Media, Politics, Society

O’Malley Latest To Apologize For Saying “All Lives Matter”

Governor_O'Malley_PortraitWe have been following the controversy over people declaring “All Lives Matter,” which is now viewed as racially insensitive and a “micro aggression” against the black community. We recently discussed the heartfelt apology given by Kathleen McCartney, the president of prestigious Smith College after she said “all lives matters” rather than ‘Black lives matter.” Now Democratic presidential candidate Martin O’Malley has followed suit with his own apology for saying that “all lives matter” in a speech, which he was interrupted by black audience members booing and protesting.

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Academia, Bizarre

NIH Study Explores The Reason Why Three-Fourths Of Lesbians Are Overweight or Obese

RainbowFlag220px-NIH_Master_Logo_Vertical_2ColorAs an academic, I am often cautious about stories criticizing scientific studies due to some esoteric or humorous subject matter. However, I must confess that I am perplexed by the scientific basis or value of a U.S. Health and Human Services (HHS) study to understand why lesbians are supposedly fat. The government has spent over $3.5 million thus far on the study, “Sexual Orientation and Obesity: A Test of a Gendered Biopsychosocial Model.” [Some reports however put the original grant at $1.5 million] The study seeks to determine why there is a disparity in the obesity rates between straight women and lesbian women and straight men and gay men.

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Environment, Science

Smoke From Wildfires Might Lead To Heart Attacks

By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

brushfireAn Australian study proposes that wildfires might increase risk for cardiac arrest and other acute heart ailments by nearly seven percent, especially in the elderly.

A time-stratified-case-crossover study looked at cardiovascular health effects of wildfire smoke when combined with ambient air from brushfires surrounding Victoria, Australia in 2006-2007, according to Anjali Haikerwal, MBBS, MPH, of Monash University in Melbourne, and colleagues.

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Environment, Society

Wildcat Bitcoin Mining Centers Cause Problems For Utility District

By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

Bitcoin_logo.svgAn interesting situation has developed in an Eastern Washington county where the public utility district is facing challenges to its electric system caused by the arrival of Bitcoin mining operations attracted to the area due to the low cost of power. The strain from these electricity data centers poses risks to both the cost of power to residents and might if left unabated pose a strategic cost to the credit rating of the utility itself, which will negatively affect the utility’s municipal bond rates for future expansions or debt retirements.

The allure of cheap power is leading to wildcat bitcoin mining that if unchecked could load the county’s power system at a greater level than that utilized by all the county’s electric users.

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Constitutional Law, Criminal law

Law Enforcement Investigators Need To Carefully Review Tenth Circuit Ruling On Admissibility Of Confessions After Promising Defendant Immunity During Initial Investigations

250px-US-CourtOfAppeals-10thCircuit-SealBy Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

In Sharp v. Roling, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit granted a habeas corpus petition by a Kansas woman convicted in state court of kidnapping and felony murder. The evidence in question was what the Court determined to be an involuntary confession elicited by detectives on the promise that the defendant would not be jailed in exchange for her statements.

The significance of this ruling should establish a new practice that any offer by law enforcement that can be considered an offer of immunity from prosecution, regardless of whether formal or informal, will generate a high probability of suppression of any confession by a potential defendant.

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International, Religion, Society

U.S. Special Forces Return ISIS Plundered Relics To Iraq

By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

AQMI_Flag.svgA small measure of relief can be found in the return of several historical artifacts stolen from the Iraqi and Syrian people after plundering by ISIS.

The world has reacted with outrage and suffered the loss of historical treasures and landmarks at the hands of ISIS which has prided itself to be cleansing the region of a cultural history at odds to what the terrorist network considers to be non-conforming to its ideals. We featured such incidents HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

The raid lends credence to evidence that ISIS is selling artifacts on the illicit antiquities market to raise funds for its operations.

