According to this article, the Netanyahu government is willing to cede 90% of the West Bank to the Palestinians. The Palestinians are demanding 98.4% plus land swaps. Eventually, one hopes, a middle ground could be reached, but why not settle things right now? How about if Israel simply “buys” (without necessarily conceding lack of current […]
Author Archive | David Bernstein
Fellowships for Aspiring Law Professors
Paul Caron collects them here. The growth of these fellowships has been quite remarkable. I managed to scrounge one in 1994 at Columbia, but that one was funded specifically for me for that year only, and it was unusual in those days to do a fellowship before entering the academy. Now, it’s commonplace, almost expected […]
On Same Sex Marriage and “Sex Discrimination”
By David Bernstein on February 10, 2012 8:16 am in Gay Marriage, Gay Rights, Same-Sex Marriage, Sex Discrimination
On the one hand, I agree with Ilya that bans on same-sex marriage could be described as sex discrimination. On the other hand, from opponents’ perspective, the point is that “marriage” has been defined for several thousand years in Judeo-Christian culture as between a man and a woman, and retaining that definition is not sex […]
Eric Alterman on Sheldon Adelson
Eric Alterman has a bizarre column in The Nation on billionaire Gingrich-backer Sheldon Adelson. The column purports to be a celebration of the fact that “no one” is using a combination of Adelson’s Jewishness, money, somewhat shady reputation, and hawkishly pro-Israel views for anti-Semitic purposes. The column, however, really seems to be starts off with […]
Sandefur Defends Substantive Due Process
This month’s Cato Unbound is devoted to the propriety of judicial enforcement of substantive rights through the Due Process Clause. Tim Sandefur of the Pacific Legal Foundation gets things rolling with a rousing defense of SDP. Responses have been posted or are due from Professor Larry Rosenthal of Chapman Law School, attorney Ryan Williams (the […]
Cathy Young on Ron Paul, Libertarianism, and Foreign Policy
Young, a libertarian herself, explains why she is very uncomfortable with Ron Paul’s views on foreign policy. I suspect the column reflects the views of many other libertarians who appreciate Ron Paul’s long record of defending individual freedom, but wouldn’t want him anywhere near the Oval Office because of his foreign policy positions, among other […]
Two New Reviews
Daniel Holt of the Federal Judicial Center reviews Rehabilitating Lochner for the H-South discussion list. (“An important contribution to the history of constitutional law and the Progressive era. The book is a valuable corrective to the work of historians who might reflexively sympathize with the Progressives and the criticisms of the Lochner decision.”) At H-South’s […]
Does the Right to Choose a Roommate Include a Right to Advertise Discriminatory Preferences?
Last week, Eugene blogged about the Ninth Circuit’s opinion in Fair Housing Council v. Roommate.com. As Eugene noted, the court, in an opinion by Judge Alex Kozinski, holds that federal and state housing discrimination law do not extend to discrimination in choice of roommates (or in advertising for roommates). Part of the court’s rationale is […]
Stanford Law School Hosts Leading 9/11 Truther Tonight
That would be Richard Falk, whose talk on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is hosted by “Students for Palestinian Equal Rights, Stanford International Human Rights & Conflict Resolution Clinic, the Advanced Degree Students Association, & the Stanford Association for Law in the Middle East.” One can’t hold Stanford responsible for the activities of its student groups, but […]
New Review of Rehabilitating Lochner
The Carolina Journal has published a new review, by George Leef. He concludes his favorable review by opining that “Rehabilitating Lochner is a sharp and iconoclastic work of scholarship.” To read the review, go to this link, click on the February 2012 issue, and go to page 20. Links to other reviews available online can […]
Glenn Greenwald and the Neocons
Greenwald has another post on the “Israel Firster” controversy. It’s easy to miss this in Greenwald’s typical avalanche of verbiage, but he (finally) acknowledges that the term was originally coined by anti-Semites, and is “gratuitously inflammatory.” He analogizes it to using the word “fascist” to describe contemporary politics or making comparisons to Nazis. This, however, […]
More on the New York Times, Israel and Neil Lewis in CJR
Last week, I posted a short piece on an article by Neil Lewis in the Columbia Journalism Review, discussing whether the New York Times reporting is hostile to Israel. As I noted, Lewis gets the basic story right–the Times’ isn’t anti-Israel, as such, but its reporting on Israel tends toward the adversarial, for two reasons. […]
What to Do if a Cellphone “Rings” During Your Violin Concert
Glenn Greenwald on Anti-Semitism
Glenn Greenwald has a very Glenn Greenwaldesque post on the controversy over alleged use of anti-Semitic language by bloggers at the Center for American Progress, which I discussed last week. One would never know from reading Greenwald’s piece that the controversy primarily revolved around the use of the term “Israel-firster” to describe supporters of Israel, […]
Rehabilitating Lochner Talk in Philadelphia Tomorrow
I’ll be speaking at Temple Law School about Rehabilitating Lochner tomorrow at noon, with commentary from Professor Robert Reinstein. The announcement is here. The event is free and open to the public, and according to the announcement, there will be “Free Jimmy Johns.”