Archive | September, 2009

The Fourth Circuit has just reversed — in Snyder v. Phelps — the $5 million intentional infliction of emotional distress / invasion of privacy verdict against the Phelpsians (that’s the “God Hates Fags” group) who picketed the funeral of a slain soldier. The court essentially concluded that, at least where speech on matters of public […]

I’m pleased to report that the city of Pipestone, Minnesota (pop. 4000) has amended City Code ch. 10 § 10.01, subd. 1E to read It is unlawful for any person to: … E. Possess any other dangerous article or substance for the purpose of being used unlawfully as a weapon against another; … It had […]

Iowahawk let’s us know about the newest way to profit from the government’s efforts to promote the arts: Earn Big $$$ the NEA Way! It’s true — U.S. government demand for art and art-like products has never been higher! Uncle Sam and the good folks at the National Endowment for the Arts are on the […]

The exchange below between Eric Posner and Jonathan Adler brings up the classic tension between simple laws and more complicated ones, and I wanted to blog more about it. In the abstract, everyone wants laws that are simple. The ideal is simple and straightforward. But often a single rule must regulate a very wide range […]

— and rejection of the “must prevent hostile environment harassment” justification for broad campus speech codes — from Judge George King in Lopez v. Candaele. The analysis is generally focused on campus speech codes, and distinguishes hostile work environment harassment law generally from similar restrictions emposed on college students. But part of its reasoning can […]

I have read with dismay Eric’s defense of the expectation that legislators should not read legislation upon which they will vote. I am dismayed because I think has adopted a caricature of the “Read the Bill” position, and because his post reflects an unrealistic account of how legislatures work that is contrary to my experience […]

I have read with dismay David and Jonathan’s arguments that all legislators should read all bills before voting. The argument fits a genre of populist rhetoric that claims that problems of governance can be solved with simple, common-sense rules, denying that political institutions are highly complex organizations that have evolved in response to needs and […]

The Wall Street Journal has a helpful story on the Ninth Circuit’s Comprehensive Drug Testing case that rewote the rules for computer search and seizure. I’ve blogged in detail about the case, but the WSJ story offers a nice introduction to the issue. UPDATE: It seems that to get around the subscriber wall, you need […]

I wanted to blog a bit about some recent computer crime legislation that Congress passed, but I realized that my instinct was to summarize the bill in my own words. As we know from the ReadtheBill movement, that’s just lazy: If you really care about democracy, you want to read the actual bill. So here’s […]

I’ve been hearing through the grapevine that the competition for federal clerkships this season has been much tougher than in the past. With the economy down, and firms limiting or delaying hiring, many more people than before applied and judges have more and better applicants to chose from. I haven’t seen anything written on this, […]

Stanford Professor and Hoover Institution senior fellow John B. Taylor has started up a blog, Economics One. His short Hoover Press book on the monetary origins of the financial crisis, Getting Off Track: How Government Actions and Interventions Caused, Prolonged, and Worsened the Financial Crisis, was a surprise intellectual intervention in analysis of the crisis […]

Apropos the recent discussion on this site, the Federalist Society is hosting a debate between David Rivkin and Jonathan Turley on the constitutionality of an individual mandate in Washington, D.C. tomorrow. Details here.

Another question for the ReadtheBillers. The rubber meets the road with elections. So imagine you go into the voting booth and you have two choices. The first choice is Legislator A, who votes the way you like, shares your ideology, and generally “gets it,” even though he’s not exactly a policy wonk and he doesn’t […]

Politoc reports that ACORN has filed suit in Maryland against the two young film makers who recorded their visits to ACORN offices disguised as a pimp and prostitute seeking tax and other assistance. ACORN’s suit also extends to the internet news site, Breitbart.com. The complaint is here. More from the Washington Post here.

My father Jerry Kopel served 22 years in the Colorado House of Representatives. He represented part of northeast Denver, as a Democrat. Among the posts he held were Judiciary Committee Chairman and Assistant Minority Leader. (His website is here.) He did read every bill before voting on it. Sometimes he was the only legislator who […]