I just got my California Bar card for the year (no, it’s not a license to drink), and then read this 30 minutes later in Dangel, Contempt (1939), a treatise on Contempt of Court: Contempt of court is a mysterious and indefinable offense and as easy to commit as it is liable to speedy and […]
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Pryor Appointment:
The press is reporting that President Bush will install Alabama Attorney General William Pryor as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit with a recess appointment. Readers of this space may recall that I am a Pryor fan (see here and here. I believe he has been unfairly maligned by […]
Kiddie Political Correctness Expert:
I just got a phone call from a certain beloved children’s educational television show (one that played a crucial part in my own graduation to literacy!), asking me whether there was any reason to be nervous about using the song “London Bridge is Falling Down.” Edginess about nursery rhymes and old songs (e.g. “Eenie, Meenie”) […]
If you’re passing along a post to be read:
Thought I’d mention this again — if you want to pass along a post on your blog or on someone else’s, I’d love to see it, but it’s much easier if you include the text of the post as well as the post’s URL. It doesn’t take much time to click on a link, but […]
Sputteringly funny:
These have all been blogged by a number of other people, but I wouldn’t want those of you wh read VC and only VC to be denied either of these stories. 1) The engineering student who inadvertently posed as an economics professor 2) The “brown-skinned kid who showed up at the Nazi rally wearing a […]
Fraction of couples that are same-sex:
Clayton Cramer complains about “Credulousness In the Blogosphere”: People are citing statistics that, for instance, “In California, 1.4 percent of the coupled households are occupied by same-sex partners,” but he doesn’t buy it: Contrary to [Virginia] Postrel’s claim that 1.4 percent of Californian households are gay couples, the actual number–92,138 same-sex couples in California, multiplying […]
Investigations based on speech:
Keepandbeararms.com is objecting that a gun rights activist is apparently being investigated by the San Francisco police for writing the following letter to government officials: Disregarding Laws We OpposeAn Open Letter to San Francisco Civil Authority By David Codreacodrea4@adelphia.net February 16, 2004 Dear Mayor Newsom (gavin.newsom@sfgov.org), Judge Warren (wsuperiorct@sftc.org) and Acting Chief Fong (sfpdpbaf@pacbell.net), Mayor, […]
“What about the children who have suffered in Iraq?”
Harry Belafonte is defending Michael Jackson, and condemning the media: Calypso singer and civil-rights promoter Harry Belafonte was in Nairobi when he spoke out praising Jackson, saying that “no single individual has had influence in the world” like the embattled pop star, who is facing child molestation charges. “Michael Jackson is innocent until proven guilty […]
Proposed Rhode Island Homeland Security Act
is available here. I don’t have the time to blog about it much right now, except to say that many of the ACLU criticisms of it are quite apt. Gov. Dan Carcieri, whose office proposed the bill, deserves to be harshly criticized for this. UPDATE: The Governor has withdrawn the bill; thanks to How Appealing […]
Technology watch:
Here’s what I want, one day. Something like an iPod, where I can store a ton of audio files and, say, play it on “random,” with the following features: I get to put files into categories and randomize within categories only, i.e., “randomize within Classical,” or “randomize between Classical and Rock 50-50, and randomize within […]
More on the “Vagina Warriors” protest: From Chris at Work in Progress, some comments on “Not all vaginas are skinny, white + straight” (actual quote from a protester’s T-shirt).
The 9th Amendment in the Blogsphere:
A lively debate on the original meaning of the Ninth Amendment has broken out on Southern Appeal (here, here & here) and is spreading throughout the blogsphere (for some links click here). As is to be expected in a blog debate, it is long on confident assertion and a little short on comprehensive discussion of […]
Ride the Metro, Agree with the Government:
Part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-199, HR 2673, January 23, 2004): SEC. 177. None of the funds in this Act shall be available to any Federal transit grantee after February 1, 2004, involved directly or indirectly, in any activity that promotes the legalization or medical use of any substance listed […]
Jail time for city officials who solemnize gay marriages?
California Penal Code sec. 359 (thanks to Xrlq, who has more comments, for the pointer) provides: Every person authorized to solemnize marriage, who willfully and knowingly solemnizes any incestuous or other marriage forbidden by law, is punishable by fine of not less than one hundred nor more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in […]
PC at UNC:
Student at UNC expresses religious objections to homosexual conduct and criticizes homosexuality as “disgusting” in class. Professor sends out an email to the entire class lambasting this student:“what we experienced, as unforuntate (sic) as it is, is, however, a perfect example of privilege. that a white, heterosexual, christian male, one who vehemently denied his privilege […]