News & Media
Do Republicans Really Support "Tort Reform?"
HR 4364, the Federal Anti-SLAPP bill, was introduced by Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN9) – a two-time First Amendment Bad Ass Award winner. Public Intellectual reports that Cohen has brought on a few more co-sponsors: Rep. Charles Gonzalez (D-TX20), Fortney “Pete” Stark (D-CA13), and Mike Doyle (D-PA14). (source) Does anyone see anything wrong with that picture? Four Democrats support a tort
"The Contours of Actual Malice" or "Rand Paul Learns About Tabloid Journalism"
by Jason Fischer If you’re not a liberal by eighteen, you’ve got no heart; if you’re not a conservative by thirty, you’ve got no brains — as the saying goes. The axiomatic truth behind those words is what makes this GQ story about Rand Paul kinda cute and heartwarming. Some of the senatorial candidate’s Baylor buddies remember that he was
Gay Marriage on Hold – 9th Cir. Issues Stay
It looks like the 9th Circuit may toss out the Prop. 8 appeal for lack of standing after all. Issued today: Docket Text: Filed order (EDWARD LEAVY, MICHAEL DALY HAWKINS and SIDNEY R. THOMAS) Appellants’ motion for a stay of the district court’s order of August 4, 2010 pending appeal is GRANTED. The court sua sponte orders that this appeal
Boycott Target – Flashmob Protest
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7leov_cxssE]
The virtue of telling a client to piss off
Popehat is a blog that I think was born in the same litter of puppies as the Satyricon. We love them. Reason #1 — constant Dr. Who references. Reason #2 — ethics lessons. In this piece, Patrick provides us with a fantsays letter (based on a phone call he had) declining to represent an insurance company that wanted to sue
Applause for Mayor Bloomberg
I have nothing to add: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXm_fUDfJZQ] Transcript of his speech: “We’ve come here to Governors Island to stand where the earliest settlers first set foot in New Amsterdam, and where the seeds of religious tolerance were first planted. We come here to see the inspiring symbol of liberty that more than 250 years later would greet millions of immigrants in
Illinois appellate court unmasks anonymous commenters
By J. DeVoy The Illinois Appellate Court’s 3d District recently overturned the LaSalle County circuit court’s decision to preserve online anonymity for two commenters. In the comments section of an Ottowa Times’ online article, the anonymous parties accused the plaintiffs, a local couple, of making bribes in order to secure favorable zoning treatment for land they owned. The dispute’s subject
Morality Police Deface Public Art in Springfield, MA
Censorship — its not just for rednecks I often rant about the censorship minded former confederacy — but I must admit that my home state of Massachusetts has its share of censorship monkeys. The censorship monkey of the day — the city of Springfield, MA and Gina E. Beavers, director of the Springfield Arts Initiative for the Springfield Business Improvement
Checkmate
It looks like the uneducated peckerwoods supporters of Proposition 8 are seriously considering throwing in the towel. They fear that they will lose 5-4 at the Supreme Court. That and they realize that if you have a court case, you can’t just expect to argue “well, gays are ummm, bad, mmmkay?” and expect to win. So rather than risk allowing
Waxing Virgins
By Tatiana von Tauber Very young girls these days are turning into women right before our eyes. Just last week CNN reported how today’s girls are beginning puberty as early as 7. The cause for this change is unclear but it’s thought to be attributed in part to chemicals in foods and “other environmental factors”. With the onset of puberty, challenges arise and
Libel Tourism Law Passes!
Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN) represents the people of Memphis, TN. His district also includes Graceland. That can’t be a coincidence, because he is the Congressional King of Free Speech legislation. Cohen sponsored HR 2765, the Libel Tourism bill, and Obama signed it into law on Tuesday. The new law now protects Americans from defamation judgments that plaintiffs might obtain abroad
iPhone users have more sex
By J. DeVoy Saith OKCupid. Photo: OKCupid Note to readers: Do not conflate causation with correlation.
Vince McMahon's (World Wrestling Entertainment) wife for senate – Aww Yeahhh, Brotherrr
By J. DeVoy Linda McMahon, a Connecticut Republican, took the erudite Peter Schiff into the political steel cage tonight and, while two combatants enter, only one may emerge. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your political affiliation) the winner was the former CEO – and wife of the current CEO – of World Wrestling Entertainment, formerly the World Wrestling Federation. If
Anne Rice rinses off her Christianity
Anne Rice is possibly America’s most famous Catholic who doesn’t sit on the Supreme Court. Well, make that “was.” Anne Rice, like many people with functioning brains, has decided to walk away from christianity. (source)
The First Amendment is a Beautiful Thing
Somewhere… sometime… somebody got it in their mind that christianity and sex were incompatible. Then, someone else got it in their head that christians couldn’t just shut their traps and believe in their Magic Space Zombie Jew and their other assorted fairy tales — they had to actively work to interfere in other people’s lives. Case in point, Magic Space
Beyond porn: Is black metal the final frontier of obscenity insanity?
As a genre, black metal tends to forego verses, choruses and traditional concepts of consonance and tonality to create an atmosphere of fear and terror. Predominantly originating in Scandinavia, it is an art form with a violent history, and its very existence is opposed around the globe today. In 2004, Polish authorities confiscated concert video recordings of Norwegian band Gorgoroth,
Whyyyyyyyyyyy
By J. DeVoy [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHIZ2Jl2vuQ&hl=en_US&fs=1] …And Epic Why Guy is born. Sometimes you’ve just gotta shop! As much as the American education system receives its due bashings, apparently the Canadian system needs some remedial civics on the finer points of public and private fora. (Or is Canadian law so different from the ol’ US of A?)
N.D. Cal. strikes down Proposition 8
By J. DeVoy Vaughn Walker, Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, has ruled in a monster 136-page opinion that Proposition 8 violates the 14th Amendment rights of same-sex couples. The full order can be found here. The decision is significant, especially on the heels of the District of Massachusetts striking down a section
Rapidshare Cries about Intellectual Property Rights
Now this is sorta funny. Rapidshare whining about someone violating its intellectual property rights. See RapidShare AG , Christian Schmid v. N/A Maxim Tvortsov WIPO Case No. D2010-0696 (June 22, 2010). Rapidshare lost. When you lose a trademark infringement case to an unrepresented Russian who doesn’t even respond to the complaint, that’s a sign that you have shit-ass karma or
Floatopia! The Unintended Consequences of a Nanny State
“The more you tighten your grip, Tarkin, the more star systems will slip through your fingers.” – Leia Organa, Princess of Alderaan And the more you pass stupid laws for the purpose of screwing with drunks’ fun “for their own good,” and the more you pass stupid laws because the authorities are too lazy to simply enforce the laws we
