Bizarre, International, Politics, Religion, Society

Not On The First Date: Putin Recoils As Russian Priest Seeks To Kiss His Hand

It appears that after years to clearly cultivating a cult of personality with action-hero photo ops and staged acts, Putin is still uncomfortable with kisses from his subjects . . . well at least on the hand. Putin seemed truly alarmed when a Russian Orthodox priest tried to kiss his hand while visiting a 14th century monastery on Russia’s northern Valaam Island. It was a particularly telling moment after Putin created an alliance with the Church to support his authoritarian government. Putin has particularly pleased the Church leaders after his government continued a widely condemned prosecution of the Russian punk group Pussy Riot after they carried out a brief demonstration in a church.

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Bizarre, Criminal law, Society

Deaf Woman Calls Police Who Tell Her To Come Outside And Then Taser Her and Jail Her For Not Responding To Commands

Lashonn White is a deaf woman in Tacoma, Washington who recently used a special typing machine to call police to tell them that she was being attacked. Within six minutes police were in front of her door. White was then told to come outside by police and then tasered and thrown to the ground. She was jailed for three days because the police could not find an interpreter. I am not sure why the police did not have a simple special video-equipped phone (like the one in White’s home) or why the basic facts could not be established through writing.

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Bizarre, International

Question of the Day: Why Are Female Gymnasts Allowed To Stop A Vault But Not Male Gymnasts?

Last night I was watching the women compete in the vault exercise and watched as one gymnast stopped her run and returned for a second try. I was surprised to hear that females are allowed to stop in their run, but males are not. Why?

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Bizarre, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Military, Religion

Major Hasan Sanctioned For Failing To Shave For Court In Fort Hood Case

Maj. Nidal Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, is facing trial for 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder in the November 2009 attack at Fort Hood. Before that trial can occur, however, Hasan is facing a sanction that understandably fails to concentrate his mind as much as the looming death sentence: a second $1000 fine for failing to shave for court. While the military requires personnel to be shaven, Hasan is citing his Islamic faith as requiring him to appear in a beard. He has now been held in contempt of court twice for failing to shave by the judge, Col. Gregory Gross.

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Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech, International, Media, Politics, Religion, Society

Tunisia Arrests Leading Critic For Drinking In Public During Ramadan

Tunisian blogger and political reformer Sofiane Shurabi has been arrested by the government for drinking in public during Ramadan. We recently saw how Saudi Arabia issued warnings to non-Muslims that they were expected to respect the food and drink limitations of Ramadan in public. This arrest comes with added suspicion of a political agenda since Shurabi was a scathing critic of deposed president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and an opponent to the rising control of Islamic parties over the country.
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Bizarre, Criminal law, Politics, Society

Craig Defends Use Of Campaign Funds For Criminal Defense After Bathroom Arrest

Former Senator Larry Craig is back in the news. The former Idaho Senator was once a critic of those who wanted to live off the government or bureaucrats seeking more money from federal coffers. However, his lawyers are in court this week defending his use of $217,000 in campaign funds to pay for criminal defense after he was arrested in a Minneapolis airport bathroom soliciting sex. He insisted that he was still doing on public business at the time. Of course, the police alleged it was public business of a different kind, but Craig says that such travel was part of Senate business because he was traveling between Washington and Idaho on July 11, 2007.

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Society, Things That Tick Me Off

Things That Tick Me Off: Breezewood, Pa.

We returned from Chicago last night after a wonderful visit to my home town to celebrate my mother’s 85th birthday. On the way back, I found another entry in my list of “things that tick me off” – list of those things everything in life that I find extraordinary frustrating or moronic. I created this list as a cathartic exercise to keep me from spontaneous explosions or psychotic episodes. When I encounter something like this, I simply say “I’ll add it to the list.” This week’s addition is Breezewood, Pennsylvania.

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Congress, Constitutional Law, Courts, Criminal law, Justice, Military, Politics, Society, Things That Tick Me Off

Just Who Gains From Voter ID Laws?

Respectfully submitted by Lawrence Rafferty (rafflaw)- Guest Blogger

It seems that almost everywhere you look, some State is trying to reduce the number of early voting days, purging the voting rolls and making it harder for citizens to cast their votes.  The State of Florida has recently attempted to remove legitimate voters off its voter rolls and the State of Georgia recently attempted to restrict the time when a military absentee ballot can be counted as I wrote about earlier on this blog. Georgia  Now, we have some hard evidence of just who is getting removed or impacted by the various State’s attempts to cure the imagined Voter fraud problem! Continue reading “Just Who Gains From Voter ID Laws?” →

Free Speech, Politics, Religion

Ethics, Chick-fil-A, And Oreos

-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger

While “making a purchase is not an endorsement of the philosophy of the business,” there may be other ethical concerns at play. When that business donates $2 million dollars to groups that are hell-bent on denying civil rights to a particular group, an individual’s purchase contributes (albeit by a minuscule amount) to a cause s/he may find morally offensive.

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Bizarre, International, Society

China’s Medal Mill

By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger

The sign above the gym floor contains one word, “Gold.” It’s a stark, relentless reminder to the children beneath it as to just what their mission requires. China’s obsession with winning Olympic gold has turned gymnasiums into dungeons for its youngest and most promising athletes.  Starting at age five, children are subjected to strenuous training techniques like hanging on rails with their arms extended backwards, swinging on beams, and being given painful lessons on what it takes to beat all comers and particularly Americans.  And the work seems to be paying off at the London games, as 16-year-old Ye Shiwen swam her way to a world record in the 400 meter individual medley beating the old record by almost one second. Her teammate, Sun Yang, won the 400m freestyle. Both attribute their success to “hard work and training.” And in China, that’s no sports cliché.

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Uncategorized

All Demand No Supply? Adam Smith Spotted At Chick-Fil-A . . . And Promptly Fired

Adam Smith appears to have been caught on the wrong side of supply side economics. After the chief financial officer posted a video (below) of himself confronting a minimum wage worker at a drive thru window, his Tucson medical manufacturing company Vante fired him. The question is whether a protest that occurs outside business hours should be the grounds for dismissal.

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Constitutional Law, International, Society

Big Foot Busts? Toronto Police Sued For Allegedly Profiling Women Based On Hairy Legs

Seven protesters are suing Toronto police for $1.4 million, claiming they were unfairly arrested and abused after being profiled by police, who looked for such things as “hairy legs.” That allegedly was one of the ways used to spot protesters — presumably those women with shaven legs were allowed to pass freely by the officers.

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