News & Media
9th Circuit Allows Copyright Holders’ Rights To Go On… and On… and On…
By J. DeVoy On September 10, 2010, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that software producers can forbid the transfer or resale of their products in their shrink-wrap or click-wrap licenses. The court’s opinion in the case, Vernor v. Autodesk, Inc., No. 09-35969 (9th Cir. 2010), is available here. The decision deals a blow to the first sale doctrine
Craigslist: Now the Inevitable Congressional Committee
by Charles Platt Nice piece at cnet by Declan McCullagh summarizes the worsening situation re Craigslist. The repercussions have only just begun, and the usual maddening mantra, “Protect the Children,” is being used to justify the usual demands for censorship. I guess it really doesn’t matter which party has control of Congress or the White House.
Koran-Hating Pastor Heads Cultish Ministry
by Charles Platt Terry Jones, who has backed away from his plan to burn Korans this weekend, turns out to run a ministry which has cultish attributes, including a rule book that encourages the faithful to limit contact with unenlightened family members, it says here. What a surprise.
The taming and domestication of religious faith is one of the unceasing chores of civilization.
Christopher Hitchens, awesome as always. Here.
Ending the prohibition on prostitution
Danny Ledonne thinks we should.
"Great empires expand beyond their own borders. Empires in decline build walls. "
In the LA Times, Richard Rodriguez laments the wall we have built on the Mexican border. On patriotism-for-profit talk radio and television, the illegal immigrant is, by definition, criminal. She comes to steal the American dream. But in my understanding, the dream belongs to the desperation of the poor and always has. The goddess of liberty in New York harbor
Lets not pick on the Muslims, come on man.
Islam as we see it in the world today is more likely than most other major faiths to encourage violence against nonbelievers, at least if we focus on encouragement that actually makes the violence materially likely (which is the sort of encouragement that I suspect most people are worried about). – Eugene Volokh (source) Lets get one thing out of
Synth Porn
By J. DeVoy Readers interested in electronic music and the technology behind it will love this: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9n7rL5SMT-E&fs=1&hl=en_US] Subconscious studios, spearheaded by Cevin Key, has been remarkably prolific. The studio’s equipment created one of the most influential bands of the last 40 years, Skinny Puppy, and collectively is worth more than an upper-middle class home in many areas of the country.
Blog L00T: Another Installment.
This is Chris, back again for another update of the L00T! Our blawgers-in-crime have been posting a multitude of sensational stories, stories we’ll think you’ll enjoy reading… Some Judges Prefer Being on All Fours Rather than Sitting on the Bench Our first story comes from Above the Law, where David Lat uncovered a salacious story involving “Jungle Fever” – the
12 People in Forrest City, Arkansas are True Patriots and True Americans – Thank You
By Marc J. Randazza In St. Francis County, Arkansas, local prosecutors are apparently the kind who think that the whole “First Amendment thing” is a bit over-blown. Despite taking oaths to uphold and defend the Constitution, they brought the owners of “Adult World” up on two felony counts of “promoting obscene material” for selling a couple of movies starring consenting
Craig's List yields to pressure?
by Platt & Randazza The “Adult Services” listing on Craiglist was removed late Friday on its U.S.-based sites and replaced with the word “censored.” Story here. Interestingly enough, if you access Craigslist from outside the United States, the “censored” block does not appear, and you are free to access the website’s adult services section. Keep this in mind the next
Numbers that Demonize the American People
A widely quoted Harris poll claims that 57% of sampled Republicans think that Barack Obama is a muslim. This has been a great gift for liberal commentators who are predisposed to fear and loathe the Tea Party and its supposed influence. But did this gift just materialize from dispassionate and objective data, as if by accident?
Student Loan Slavery!
Way back when, they said “go to the best law school you can get into.” I say bullshit. You want a law degree? Go to the CHEAPEST school you can get into. Here’s an infographic on how student loans work. H/T: Above the Law
Textbook beta behavior
By J. DeVoy That’s Some Fuckery found some Beta who really loves Brenda.
Cheers to patriotism and logic!
By Tatiana von Tauber Georgia Republican, Jack Kingston, deserves applause. Why? Because Kingston is exercising logic: he supports lowering the drinking age for military service members. “If you’re 18 years old, you can get married, you can sign a contract, buy a piece of property, you can do just about anything, except buy a beer,” said Kingston. “We’re telling young people, you can fly
Broken Penises and the Law
By Marc J. Randazza As office workers, few attorneys have the opportunity to contemplate what workplace injuries can mean to their clients. Honestly, what’s the worst injury you can get on the job in a law office? A paper cut? Your panties in a wad? In the porn industry, like any other, workplace injuries are an issue. Normally, it is
Do you need more proof that religion is frigging stupid?
Now, if you want to keep kosher, you have to filter your New York City water, because there are microscopic crustaceans in the water. (source) I fail to understand how Jews and Muslims can believe that an all powerful creator of heaven and earth gives a shit if you eat ham or chop off a piece of a baby boy’s
Washington State comes down against online gambling
By J. DeVoy Today, in a unanimous decision authored by Justice Tom Chambers, the Washington Supreme Court dealt a blow to online gambling. Internet Community & Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Betcha.com (“Betcha”), has been under the scrutiny of the Washington State Gambling Commission since shortly after its 2007 launch. Now, the Supreme Court has ruled that Betcha’s services
Thank you Brent Newton – American Legal Education is Worthless
By Randazza and DeVoy Brent Newton, an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown, wrote a law review article about how professors writing law review articles is a waste of time. The article, Preaching What They Don’t Practice: Why Law Faculties’ Preoccupation with Impractical Scholarship and Devaluation of Practical Competencies Obstruct Reform in the Legal Academy, is actually worth reading … which is
