Both the DOMA and Prop 8 decisions ended up favoring gay marriage advocates, but SCOTUS avoided ruling on gay marriage itself at all. The DOMA decision focused on whether the federal government, by an act of Congress that denied federal … Continue reading →
I only have time to write about so much per day, and I’ve pretty much ignored the ongoing Zimmerman trial in my recent posts. But I’ve read about it, and I’ve found that excellent roundups of each day’s proceedings can … Continue reading →
Today, in a 5-4 decision with the usual ideological split, SCOTUS ruled: The Supreme Court on Tuesday freed states from special federal oversight under the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, saying the data Congress used to identify the states … Continue reading →
Actually, some do. But the charges filed by federal prosecutors under the Espionage Act against Edward Snowden don’t: Snowden has been charged with three violations: theft of government property and two offenses under the espionage statutes, specifically giving national defense … Continue reading →
It strikes me more and more every day that the country’s so-called leaders have no intention of dealing with illegal immigration except to give illegals citizenship and to encourage (or at least not discourage) more such immigration. The liberal/left/Democratic forces … Continue reading →
Glenn Greenwald could be prosecuted. I don’t think Glenn Greenwald will be prosecuted. But do you think Glenn Greenwald should be prosecuted? It depends in part on how damaging the information turns out to be. But isn’t there an argument … Continue reading →
I read this entire article about the release of murderer Paula Cooper without learning a word about why it’s happening so soon. I understand why her death penalty was set aside, which according to the article happened in 1988 (Wiki … Continue reading →
I’ve seen a lot of chatter around the blogosphere about the NSA phone records program that goes like this: “Those who argue that it’s constitutional are in favor of it.” But the two do not necessarily go together. I don’t … Continue reading →
Richard Fernandez always has something interesting to say, and this post of his is no exception: For much of history our ability to harm ourselves was fortunately limited by the crude nature of our means. But by the dawn of … Continue reading →
…about this: [Glenn Greenwald] also wrote he had been “working with” Snowden since February… That’s part of a lengthy article about a feud between Greenwald and WaPo writer Barton Gellman about who spoke to Snowden when and about what. I’m … Continue reading →
…and no whistleblower either. I can’t say I’ve agreed a whole lot with Jeffrey Toobin (or anything political in the New Yorker) in recent years. But for the most part I agree with Toobin about Snowden. In fact, what Toobin … Continue reading →
Not surprisingly, Daniel Ellsberg thinks Edward Snowden’s a great hero. I’ve written at length about Ellsberg before: a historical look here, and especially this one about his more recent activities (including, interestingly enough, a group he formed a few years … Continue reading →