So here’s what happened: CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Three people were shot to death at a quiet condominium complex near the University of North Carolina, and the suspect was scheduled for a court appearance Wednesday — though police had not yet released a motive or given details of the crime. Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, was arrested and has been … Read More
Alabama and Gay Marriage
Well, you know we’ve crossed over when Alabama starts with the gay marriage thing. An order from a federal judge allowing gay marriage was to take effect this morning. But what’s that? It’s Chief Judge Roy Moore (a state, not federal, judge) to the rescue. If you don’t remember, Judge Moore is often known as the “Ten Commandments Judge.” When Moore, a devout … Read More
Bad Cop
This is a long post, but it warrants it. It is an of just how bad our police are, even in a liberal city like Seattle. Many of these examples appear to involve racism, white cops misusing their authority over African-Americans. Examples are often dismissed by police supporters over some ambiguity or another. What makes the following example so compelling … Read More
Oregon Bakers Fined As Much As $150,000 For Discrimination
Aaron and Melissa Klein, co-owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa, refused to sell a wedding cake to Rachel Cryer and Laurel Bowman (now Bowman-Cryer) because they were a same-sex couple in January 2013. The Kleins became martyrs for conservative opponents of LGBT equality, claiming that they were being persecuted for their beliefs — both because of the complaint the couple … Read More
Video of Kristiana Coignard’s Summary Execution
As I posted a few days ago, police in Longview, Texas, tragically shot and killed a 17-year-old girl last week. Her name was Kristiana Coignard. In the newly released video, it’s clear that her shooting death was completely and totally avoidable. After speaking with officers and roaming around the lobby of the police station for ten minutes, Kristiana, who was … Read More
From The No Shit Sherlock Research Files
I know that having lots of guns around means that we’re all safer. So obviously, there is something wrong with a new study out that says that states with more guns and lax gun laws have more gun deaths than states with fewer guns and stricter gun laws: The five states with the highest per capita gun death rates in 2013 … Read More
Dartmouth Bans Hard Alcohol, Starts Sexual Violence Program
I can’t say if the sexual violence problem is worse now than when I went to college, or not. I suspect, sadly, that it was just as bad in the 1980s. We just didn’t know about it and/or didn’t do anything about it. Still, it’s sad that it has come to this, but I give props to Dartmouth for taking this bold step. … Read More
Excuse Me, But Weren’t We Talking About Something Else?
It wasn’t that long ago when the nation’s focus was on cop-on-black killing. Heck, even some conservative pundits were troubled by what was going on. But then focus changed. Tom Tomorrow documents it: Yup.
About “The Newsroom” Penultimate Episode
I am enjoying the last season of “The Newsroom”. Like the first two seasons, the show is not without its critics. And I agree with some of the criticism. For one thing, Sorkin has beat a dead horse with his views on New Media vs Old Media. Tellingly, New Media critics hate the show because Sorkin reveres things like fact-checking and … Read More
Cowboy Copz
I maintain that, under the legal system and the legal standards, the Ferguson grand jury did not have probable cause to indict Officer Darren Wilson. That should prompt a discussion as to whether the legal system is sufficient to take care of what is clearly a national problem — the prevalence of cop-on-black violence. But that discussion is for another day I write here … Read More
Grand Jury Announcement Today In Michael Brown Shooting
A decision has been reached by the grand jury deliberating whether to bring charges against Darren Wilson, the officer who fatally shot Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO. I fully expect that no charges will be brought, and all hell will break loose. Pretty predictable actually. Laws give the police wide latitude in using deadly force. Maybe those laws shouldn’t give wide latitude, … Read More
World’s Dumbest Lawyer(TM) Joins Twitchy At Being Outraged At Something They Didn’t Understand In The First Place
In other words, dog bites man. University of Baltimore law professor Garrett Epps wrote a piece in the Atlantic entitled “Imperfect Union: The Constitution Didn’t Foresee Divided Government” that discussed the likely confrontations between the President and the newly-Republican Congress: What’s coming will be painful, frustrating, and dangerous—and it will illustrate a constitutional malfunction unforeseen in 1787. The country will survive, … Read More
Marriage Equality Setback Might Mean Fast Track To Supreme Court
On Thursday afternoon, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit just became the first federal appeals court in the country to side with marriage discrimination. Although the immediate effect of this court’s 2-1 decision is that marriage equality will not quickly become the law in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee, the most important consequence of the Sixth … Read More
Breaking: Today’s School Shooting
Marysville-Pilchuck High School in the State of Washington: 3 shot, not including the dead shooter (a student). It’s happening now, but it’ll happen somewhere else soon. UPDATE: 2 dead, including the shooter. Looking at the shooter’s Twitter account, it looks like he was distraught over a relationship: It won’t last…. It’ll never last…. — Jaylen Fryberg (@frybergj) October 23, 2014