Not Dead Yet

The Volokh Conspiracy links to this opinion by Judge Boyce Martin of the Sixth Circuit, where she declares:
Because collateral estoppel precludes future litigation of one specific issue, and because that is what the state effectively asks us to find, we construe their argument as one for collateral estoppel rather than res judicata, despite the substitution [...]

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43 years of Doctor Who (fantastic vid)

And then there’s this nostalgic take… Love it. I grew up with Dr. Who, and remember clearly the first Dr. Who I saw–Leela walking over a pit filled with grub-like monsters. I must have been 3 or 4 years old–and I think that I did indeed hide behind the couch, as it [...]

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Supreme Court or YouTube: Scott v. Harris

Scott v. Harris, 127 S.Ct. 1769 (2007), involves a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action against a state police officer. Harris was involved in a high-speed chase, during which he was being chased by the police. Deputy Scott pulled Harris over by hitting the rear of his car, known [...]

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P0wn’d!!! (those who think US Defense spending has gone through the roof)

In fact, Robert Samuelson of the Washington Post reports, it’s just the opposite. The real story is the rise of the American welfare state. Whereas in 1956 (see chart) defense spending was nearly 60% of the US budget, now it’s just less than 20%.
In comparison, the roles have switched: in fiscal year 2006, [...]

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Treasure Trove

You may have heard something over the last few days about the discovery of a hoard of Viking treasure in northern England. It has been reported in most major news outlets, and the treasure has recently gone on display in the British Museum. More than 600 coins and 65 other silver and gold objects were [...]

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American Adults More Scientifically Literate Than European or Japanese Adults

A recent study shows that Americans are more scientifically literate than Europeans or Japanese. But, at 28% we still have some way to go. On the bright side, that figure was 10% in the 1990’s.
yojoe

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U.S. Congress’ Climate Change Waterloo?

Steven Mufson of the Washington Post has a grave assessment of Congress’ ability to make even a dent in the dire issue of climate change:
Here’s the good news about climate change: Energy and climate experts say the world already possesses the technological know-how for trimming greenhouse gas emissions enough to slow the perilous rise in [...]

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Hirsi Ali stands up for the U.S. against Canadian news anchor

Clearly this Canadian anchor thinks little of the U.S., but Ayaan Hirsi Ali, known more for her fierce characterization of Islam as antithetical to free will, will have none of it, saying choicely: “You grew up on freedom, so you can spit on freedom.” Hirsi Ali’s repeated defense of America against all those who reflexively [...]

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iPhone/Mac Guru Steve Jobs to Disney: Cut the Crap

Steve Jobs new iPhone is getting mostly rave reviews (check out WSJ’s Walt Mossberg’s video review HERE), and Steve Jobs’ name again gets linked with eminently good taste.

In an equally smart move, Mr. Jobs, who’s both a member of Disney’s Board of Directors and Disney’s largest shareholder, was reportedly a “decider” (or at least an [...]

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Shining What? I Just Thought It Was Cute.

In the picture below is Ms. Diaz wearing a bag emblazoned with the slogan “Serve the People.” This was a political slogan of the murderous leader Mao Zedong.

This was understandably upsetting to the people of Cuzco, Peru as Shining Path was the cause of some 70,000 deaths in the 1980s. Shining Path was [...]

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CIA’s pre-1972 Illegal Domestic Operations Declassified

[UPDATED 26 Jun: the full 702-pages of primary source materials, referred to below, were posted today on GWU's National Security Archive. Download or keyword-search the files, HERE (24 meg, .pdf).  GWU's summary of the documents is HERE, with links to brief/meaty selections.]
Thank “nature’s God” (or your own preference) each day you’re able to discuss [...]

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Iran’s Ex-President Charged with Shaking Ladies’ Hands

Life is very difficult for former Iranian “reformist” president Mohammad Khatami (1997-2005) these days. As the video below (after the break) depicts, he shook

Former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami (left hand unaccounted for)
hands with women on a recent trip to Italy–and is now facing trial following condemnation by Iranian conservatives. Ultra-conservatives a protest [...]

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The Intelligent Design fallacy: “Plenty Scientists believe in some sort of God anyway.”

As a matter of fact, the results of a new survey, released in the latest American Scientist, reveal something to the contrary, at least, with regard to evolutionary biologists. The “so many scientists believe in God, and that’s proof there’s no conflict” argument, of course, is one of the arguments forwarded by proponents of [...]

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Flickrvision and the Internet Map Craze

I’ve just discovered Flickrvision, a very entertaining new web app created by web developer David Troy.  It’s a running “stream” of photos in near real-time as they’re being posted to Flickr, superimposed on a map of the Earth, showing you where the pictures originate.  The site’s simply intriguing, and showcases the power of the internet.  [...]

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Salon’s Glenn Greenwald to be sued for causing ADD?

Well, not really. But the incomparable fellow Law Professor Ann Althouse does indeed claim, tongue-in-cheek, that this bloke’s posts give her bouts of ADD (as I think they do me), and I venture that perhaps a well-timed lawsuit might be one way of finally ridding ourselves of this biting midge.

Greenwald and his daily [...]

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