
Sheik Issa bin Zayed al Nahyan, the brother of the Crown Prince of the United Arab Emirates, Prince Mohammed, has been accused of additional acts of torture — as many as 25 such victims. The video of one such torture session is available here. In the meantime, on our own torture controversy, the Obama Administration again refused today to commit to a special prosecutor or independent investigation of torture by the Bush Administration. We lack the type of tapes in Abu Dhabi because CIA officials admit that they destroyed the evidence so it could not be used against them. I will be discussing the torture controversy tonight on the Ed Shultz show on MSNBC.
Continue reading “Serial Torturer: UAE Prince Accused of Additional Acts of Torture”