Bizarre, Courts, Criminal law, Politics, Society

Montana Judge Orders Men To Wear Shaming Signs For Claiming To Be Veterans

I have previously written about the rise of shaming punishments in the United States in both blogs (here and here and here and here and here) and columns (here and here). We can now add Cascade County District Judge Greg Pinski in Montana who crafted his own flavor of justice by requiring Ryan Patrick Morris, 28, and Troy Allan Nelson, 33, to wear signs reading “I am a liar. I am not a veteran. I stole valor. I have dishonored all veterans.” As always, such punishments are hugely popular with people but they are also, in my view, high damaging to the legal system.

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Environment, Politics

Poll: Young Republicans Show Rising Environmental Concerns

One of the most consistent areas for the Trump Administration has been its extremely anti-environmental stance on everything from national parks to climate change to pollution control rollbacks. The assumption is that Republicans simply do not support the environment, an assumption that I have always contested. A new poll may give the GOP and its leadership some cause for pause in that regard. There is growing unease — and majority — among Republicans over environmental harm. The numbers showing up for younger Republicans should worry the leadership. Trump and others have made the party synonymous with climate change denial and anti-environmental protection. That could ultimately force young Republicans out of the party even thought they share other values on fiscal conservatism, states rights, and other issues. With women showing a shift away from Trump and the GOP, the loss of young voters would leave a dim future for the party.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

NYPD Looks For Teenagers Who Beat 67-Year-Old Woman With Her Own Cane

We have yet another shocking videotape released by police of a mob of teenagers beating down a defenseless person. This attack occurred in Queens, New York where teenagers jumped from a late model Nissan Ultima and beat a 67-year-old woman with her own cane while taunting and laughing at her.

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Environment, Politics

Trump Moves To Log Tongass National Forest
U.S. Forest Service

As many of you know, I have been a staunch critic of President Trump’s anti-environmental policies from relaxing pollution standards to abandoning climate change efforts. This includes this week methane rollbacks that are so severe and dangerous that even industry is objecting. However, I remain astonished by the scope and depth of these harmful policies. The latest is a move to remove logging restrictions on one of the most pristine and unique national parks: the Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest with some 16.7 million acres. It was always viewed as a park to preserve undisturbed and natural areas from developers, miners and other businesses. Trump is about to change all that and, for those of us who love our national parks, it is an utter disgrace. At a time when our national parks are being crowded from rising demand, Trump is not only not adding any park land but plans to allow existing park areas to be cut down in a giveaway to private interests.

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Military, Politics

A Major Hatch Act Violation? Officer Endorses Biden While In Uniform

There was a rare public violation by an officer in uniform this week when Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden was met by Major Ginger Tate of the U.S. Army National Guard Signal Corps . Tate proceeded to give Biden some ceremonial coins but then added “I hope and pray that you will be our next president.” This could present a novel problem for the White House. Normally, the White House could strongly object to the violation of the Hatch Act, but the Trump White House (and particularly adviser Kelly Anne Conway) has been a flagrant violator of the Act and refused to take actions against those violating the Act in favor of the President.

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Academia, Bizarre, Society

Rockefeller University Moves To Redesign The “Dude Wall” After Rachel Maddow Remarks [Updated]

We have previously discussed how universities are removing portraits of their founders or their most accomplished figures because they are white males. The latest such example is Rockefeller University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute where neurobiologist  Leslie Vosshall announced that a wall displaying portraits of the winners of the prestigious winners of the Nobel Prize and the Lasker Award must be changed. The problem is that they are the wrong race and gender so a committee is expected to order the design of the wall. The “problem” was identified by MSNBC host Rachel Maddow who gave an award for leading female scientists and derisively referred to the portraits by asked “What is up with the dude wall?” Now the “Dude Wall” will be changed in a move that raises real concerns over the growing trend toward removing historical portraits in colleges to achieve diversity.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Texas Man Arrested After Ice Cream Licking Video

We have been discussing the disgusting trend of people filming themselves licking ice cream and then returned the tubs to the freezer for some unsuspecting person to buy. The prank has caused huge losses for stores and ice cream makers. There is an interesting twist on this story out of Port Arthur, Texas where authorities have charged D’Adrien Anderson, 24, with the crime. Anderson has produced a receipt showing that he purchased the ice cream but, under Texas law, it does not matter.

