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Mar. 2nd, 2011 01:44 amAt first, when I thought Charlie Sheen was just acting out, it all seemed hilarious. Now that it's clear that no, really, there's something wrong, I simply feel bad for him, and his family.
Mar. 2nd, 2011
Metropolis legal
Mar. 2nd, 2011 01:25 pmFrom this article:
"If you had the ability to shoot plasma from your hands, would you need a concealed weapons permit? It's a silly question, we know. Of course you would—and the state would be obligated to grant you one, provided you had no serious criminal history and the plasma-blasting was something you could control.
"At least, that's the legal conclusion drawn by James Daily of Stanford University's Hoover Institution, and Ryan Davidson, an insurance lawyer from Fort Wayne, Indiana. Daily and Davidson are the founders of Law and the Multiverse, the first blawg to seriously consider such questions as: Would mutants be protected by the Americans for Disabilities Act? Is Batman a state actor? And what's the best place for a super-villain to build his super-secret hideaway? (Answers: yes, yes, and outer space)."
"If you had the ability to shoot plasma from your hands, would you need a concealed weapons permit? It's a silly question, we know. Of course you would—and the state would be obligated to grant you one, provided you had no serious criminal history and the plasma-blasting was something you could control.
"At least, that's the legal conclusion drawn by James Daily of Stanford University's Hoover Institution, and Ryan Davidson, an insurance lawyer from Fort Wayne, Indiana. Daily and Davidson are the founders of Law and the Multiverse, the first blawg to seriously consider such questions as: Would mutants be protected by the Americans for Disabilities Act? Is Batman a state actor? And what's the best place for a super-villain to build his super-secret hideaway? (Answers: yes, yes, and outer space)."
(no subject)
Mar. 2nd, 2011 01:31 pmWASHINGTON — The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that the First Amendment protects fundamentalist church members who mount anti-gay protests outside military funerals, despite the pain they cause grieving families.
The court voted 8-1 in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. The decision upheld an appeals court ruling that threw out a $5 million judgment to the father of a dead Marine who sued church members after they picketed his son's funeral.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion for the court. Justice Samuel Alito dissented.
The court voted 8-1 in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan. The decision upheld an appeals court ruling that threw out a $5 million judgment to the father of a dead Marine who sued church members after they picketed his son's funeral.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the opinion for the court. Justice Samuel Alito dissented.
on a more hopeful note...
Mar. 2nd, 2011 01:35 pmPresident Barack Obama will host a conference about bullying prevention at the White House next Thursday.
Melody Barnes, the chief domestic policy adviser, announced the conference Tuesday afternoon on a call with reporters. She said that participants would have the opportunity to speak with President Obama and high-level administration representatives about bullying and ways to prevent it in their communities.
The White House also released an official statement about the conference.
“On Thursday, March 10, President Obama, the Department of Education, and the Department of Health and Human Services will welcome students, parents, teachers and others to The White House for a Conference on Bullying Prevention,” the statement said. “The conference will bring together communities from across the nation who have been affected by bullying as well as those who are taking action to address it. Participants will have the opportunity to talk with the President and representatives from the highest levels of his Administration about how all communities can work together to prevent bullying.”
Melody Barnes, the chief domestic policy adviser, announced the conference Tuesday afternoon on a call with reporters. She said that participants would have the opportunity to speak with President Obama and high-level administration representatives about bullying and ways to prevent it in their communities.
The White House also released an official statement about the conference.
“On Thursday, March 10, President Obama, the Department of Education, and the Department of Health and Human Services will welcome students, parents, teachers and others to The White House for a Conference on Bullying Prevention,” the statement said. “The conference will bring together communities from across the nation who have been affected by bullying as well as those who are taking action to address it. Participants will have the opportunity to talk with the President and representatives from the highest levels of his Administration about how all communities can work together to prevent bullying.”
(no subject)
Mar. 2nd, 2011 04:15 pm1) People who volunteered to help with Torchwood questions- thanks! Will be in touch when I have some spare brain.
2) NYCers- you knew there's still A videogame arcade in Chinatown, right?
3) Also for NYCErs- I'm still thinking about that trip to Basquiat's final resting place- would anyone like to be kept informed of schedule?
4) Technical question re. language. Let's say I name a place after a person- like the GWB is named after Washington- what would the actual word for such an honoree be? (Other than "honoree")
2) NYCers- you knew there's still A videogame arcade in Chinatown, right?
3) Also for NYCErs- I'm still thinking about that trip to Basquiat's final resting place- would anyone like to be kept informed of schedule?
4) Technical question re. language. Let's say I name a place after a person- like the GWB is named after Washington- what would the actual word for such an honoree be? (Other than "honoree")
Torchwood idea #2 (be very afraid)
Mar. 2nd, 2011 09:03 pmAfter the Torchwood thing I'm going to be working on in my- ha ha ha- spare time this weekend, I really want to write a Torchwood/Doctor Who/Hitchhiker's crossover. Jack winds up on the Heart of Gold; after playing about with the Infinite Improbability drive, and causing a rain of kittens1, he winds up at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe, and the fun really begins. (Exactly where the Scientologists, the guinea pig, and the Spock ears come in hasn't been determined yet: there's where the art of it comes in. Geez, guess I should actually, I don't know, watch this show...)
1Not in any harmful way, of course: they drift gently to the ground like dandelion fluff, little legs splayed, a multitude of furry pink bellies against the sky...
1Not in any harmful way, of course: they drift gently to the ground like dandelion fluff, little legs splayed, a multitude of furry pink bellies against the sky...