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Reflecting on Darwin
As many are probably aware, the 12th of February was the 200th anniversary of Darwin’s birth. It seems appropriate, then, to reflect on the latest attempts to challenge evolutionary biology through a belief in what is called “intelligent design.” But first, I think, it’s important to note that much has changed since Darwin first proposed […]
February 2009 / 3 min.
Another Attempt to Repeal Open Access
Peter Suber writes: Yesterday Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) re-introduced the Fair Copyright in Research Works Act… . The premise of the bill, urged by the publishing lobby, is that the NIH policy somehow violates copyright law. The premise is false and cynical. If the NIH policy violated copyrights, or permitted the violation of […]
February 2009 / 1 min.
Cooperative Workers May Not be Fired in Retaliation
From the New York Times: Employees fired after cooperating in sexual harassment investigations may sue for retaliation, the Supreme Court ruled Monday in a case concerning the scope of a federal law barring sex discrimination in the workplace. If it seems obvious that a worker who cooperates with an investigation that reveals sexual harassment by […]
February 2009 / 2 min.
Why Does the U.S. Have an Exclusionary Rule?
In my view, the fact that criminal procedure rules are judge-made led fairly directly to the exclusionary rule. Put simply, the exclusionary remedy is the one remedy that judges can completely control. There are a variety of ways to enforce rules of criminal investigations, such as lawsuits, criminal prosecutions, and internal discipline. But all of […]
July 2008 / 1 min.
Evidence Faulted in Detainee Case
Evidence Faulted in Detainee Case - NYTimes.com: With some derision for the Bush administration’s arguments, a three-judge panel said the government contended that its accusations against the detainee should be accepted as true because they had been repeated in at least three secret documents. The court compared that to the absurd declaration of a character […]
July 2008 / 1 min.
Social Science Research Network (SSRN)
Sam Kamin at PrawfsBlawg points out that the New York Times has discovered SSRN. He writes: It’s actually a pretty decent synopsis of the SSRN phenomenon, noting that it takes away the power of gatekeepers, makes scholarship available to the masses and lets them decide what’s worthy, etc. It points out that sexy still sells, […]
June 2008 / 2 min.
New vs. Old Media
Revision3 CEO: Blackout caused by MediaDefender attack - ars technica: Revision3, the Internet television network behind popular shows like Diggnation, experienced a serious network failure over Memorial Day weekend. CEO Jim Louderback revealed today that the outage was caused by a massive denial of service attack that he says was perpetrated by MediaDefender, a file-sharing […]
May 2008 / 3 min.
Viacom Ups Ante In YouTube Copyright Spat: Google More Than A Mere Enabler
Viacom Ups Ante In YouTube Copyright Spat: Google More Than A Mere Enabler - washingtonpost.com Cynthia Brumfeld noticed that Viacom actually raised the stakes in a recently (.pdf) amended complaint from April. In addition to pointing out that YouTube hosts all kinds of copyrighted content, the company emphasizes that YouTube is guilty of public performance […]
May 2008 / 1 min.
Analysis of Same-Sex Marriage Opinion in California
Balkinization - Grading the California same-sex marriage opinion: The California Supreme Court’s opinion is distressingly conclusory. It combines a tortured and probably unsalvageable substantive due process analysis with a strange, ultimately barely successful equal protection argument. If it is persuasive, it is barely so. Law professors are grumpy people who care less about whether […]
May 2008 / 1 min.
Defense Department Jettisons Charges Against ‘20th Hijacker’
Law Blog - WSJ.com : Defense Department Jettisons Charges Against ‘20th Hijacker’: On the Gitmo front, the last several weeks have brought the Bush administration a series of legal defeats. First, GitmoaEUR™s former chief prosecutor turned against the Pentagon, testifying that political interference had tainted the military commissions, set up to prosecute detainees. Then a […]
May 2008 / 1 min.