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Animals, Bizarre, Environment, Politics, Society

PETA Uncovers An Alleged SeaWorld Employee Who Worked Undercover For Years As Activist

220px-SeaWorldORL08-04-01a220px-Seaworld_logo.svgThere is an interesting intrigue building of an employee suspected of being an undercover agent observing and recording events in the animal rights area. What is different is that the agent was not allegedly working for animal activists but SeaWorld. The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has identified a man that it says was a SeaWorld employee who took part in the group’s activities under the name of Thomas Jones. They say that he is actually Paul McComb, 28, who has held various jobs for SeaWorld including work as a human resources representative. SeaWorld has now put McComb on paid administrative leave pending findings of the investigation..
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Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Science, Society

Federal Court Orders DNA Testing In Rape Case Over Objections From Obama Administration

200px-US-CourtOfAppeals-9thCircuit-Seal.svgdepartment-of-justice-logo1The Justice Department has lost a major case where it sought to bar efforts to determine if a convicted rapist is in fact innocent. The Obama Administration argued in United States v. Watson that Bill Watson should not be able to use a new DNA test that was not available when he was convicted of a rape in 2006. Despite dozens of cases where convicted individuals were proven innocent, the Obama Administration fought to prevent the use of this test even though the Innocence Project offered to shoulder all of the costs. The position of the Justice Department was inimical to the values of due process and the rule of law, in my view. The United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit rejected the highly technical claims that neither Watson nor the court should knew the true identity of source of key evidence found at the crime scene.

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Criminal law, International, Media, Religion, Society

“Life Is Short and Bitter”: Tennessee Terrorist Reportedly Posted Islamic Messages Before Deadly Rampage

2A98AE1D00000578-3164129-Smirking_Muhammad_Abdulazeez_24_pictured_has_been_identified_as_-a-5_1437092333393We have previously discussed the disconnect in some individuals, particularly ISIS recruits, who live relatively normal lives in the West only to become suddenly radicalized and violent as Islamic extremists. Chattanooga gunman Muhammad Youssef Abdulazeez could be such a case, though police are still trying to confirm the motivation for the attacks. The attack has been labeled “domestic terrorism.” Abdulazeez, 24, murdered four Marines and wounded a police officer on Thursday in shootings at two military recruiting and training centers in Chattanooga, Tennessee. What is now known is that he posted a couple posts shortly before the attack discussing how Muslims should act in this short life and how they had to resist the corrupting influence of life around them in proving their faith.

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Criminal law, International

Hong Kong Magistrate Finds Protester Guilty of Assaulting Police Officer With Her Breast

HongKongPoliceLogo.svgWe have seen police in the United States charge people with battery or assault over air kisses, bubbles, hugs, pillow fights, errant french fries, and even flatulence, snowballs, and raspberries. Now a court in Hong Kong convicted a 30-year-old named Ng Lai-ying of assaulting a police officer by hitting him with her breast during a protest in March.

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Academia, Society

University of California Professor Under Fire After Lifelong Claims Of Being Cherokee Are Challenged

2A90845700000578-0-image-a-7_1436998678002SequoyahThe academic world is facing another professor accused of misrepresenting her ethnic background. Andrea Smith, an associate professor at the University of California Riverside has written extensively on Native American subjects and long claimed Cherokee heritage. However, critics have said that Smith is no Cherokee — a scandal reminiscent of Elizabeth Warren scandal after her lifetime claim of being a Native American were debunked. Likewise a former University of Colorado professor and radical “Native American” writer Ward Churchill was found to have phony claims of being Native American. The question is what is the proper response of a school if an academic long claimed such a status, which comes with obvious benefits from schools seeking to diversify their faculties. On one hand, there can be a question of academic honestly while on the other academics can claim that they were acting in good faith on the basis of family accounts or misguided assumptions.

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Bizarre, International, Religion, Science

Hindu Worshippers Rush To Wash Away Their Sins In River. . . And Crush 27 People To Death

800px-Godavari_river_at_Parnashala_BhadrachalamIndia has experienced another massive death count due to a stampeded at a religious festival. The latest tragedy occurred at a Hindu religious bathing festival on the bank of the Godavari River in the Andhra Pradesh state on July 14. It is a predictable (and avoidable) occurrence. Local police and government officials fail to take proper precautions and a massive group overwhelms organizers. In this case, as soon as access to the river was given, thousands stampeded to get to the water to wash away their sins. In doing so, they crushed 27 people (mainly women) to death and injured 40.

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Bizarre, Criminal law

Cemetery Worker Arrested For Allegedly Using Veteran Markers For Flooring In This Garage

ht_cemetary_3_kab_150714_16x9_992Kevin Maynard, 59, wants to plead guilty and I can understand why. He is charged with a crime that few jurors would not recoil at. He is a worker at the Rhode Island Veteran’s Memorial Cemetery and is accused of stealing more than 150 granite gravestones to pave the floor of his garage and shed.

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