Below is my column in The Hill on the rise of American armchair revolutionaries, particularly among young, affluent college graduates. It is part of the “radical chic” fostered from higher education to Hollywood for citizens who have no memory of the failures of socialism and communism in the 20th Century.
Here is the column:
This week has obviously been one of the toughest in my life. The death of my mother, Angela Piazza Turley, was not unexpected. She died a few days shy of her 98th birthday after a long struggle.
She was my inspiration and my North Star as a public interest lawyer. I dedicated my recent book to her as the person “who taught me that life is an unyielding passionate pursuit of justice.” Continue reading “A Heartfelt Thanks to Each of You”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
Russia continues its will to control the thoughts and inquiries of citizens. Most recently the State Duma is voting to amend existing legislation to assess an administrative fine against individual internet users “searching for and gaining access to extremist materials.” Predictably the definition of Extremist likely will include anything the state considers objectionable and the targets will likely include its citizenry, not just the content providers or authors.
If adopted, individuals making unlawful internet searches could receive fines between three and five thousand rubles. ($38 to $64). Officials face fines of ten to twenty thousand rubles ($128 to $256) and for legal entities one hundred to two hundred thousand rubles ($1,280 to $2,560).
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
On Tuesday the Justice Department petitioned for a writ of Quo Warranto against three individuals having served as board members of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting who were fired by President Trump yet allegedly continued to hold and exercise their office.
The complaint states “[s]ince April 28, 2025, Defendants Laura G. Ross, Thomas E. Rothman, and Diane Kaplan have been usurping and purporting to exercise unlawfully the office of board member of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (the “CPB”)… President Donald J. Trump lawfully removed each Defendant from office on April 28, 2025. As recent Supreme Court orders have recognized, the President cannot meaningfully exercise his executive power under Article II of the Constitution without the power to select—and, when necessary, remove—those who hold federal office. Personnel is policy, after all.”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
The news and social media aggregation platform Reddit now requires its United Kingdom based users to provide age verification to access “mature content” hosted on its website. Users must prove they are eighteen years or older to read or contribute such content.
UK regulator Ofcom stated “We expect other companies to follow suit, or face enforcement if they fail to act.” Internet content providers who fail to adopt such measures can face fines of up to eighteen million pounds or ten percent of their worldwide revenue, whichever is greater.
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
The expanding adoption of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) is finding utility in nearly all areas of human thought and expression. Its speed, increasing sophistication and accuracy promises not only unique ideas but shows ability in automating ordinary processes which hopefully afford people savings in time and resources; enabling them to focus on the bigger picture and more important duties. There are however some worrying trends that can come up on the reliance of such technology in areas it is not yet suited. This article will focus on one area: police and criminal justice reporting. Continue reading “AI Generated Police Reports: A Tool for Law Enforcement or a Potential Concern?”
Some readers have noticed the interruption in new postings on this blog and social media. Due to the passing of his mother, Angela Piazza Turley, 97, in Chicago, Professor Turley has been spending this time with his family. He expects to resume writing sometime this week. Continue reading “The Passing of Professor Turley’s Mother”
Since his arrival at the struggling newspaper, Washington Post publisher and CEO Will Lewis has fought to reverse the plunge in revenue and readership to save this great American newspaper. His greatest challenge has been the staff itself, which seems willing to embrace bankruptcy rather than give up its bias. This week, Lewis sent another warning to his intransigent staff: get on board or get out. Continue reading “Post Editor to Staff: Get on Board or Get Out”
I wrote recently about the chilling jurisprudence of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who has drawn the ire of colleagues in opinions for her rhetoric and extreme positions. Many have expressed alarm over her adherence to what has been described by a colleague as an “imperial judiciary” model of jurisprudence. Now, it appears that Jackson’s increasingly controversial opinions are serving a certain cathartic purpose for the far-left Biden appointee. Continue reading ““I have a Wonderful Opportunity”: Justice Jackson’s Cathartic Jurisprudence”
Dr. Kevin O’Connor appeared before the House Oversight Committee, but he had little to say about the investigation into the alleged cover-up of President Joe Biden’s mental and physical decline. The former White House physician invoked his privilege against self-incrimination in refusing to answer any questions. His prescription for the Committee seems clear: take a Fifth and call me in the morning (with an immunity grant). The question is now whether Congress will move to compel his testimony. Continue reading “Biden’s Doctor: Take a Fifth and Call Me in the Morning (With Immunity)”
While universities have largely purged their faculty ranks of conservatives, there often seems to be no academic who is too far left for hiring committees. The latest example is University of Chicago Assistant Professor and Director of Graduate Studies Eman Abdelhadi, who used her appearance at the Socialism 2025 conference to denounce UChicago as “evil” and a “colonialist” institution. (For full disclosure, I graduated from UChicago as an undergraduate). Continue reading “UChicago Professor Denounces School as an “Evil” and “Colonialist” Institution . . . But Wants to Stay”
The Trump administration notched another victory this week when U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta in Washington granted a motion to dismiss a case brought by five organizations to stop the cancellation of more than 360 grant awards by the Justice Department. However, in reaching this relatively straightforward conclusion, Judge Mehta opted to follow a pattern set by other judges in adding his own personal commentary on the wisdom of the policy change.
“We accept virtually all students of color.” Those words from Professor Roger Gilles, director of the Frederick Meijer Honors College, may seem a bit odd to Supreme Court justices who believe that they ended racial discrimination in admissions years ago in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, 600 U.S. 181 (2023). The college is part of Grand Valley State University in Michigan and still apparently uses race as not just one factor but an overriding factor in admissions. Continue reading “Admission Against Interest: Valley State University Honors College Director Brags About Race-Based Admissions” 
“What we really need to do is be willing to get shot.” Those words to a Democratic member are part of a chilling Axios story on the rising violent rhetoric on the American left. As alleged Antifa members are arrested in Texas for the attempted murder of ICE agents, Democratic members are beginning to express private concerns over unleashing uncontrollable rage after their election defeat. Continue reading ““Have You Tried Gasoline?”: Democrats Admit Followers are Embracing Violent Rhetoric”
Below is my column in The Hill on calls from the left for other countries to hit the United States with sanctions and other measures as a “bad actor.” After losses in elections and Congress, some are sending out a “broken arrow” signal for other nations to crack down on the United States.
Here is the column: Continue reading “‘Hit Us, Please’ — America’s Left Issues a ‘Broken Arrow’ Signal to Europe”