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Bizarre, International, Military

ISIS Terrorist Killed By Drone Bomb After A Low Battery Charge Caused Drone To Return Home

Always check your batteries. There is a report out of the United Kingdom that an ISIS terrorist rigged a drone as a bomb only to kill himself. The reason? The terrorist failed to fully charge the drone which ran low in mid flight so it returned to its base automatically –detonating over the head of the terrorist.

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Academia, Society

SAT Dumps Controversial Adversity Score Program

David Coleman, the President and Chief Executive of the College Board, has been under steady and rising criticism over his relatively short tenure at the head of the testing organization. After taking control, Coleman immediately moved to implement the most controversial move in the history of standardized testing: an “adversity score” that would supplement the testing scores to benefit students from impoverished areas. Critics objected that Coleman was moving beyond the core function of standardized testing and engaging in his vision of addressing social ills and inequities through testing. Some even objected that it was an effort to insert a de facto affirmative action program at the test score stage. The College Board has now announced that this expensive effort by Coleman will be scrapped. College Board however has indicated that “information” may still be given to colleges, leading some to question whether Coleman is truly yielding on his effort to augment the standardized scores of applicants.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Deterring Crime Through Crime: Man Robs Store Only To Find Someone Stole His Getaway Car

Police in Kennewick, Washington may have reached a curious equilibrium point for crime. They received a call around 6 am from William Kelley to report that someone had stolen his red, 1992 Chevy pick-up. When the police reviewed the tape, they concluded that the truck was stolen when Kelley went across the street to rob a business.

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Bizarre, Media, Politics

From Nuking Hurricanes to Friending Kim Jong Un, A Credibility Bill Comes Due For Trump

At the G7 meeting, President Donald Trump enlisted First Lady Melania Trump to vouch for his view that North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un is a person with “tremendous potential” after spending time with him. The problem is that the First Lady has never met Kim Jong Un, as the White House later embarrassingly admitted. It was a signature moment for the President who has been struggling to convince people that he never suggested nuking hurricanes despite multiple alleged sources saying that he raised the idea repeatedly. The problem is really not the importance of the First Lady vouching for Kim Jong Un or even nuking hurricanes, the problem is that Trump has made so many false statements (including statements contradicted on videotape) that it is no longer possible to simply take his word for it that he never raised the truly insane idea of nuking hurricanes. It is amazing how Trump’s denial did not seem to have any real impact on the coverage. The credibility bill has come due for the President.

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Academia, Politics

De Blasio Panel Recommends Total Elimination of Gifted and Talented Programs

Most school systems have gifted and talented programs for students who are substantially advanced in courses and need more challenging material. The programs allow teachers on both levels to offer a more holistic curriculum and it also has served to keep advanced students in the public school system after years of “white flight.” The programs however have a majority of white and asian students. A panel appointed by New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has now come up with a recommendation to solve that de facto “segregation.” It wants to simply eliminate the gifted and talented program. Problem solved.

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Criminal law, Politics

Portland Man Assaulted For Wearing MAGA Hat

We previously discussed the media coverage of politically motivated violence. A new such case has raised in Portland after Luke Lenzner was attacked by a man and a woman simply because he was wearing a “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) hat. Leopold A. Hauser and Adebisi A. Okuneye were arrested after the attack.

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Columns, Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Politics

Ginsburg’s Recurring Cancer Exposes Vulnerability On The Court

Below is my Hill column on the news that Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had additional cancer treatment. I have previously written about “Ginsburg’s gamble” in refusing to resign during the Obama Administration. Already over 80, some encouraged her to leave the Court to allow Obama to pick her successor — and to safeguard dozens of cases impacting the lives of millions. The recurrence of her cancer treatment exposes not only the risks of that decision but also the absence of any way for the Court to deal with potential incapacities.

Notably, Justice Thomas could face the same questions. Long rumored to be considering retirement, a defeat by Donald Trump could hand his seat to a liberal justice and endanger a number of conservative holdings.

Here is the column:

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