“Republican North Carolina state legislators have proposed allowing an official state religion in a measure that would declare the state exempt from the Constitution and court rulings.”
North Carolina May Declare Official State Religion Under New Bill.
When three people died in a shooting and police standoff at the Quantico Marine barracks in Virginia, Wayne LaPierre, executive vice-president of the NRA, was overheard exclaiming, “Those guys were armed. Why the hell didn’t they defend themselves?”
3 dead, including suspect, in Marine base shooting – NYPOST.com.
The Houston Chronicle headline reads “Judge rules cheerleaders’ Christian banners are OK for now”
The Kountze High School (East Texas) cheerleaders made Jesus banners for the school’s football players to run through at the beginning of games.
I can’t say that religious banners get me all bent out of shape. Except for the specifics of this case:
If it were up to me, I’d invite spectators to bring and display whatever banners they like in the stands.
Judge rules cheerleaders’ Christian banners are OK for now – Houston Chronicle.
‘Facebook users would know if “friends” of theirs — or of their children — were convicted sex offenders, under a measure put forward today by N.J. State Sen. Christopher “Kip” Bateman.’
I’m kind of torn between opposing further punishment of people who have served their time, on the one hand, and public safety on the other hand.
N.J. lawmaker seeks to have sex offenders identify themselves on social networking sites | NJ.com.
The LA Times says that Solicitor General Donald B. Verrilli, Jr., won the Affordable Care Act case with his alternative, second, argument. “The first argument was that the law was valid under Congress’ power to regulate interstate commerce. His fallback argument rested on Congress’s power to impose taxes.”
Curiously, the ABA Journal says that taxing was Verrilli’s third argument: “The first was that the law could be enacted under the commerce clause, and the second was that it was authorized under the necessary and proper clause.” But “Verrilli cited the taxing power in the administration’s third backup argument . . .”
Who knew that counting legal arguments was so complicated?
Scorned after oral arguments on healthcare, Verrilli emerges a winner – latimes.com.
The way I see it, Democrats might screw me because they’re incompetent, but the Republicans will screw me because they want to.
OK, it’s old news, but your Bitemaster was musing today about the SCOTUS decision of 2010 in United States v. Comstock, wherein the majority held that sex offenders in federal custody could be incarcerated indefinitely after the completion of their sentences. The amazing thing is that the only two black-robers who voted against were Scalia and Thomas. I never would have thought they would be our guardians of liberty. Go figure.
Also, our resident constitutional expert, Mr H.O. Hell says that the 8th Amendment protection against “cruel and unusual punishment” supersedes the “Necessary and Proper” clause that the majority used as a basis for their decision.
In a further effort to leave his stamp on future jurists, Justice Scalia has written another book about his “originalist” theory of constitutional interpretation. Personally, I think he’s full of shit, but I invite others to weigh in.
Scalia and Garner Release 567-Page Tome on Textualism – News – ABA Journal.
“Indiana is the first U.S. state to specifically allow force against officers, according to the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys in Washington, which represents and supports prosecutors. The National Rifle Association pushed for the law, saying an unfavorable court decision made the need clear and that it would allow homeowners to defend themselves during a violent, unjustified attack. Police lobbied against it.”
Pushed by the NRA and passed by a Republican legislature. Holy crap!
NRA-backed Indiana law spells out when it’s OK to shoot police | cleveland.com.
The ATF has issued a new rule that multiple sales of high-powered rifles in border states must be reported to the federal government. The rule would reveal which American dealers are most active in the deadly business of shipping arms to murderous Mexican drug dealers.
The gun-nut wing of the House, apparently thinking that the “right to bear arms” somehow means the “right to sell arms to any bloodthirsty foreign thug who comes calling,” crafted a measure to block the new rule and stuck into a budget bill. The Republicans who voted to do that can Bite Me. But the insane Democrats who supported them can double Bite Me.
House blocks Obama rule on border-state rifle sales – Houston Chronicle.