…and much else, including such events as the death of black thug Jordan Neely at the hands of a public-spirited Marine veteran, the legal principle – yes, Gentle Reader, it is a principle, not just some libertarian’s half-baked notion – of jury nullification has re-entered the national discourse. It’s actually rather strange that …
Category: justice
Apr 29 2023
Forms Of Community Service
I found this gem at Kenny “Wirecutter” Lane’s site: [He] had a video rental store, that kept getting broken into, so he slept there for a couple nights. After about a week, someone broke in, a couple of 17 or 18 year olds. The story he told was that one of them grabbed …
Jan 27 2023
Qualifications For The Federal Bench
…don’t include intimate familiarity with the Supreme Law of the Land: Q: “Judge, tell me what article V of the Constitution does?” Biden judicial nominee: “Article V is not coming to mind at the moment.” “How about article II?” Nominee: “Neither is Article II” pic.twitter.com/MvdLR3TDKZ — Washington Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) January 26, 2023 …
Jan 09 2023
SKUNC >> RINO
This news item “Adam Kinzinger, House Republican Who Served on Jan. 6 Committee, Lands Job at CNN After Retiring” reminded me why I could never abide the easier to recognize but poor choice for a pejorative that is Republican In Name Only. For one thing, a RINO is still a republican, just not a constitutional …
Nov 04 2022
The Ongoing Firestorm
Emily Oster’s saccharine-saturated column in The Atlantic, in which she argues – unpersuasively – for a “pandemic amnesty” has ignited a blaze that, so far, has refused to go out. Indeed, it seems to be mounting as the days count down to the midterm elections…and that’s a good thing. I’ve already said my …
Oct 17 2022
Deterrences
Back in the Sixties and Seventies, the hottest controversy in criminal justice was that of punishment versus rehabilitation. The trendy theory was that punishment actually increases the incidence of crime – that rather than inflicting punishment of any sort on the offender, carefully re-educating and reorienting him to social norms would be more fruitful. …
Oct 07 2022
TEOTWAWKI Stuff
I don’t write a great deal on this subject, but lately I’ve been getting the sense that the time has come to confront some harsh realities and some ugly possibilities. If you’re not in the mood for the subject this fine Friday morning, I promise that I’ll understand…but I am. *** The following …
Aug 28 2022
Third-Party Forgiveness
Joseph Sobran once composed an instructive parable that went something like this: Davis is listening to Jones speak of some injustice done to him by Smith. Davis waits until Jones runs down, and then says, “Oh, that’s all right. I forgive Smith for what he did to you.” How do you suppose Jones …
Aug 04 2022
Using Law To Defeat SJWs
On properly using the law against the lawless: The Governor has the authority under the Florida Constitution to suspend state officials for reasons of misfeasance, malfeasance, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties, or commission of a felony. The Governor has further authority to fill that office by appointment for the …
Aug 02 2022
When Wrong Is Right
A conversation that occurred between great jazz pianist Thelonious Monk and an aspiring musician provides three-fourths of today’s title. The young man played a sequence of notes to Monk, and asked him “What would be the right continuation?” Monk replied, “Wrong is right.” Another jazz icon, guitarist John Abercrombie, provides a similar anecdote about …
Jul 12 2022
Hero Hunger: A Report From 2022
They little knew of brotherhood – The faith of fighting men – Who once to prove their lie was good Hanged Colonel Jacques Chretien. [Gordon R. Dickson, “Brothers”] The C.S.O. and I recently watched this Amazon Prime mini-series and loved it. The headliner and co-producer is Chris Pratt, one of entertainment media’s disfavored for …
May 15 2022
Do Mine Eyes Deceive Me?
Three men gang-raped a minor, filmed it, and were sentenced to probation? WEST JORDAN — Two men accused of raping a 14-year-old girl who was in and out of consciousness and another man charged with videotaping the sexual encounter were sentenced Wednesday to 48 months of probation. Third District Judge Douglas Hogan …
May 02 2022
A Time For Candor
There is no longer any politics in our political contests. There is only slander. As pleased as I was to see Andrew Cuomo resign the governorship of New York, the accusations that elicited his departure depressed me rather badly. Cuomo, for all that I dislike him as a man and a public official, …
Nov 21 2021
For The Feast Of Christ The King
[Today is the Feast of Christ The King, which falls on the last Sunday before Advent. It’s a unique holy day for several reasons, and one that I find particularly personally significant. The essay below first appeared at Eternity Road on January 6, 2008. I find that I cannot improve upon it, for which …
Nov 20 2021
What It Took
Quite a lot, actually. It took personal courage: both from the judge, who will probably be the focus of left-wing fury for the rest of his life, and from the twelve men and women who sat in ultimate judgment. The jurors knew that someone would be able to identify them afterward. They knew …
Nov 11 2021
The Politicization Of Justice Is Now Complete
Unless you’re more sensible than I am you’ve ceased to pay attention to the news, you’re already aware of the “Hunter Biden laptop” controversy and the way the Usurper Regime, and its Big Tech and media allies have striven to prevent any public discussion of it. The evidence on that laptop, combined with other …
Oct 30 2021
Scientism, Democratism, And Statism
The ism suffix particle most often indicates a faith, or a similarly faith-based system of beliefs. There are a few exceptions – bruxism, for instance, is dentists’ term for habitual grinding of the teeth, and a neologism is just a newly coined word – but the rule is usually reliable. Recently, we’ve had …
Oct 28 2021
The Remedy
I have a great deal to do today – yes, Gentle Reader, I have a life away from the computers, as implausible as that may sound – so this will be a brief piece. First, the response to: this essay, this subsequent one, and this brief coda …has been overwhelming. It suggests that …
Sep 01 2021
Outrages To Be Watched For
You may already have read about this story: As previously reported, Rebecca Firlit, a Chicago mother, said that a Cook County judge took away her parental rights for not getting the COVID vaccine – the judge then reversed the order after his decision garnered media attention. The 39-year-old mother said that the …
Aug 04 2021
One Of These Days
“One of these days, I’m going to cut you into little pieces” – Pink Floyd, “One Of These Days” One of these days, we will reckon the fall of the Republic from a point that’s already in our past. The Constitutional bounds of the federal government are violated daily. Thus it should …
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