By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Joshua Thompson, 20-ish, of Livonia, Michigan loves the movies, but could not understand why his soda pop and candy purchase rang up the till for another $8.00 on top of the price of admission. In the same cinema, popcorn and a soda can run you $11.00. Rather than just griping, he filed a consumer class action suit in Wayne County (Michigan) Circuit Court on behalf of us all to get some answers.
by Gene Howington, Guest Blogger
Science and society are common topics of discussion here. As frequently noted on this blog, a great number of our foriegn policy and domestic economic headaches could be made to go away if we were not dependent on foreign oil or oil at all. Alternatives have been discussed, but one of the most promising technologies – hydrogen – has time and again run into the issue of how to manufacture carbon-free or clean hydrogen. A new technology developed by doctoral student Erik Koepf working out of the University of Delaware and currently being tested in Switzerland shows promise of delivering hydrogen production free from carbon dioxide and other undesirable emissions.
In Washington, there are a few standard rules of engagement. Rule 436 is “if you are going to spend taxpayer dollars on lavish vacations, do not make a mocking video boasting that you will buy those things the agency can’t afford and “never be under OIG investigation.” This week the Office of Inspector General (OIG) proved the difference between rap and reality — it issued a damning report on the $820,000 spent by Public Buildings Service’s western region at the M Resort Spa and Casino in Henderson, Nevada.
Today the Turleys venture out to see if we can find a moose and to experience more of Vermont. We will start again with breakfast in downtown Randolph, which serves up heaping piles of blueberry pancakes and its own Maple syrup. While it is snowing a bit, the temperatures are not bad (in the 40s) for venturing out into the woods.
Pastor Lonny Lee Remmers, 54, has been charged with felony assault and inflicting injury on a 13-year-old child with pliers and directing two church members to discipline the youth. He is the pastor of the Heart of Worship Community Church in Corona. After his arrest, many parishioners learned that Remmers has previously served time for fraud. Two other church members — Nicholas Craig, 22, and Darryl Duane Jeter Jr., 28 — have also been charged. Craig is Remmers’ stepson.
With the rest of the family still sleeping here in the beautiful mountains of Vermont, I had to post this Buddha-like bowser in what appears his morning meditation.
We have for years been following the rising number of blasphemy prosecutions not only in the Muslim world but, even more worrisome, in the West. Now, an Egyptian court has added a new outrage in sentencing a 17-year-old Christian boy to three years in jail for publishing cartoons on Facebook deemed mocking of Islam and the Prophet Mohammad. It is the latest example of the abuses of Sharia law and the danger of intermingling religion and government.
The Turleys left Quebec with great reluctance yesterday after four wonderful days to go to Vermont, our next stop. Before leaving, however, we went to the beautiful falls outside of the city.
While the White House and the President backtracked from Obama’s recent statements regarding the Supreme Court, Attorney General Eric Holder succeeded in reigniting the controversy by calling the comments about judicial activism “appropriate.” As I noted earlier, the effort of the White House to modify the statement of the President notably did not include a retraction of the judicial activism statement. Holder’s statement appeared to reaffirm that the omission was intentional.
Continue reading “Doubling Down: Holder Calls Obama’s Judicial Activism Criticism “Appropriate””
One could honestly wonder whose side Sen. John McCain is on this election. Yesterday, McCain gave Mitt Romney a bit of unsolicited (and unhinged) advice on how to beat Barack Obama: do what I did in 2008. McCain went on CBS This Morning and said that the best thing Romney could do it to pick Sarah Palin as a running mate. He appears to be making a joke but one wonders what is more interesting: the fact that McCain might suggest it or that his prior running mate is now an obvious joke as a disastrous choice for a candidate.
Continue reading “Should Romney Pick Palin As Running Mate?”
Yesterday, we discussed President Obama’s comments on the Supreme Court and the pending health care litigation — comments I viewed as unwise and unfounded. In addition to wrongly suggesting that any justice voting against the law would be a judicial activist, Obama seemed to suggest that the law should be upheld on the ground that it is the result of a democratic process and the will of the majority. Putting aside the fact that all unconstitutional law were passed by a democratic process in this country, I noted that the comments were extremely unwise at a time when the Court appears split on the key issues and currently deliberating the outcome. Well, the Supreme Court is not the only court considering the health care law and the timing could not have been worse for Obama to hold forth on his view of the courts and the Constitution. While I do not agree with the order of the Fifth Circuit for the Administration to respond in writing to the court, some backlash should have been foreseen by the President in going public with the comments.
Continue reading “Federal Court Slams Justice Department Over Obama Comments”
NBC has apologized after being criticized for an editing of the tape of George Zimmerman’s 911 call — an editing that made his comments sound more incriminating and racist. The editing was substantial and the network has said that it is investigating the matter, which constitutes a serious journalist ethical question.
Continue reading “NBC Apologizes For Editing Zimmerman Tape”
Our Canadian excursion continued with our final days in Quebec. Yesterday, we went to the Plains of Abraham, the site of the key battle in the Seven Years War. We then walked around Quebec experiencing the shops and cafes. It was a huge amount of fun, though I had to Shanghai the kids into more military historical sites. They proved far more committed in searching for new crêperies and croissants.
We have discussed our share of car chase chases on this blog — often debating the wisdom of high-speed chases or issues of liability. This chase by Czech officers is a stand out. They are traveling at 60 mph (100 km/h) in a chase with a guy on a bike. That’s right, a guy is moving at 60 mph and racing a cruiser on the highway.
Continue reading “[Not] Breaking Away: Police Capture Bicyclist After High-Speed Chase”
Yesterday, President Barack Obama made the surprising prediction that the Supreme Court would uphold the health care law and further labeled those who would vote against it as judicial activists. I am not sure what he is basing his prediction on, but the comment on judicial activism is both unfounded and unwise.