The increasing recognition of politicians of climate change has been a welcomed change from the long denials of the past. However, Alaska Gov. Bill Walker has made a curious pitch in a BBC interview: increased oil drilling to offset climate change that most people associated with oil consumption.
Jennifer Connell, of New York City, has lost a case but appears to have won the distinction of being the worst aunt alive. Connell, 54, sued her 8-year-old nephew Sean Tarala for $127,000 for jumping into her arms at a party. The act caused her to fall and break her wrist. It is the type of thing that happens in families but Connell sued her nephew in torts. A six-member Connecticut jury unanimously rejected the claim in just 25 minutes — barely enough time to get to the jury room, take their seats, and vote down the case.
Continue reading “New York Aunt Loses Lawsuit Of 8-Year-Old Nephew For Jumping Into Her Arms”
There is an interesting case out of the 9th Circuit where the court ruled that yogi Bikram Choudhury cannot copyright 26 poses.
The Center for Constitutional Studies at the Utah Valley University will hold a conference today on federalism with leading academics from around the country. The conference is being held pursuant to a grant from the Utah State Legislature.
Continue reading “Utah Valley University Holds National Conference On Federalism”
Yesterday, I flew from Chicago to Utah for a conference at the Utah Valley University. As an avid hiker, I never miss an opportunity to hit the trails in Utah, one of my favorite places on Earth. One could spend a lifetime experiencing the natural wonders of Utah and only scratch the surface. On this trip, I went directly from the airport to hike the Wasatch Mountains, which were in full Fall glory. Given my flight, I started rather late to do the Red Pine trail, a challenging hike that takes you to the high ridge of this alpine hike where you can see two gorgeous lakes.
There is an interesting criminal case in Canada where American Peter Hasler, 25, of Murrells Inlet, S.C., is under arrest for possession of child pornography. However, the images were not of human beings but cartoon characters. Canada treats sexual cartoon images as pornography – a view widely rejected in the United States as inimical to free speech protections.
We have another alleged “honor killing” in Europe. Rokstan M. is a woman who was gang raped by three Syrian soldiers and fled for freedom in the West. Her family however treated her as unclean and guilty for being gang raped. She reportedly feared being killed by her father and brothers. The young pregnant woman was found stabbed to death and her Syrian father is believed to have fled back to Syria. Police are also seeking her brothers who are believed to have participated in the savage murder. Rokstan wrote on social media shortly before her death that “I am awaiting death. But I am too young to die.”
Continue reading ““I Am Too Young To Die”: Pregnant Syrian Rape Victim Allegedly Murdered By Father And Brothers in Muslim “Honor Killing””
The irony is truly crushing. Elephants may be the key to eradicating cancer in humans, according to new research. Yet, humans continue to wipe out elephants to fuel Chinese ivory and herbal medicine markets. More elephants were poisoned this week and four rangers protecting them were murdered. These same criminals like the recently arrested Chinese “Ivory Queen” could well benefit from the cancer key found in elephants . . . assuming they leave any alive for study.
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
It only took a few minutes for Home Depot to tell the world I visited its website. Now, my home computer reminds me of the mistake I made in providing Home Depot the chance to earn my business. I went to look at one of their products and got spammed as a result. It is truly a sign of disrespect Home Depot shows its customers for walking into its digital doors. Well, I can now add Home Depot to my list of “Fired Corporations Replaced By Small Businesses.”
It seems that window shopping is best left to actual windows instead of Microsoft Windows.
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
The issue of abortion is at the very least highly contentious. Decades of heated arguments are not likely to end this discussion soon even in light of various statutory and common law mandates laying out a legal framework for which it is permitted or denied. The matter is a perennial source of political maneuvering, and litmus tests that can in some areas make or break the careers of politicians. This article will not discuss the ethical or legal aspects of abortion but rather the perspective and moral position of those who support pro-life, and why they cannot abandon their cause. It is an exercise in empathy that is applicable to other subjects in ethical studies.
Continue reading “Ethical Certainties: Why Pro-Life Supporters Cannot Morally Abandon Their Cause”
By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor
In another low in the animal poaching world poachers are reportedly starting to utilize cyanide in hunting protected elephants.
Rangers for the Hwange National Park stated they discovered six elephant carcasses having their tusks removed. A week later, four more died but had not yet suffered the harvesting of their ivory. Necropsies and pathology tests of the animals’ kidneys and livers revealed the presence of cyanide. Matusadona National Park later lost three elephants to the same fate. Historically, cyanide is used in poaching of exotic fish.
The effect of cyanide often leads to deaths involving convulsions and considerable suffering if death is not immediate, adding to the cruel ordeal poachers exact upon the elephants.
Continue reading “Ivory Poachers In Zimbabwe Reportedly Using Cyanide Laced Food As Bait”
We have often discussed how universities have become battle grounds over so-called “microaggressions” and offensive terms or images involving race, religion, or culture. Some of these efforts raise serious questions of the erosion of free speech as well as double standards applied to faculty and students. The example of the sensitivity toward such objections was evident this week at Clemson University, which apologizes for racial or cultural insensitivity for holding “Maximum Mexican” night featuring Mexican cuisine. Two students were offended and the university has apologized.
Continue reading “Clemson University Apologizes For Holding Mexican Food Night”
The plight of servants in Saudi Arabia is well-documented as foreign workers particularly are beaten and sexual assaulted with little apparent repercussions from the Kingdom. Women generally are denied basic rights and freedoms in the country which follows the medieval Sharia legal system. Now a wife is facing imprisonment because she filmed her husband sexually assaulting a maid and posted it. Such filming is viewed as defamation and subject to imprisonment in the draconian legal system in Saudi Arabia.
We previously discussed the truly bizarre scene of having Saudi Arabia sit on the UN Human Rights Council despite being one of the most infamous violators of human rights. As if to remind the world of the crushing irony, Saudi Arabia has issued a statement telling the world that it has no business objecting to the planned execution of a religious dissent. The Saudi Arabian embassy in the UK has denounced “any form of interference in its internal affairs” regarding the case of 21-year-old dissident Ali Mohammed al-Nimr, who has been sentenced to death by beheading for engaging in pro-democracy protests.
Police have finally nabbed one of the most infamous environmental criminals in the world. Chinese national Yang Feng Glan (known as the “Ivory Queen”) was arrested in Tanzania on charges of poaching and smuggling ring. Glan is responsible for countless kills of elephants for their ivory. Glan, 66, would travel between China and the killing fields in open defiance of international and environmental laws. Despite her notoriety and serving an insatiable Chinese market for ivory, Chinese officials never arrested Glan.