News & Media
Decency and Humanity from Unexpected Quarters
Some of my faith in humanity is coming back after seeing these two stories: McCain supporters drive away a couple of asshats trying to stoke the “Obama is a Muslim” fires. (source) Too bad the McCain campaign shut down the man who identifies himself as the local chair of the McCain campaign from speaking to the press. A group of
India Launches Moon Mission
Off topic, but I’m a junkie for this kind of news. The mission website, courtesy of LulzRulez
DOJ Seeks Seizure of Motorcycle Club Trademark
On October 21, the Department of Justice announced an indictment of 61 members of the Mongols Motorcycle Club. The details of the criminal charges are beyond my scope of interest. However, this bit warrants some attention: “In addition to pursuing the criminal charges set forth in the indictment, for the first time ever, we are seeking to forfeit the intellectual
Afghan Student Avoids Death Penalty, but Gets 20 Years in Prison for Blasphemy
Afghan student and part-time journalist, Parwez Kambakhsh, 24, downloaded and circulated an article about women’s rights under Islam. For his “crime,” the Afghan security police arrested him, tried him on “blasphemy” charges, and he was sentenced to death. An Afghan appeals court reduced the sentence to a 20 year prison term. (source) Just to be clear, this wasn’t in a
Barack Obama Has a Posse and an Endorsement
MAJORITY OPINION by Christensen, joined by Randazza, Warrington, Papantoniou, and Harbin:
You're Doing it Wrong
Far be it for me to criticize another educator’s pedagogical approach… but I’m pretty sure that these two are doing it wrong. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcM2rXiSpoo] HT TaxProf Prof, who explains more about the story.
Robin Hayes – Losing the Election for McPalin, One Crowd of Peckerwoods at a Time
On Saturday, Republican Rep. Robin Hayes claimed that “liberals hate real Americans that work and achieve and believe in God.” (source) After that, Hayes’ spokeswoman claimed that Hayes “absolutely” denied making that comment. “She noted that other national reporters were at the event and didn’t pick up on [the remark].” (source) Ooopsie. It turns out that the reporter who broke
Zack and Miri Make a CENSORED
Some days I need to check and make sure that the Carlyle Group didn’t completely take over the United States and give it to the Saudis. Today is one of those days. XBiz reports: The mere presence of the word “porno” in the title of upcoming mainstream comedy from Kevin Smith has created a storm of controversy. Even with creative
Hustler Spread of Murder Victim: Arguably Tasteless, but Certainly First Amendment Protected
I have just posted my first installment at the Citizen Media Law Project Blog. Here’s the teaser: In June 2007, professional wrestling promotrix, Nancy Benoit and her son, Daniel, were the victims of a double murder-suicide committed by her husband, WWE wrestler, Chris Benoit. Approximately 20 years earlier, Ms. Benoit (then Nancy Daus) posed nude for photographer Mark Samansky. Benoit/Daus
The Legal Satyricon Guide to Florida's Constitutional Amendments
After a week of wrangling, the Florida-based Satyriconistas have prepared the following Legal Satyricon Guide to the Florida Constitutional Amendments:
BOO! WSJ Attempts to Resurrect “Big Labor” Boogeyman
Jessica Christensen, Legal Satyricon Employment Law Correspondent In a particularly spun editorial, the Wall Street Journal suggests that if Senator Obama wins the election, the country is going to get just lousy with liberals, and we’ll all be subject to a “regime” of über “left-wing” legislation that heretofore has only been held back by the tempered Republican voices of reason
Kentucky v. 141 Domain Names Order
The order in Kentucky v. 141 Domain Names has been issued. As my firm is involved in this case, I can not comment too deeply on it. However, here is an outline of notable points in the ruling. Domain names are “property” subject to seizure. The court relied on the holding in Kremen v. Cohen, 337 F.3d 1024 (9th Cir.
"It's Just Food"
This just in from the “holy shit” department. This lovely graphic appeared in the October newsletter distributed by the Chaffey Community Republican Women. Yes, this was in the newsletter for a bunch of botox-overdosed Republican women. No, not the Ku Klux Klan newsletter, not the American Nazi Party… the Chaffey Community Republican Women. The group’s president, Diane Fedele attempted to
"Sex Rod" is "Immoral and Scandalous"
A New Yorker, (yeah, it figures) attempted to secure a registration (on an intent to use basis) for the trademark “Sex Rod” — stylized to parody the Boston Red Sox RED SOX mark. Given the similarity of the marks, the Boston Red Sox filed an opposition to the registration. The Sox alleged “that applicant’s mark, displayed in the particular stylized
Pennsylvania Pole Dancing Studio Prevails
Previously reported at Western Pennsylvania Town Clings to Guns & Religion – Sexytime, Not So Much. The AP reports that Stephanie Babines has prevailed and her pole dancing studio will open.
Obama Meets Leeroy Jenkins?
In his latest move Obama is buying ad space in video games. According to the Associated Press, Obama’s mug can now be seen in nine different EA games connected to the internet, including Madden NFL 09 and Burnout Paradise, in an effort to appeal to the hard-to-reach 18 to 34 year-old male demographic.(source) An unreported source says that the McCain
McCain Feels the Pain of the DMCA
Over-reaching DMCA claims are a rampant epidemic and are often used to suppress free speech. Now, the DMCA appears to be hitting us right in the First Amendment’s heart – political speech. Whether you are supporting McCain or not, this should bother you. Perhaps McCain should have had someone who knows how to use a computer explain the DMCA to
Touché
A reader sent me this link in response to my post about how dumb the Right Wing voters are. I must say… touché. HT: to “Elena”
The Constitutional Horror of the "Protect America Act"
A speech on the Senate Floor by Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnObAJulcCo] This is a good encapsulation of what has been wrong with America for the past 8 years. I can’t believe that a senator even needed to give this speech. And now we see the tip of the iceberg of how this power was abused. HT: Ross Kerr
