Monthly Archives: January 2009

Constitutionalism and judicial review in an allegedly democratic society is a good topic to ponder if you want to feel like your head is about to explode. (See, for instance, a recent blog-comment conversation I had with my friend Jerry.) … Continue reading →

Here’s an opinion from the California Court of Appeal that piques my legal imagination: Estate of Will, handed down on Tuesday. Sometimes people marry later in life. They’ve already raised children and accumulated assets, and they don’t want California’s community … Continue reading →

The California Court of Appeal handed down two quirky cases today. (By “quirky” I mean “including a creative argument, the discussion of which is both intellectually stimulating and entertaining.”) First was Legal Services v. Bowen. There the court held that … Continue reading →

Professor Dorf, apparently amused by the verbal shenanigans that appeared in President Obama’s oath of office, did some homework and devised a convincing hypothesis for what happened. He lays most of the blame with Chief Justice Roberts.

Now that we’re down to one more week of George W. Bush, the strength of his reality distortion field must be waning. Bob Woodward reports: “We tortured [Mohammed al-]Qahtani,” said Susan J. Crawford, in her first interview since being named convening … Continue reading →

Some advice from PZ Myers: I want my commenters to be uncivil. There is no virtue in politeness when confronted with ignorance, dishonesty, and delusion. I want them to charge in to the heart of the issue and shred the … Continue reading →

Here’s another way technology that makes information more accessible is improving things: [A] national study released today by Indiana University that found that law school students who used their laptops in class were highly engaged in classroom activities. The study … Continue reading →

If you’re not yet accustomed to the collapsing barrier between “human activity” and “environment,” and recognizing that everything we do with our high-tech, silicon-based, electrically-powered devices is directly related to everything that happens with the ecosystem, then you should read … Continue reading →

After weeks of people complaining that openly anti-gay pastor Rick Warren was invited to participate in the Obama inauguration, now I read that openly gay Episcopalian bishop Gene Robinson has also been invited. I’m not surprised. The anti-Warren-ites, with their … Continue reading →

Watch this video of police up in the Bay Area shooting 22-year-old Oscar Grant in the back while he is lying on the ground, face down, compliantly. Yes, it is disturbing. You need to be disturbed. Especially if you think … Continue reading →