25 Şubat 2013 Pazartesi
Factual Issue Remains In Establishment Clause Challenge To School Board's Outsourcing
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In Kucera v. Jefferson County Board of School Commissioners, (ED TN, Feb. 21, 2013), a Tennessee federal district court allowed two plaintiffs-- a former teacher and the former principal in an alternative school-- to proceed with their claims that a Tennessee school district violated the Establishment Clause when it closed the alternative school in which they were employed and contracted with Kingswood Academy, a Christian school, to provide alternative school services. In denying defendants' motion for summary judgment, the court said that there remains an issue of fact as to whether or not the alternative day program offered by Kingswood is religious in nature in the same way its residential program is. (See prior related posting.)
German Prosecutor Drops Circumcision Prosecution of Rabbi
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Applying Germany's new law enacted in December to confirm the legality of religious circumcisions performed with parental consent by specially trained members of the religious community, a court in the German city of Hof has dismissed charges that had been filed last year against a rabbi. According to the European Jewish Congress, the criminal charges were dropped last Thursday by the prosecutor who said that Rabbi David Goldberg has satisfied all the requirements of the new law.
In Australia, Parliament Debates Scope of Religious Exemptions In Proposed Anti-Discrimination Law Revisions
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The Australian reported last week on the controversy over the scope of exemptions for religious organizations in proposed Australian civil rights legislation. Labor proposed a bill-- the Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Bill 2012-- to consolidate Australia's five existing anti-discrimination laws. Under the proposal, exemptions for religious organizations were to be largely retained, except for government-funded providers of care for the elderly where there is concern about discrimination against same-sex couples seeking to enter care facilities. However the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee in a report released Feb 21 (full text) has recommended much narrower religious exemptions in the new law. (Full text of recommendations). Opposition members of the Senate in turn, concerned about protecting Church schools, called on the Attorney General to retain current exemptions in the new law.
Scottish Cardinal Resigns Amid Charges Of Inappropriate Sexual Behavior
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Vatican Radio this morning announced that Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the resignation of Scotland's Cardinal Kieth O'Brien. The resignation follows a report Saturday in The Observer that 3 priests and a former priest have charged O'Brien with "inappropriate behavior" involving inappropriate contacts, beginning in the 1980's. According to The Observer:
The four, from the diocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh, have complained to nuncio Antonio Mennini, the Vatican's ambassador to Britain, and demanded O'Brien's immediate resignation. A spokesman for the cardinal said that the claims were contested.
O'Brien, who is due to retire next month, has been an outspoken opponent of gay rights, condemning homosexuality as immoral, opposing gay adoption, and most recently arguing that same-sex marriages would be "harmful to the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of those involved". Last year he was named "bigot of the year" by the gay rights charity Stonewall.According to the New York Times, a statement issued by the Diocese of Edinburgh on O'Brien's behalf yesterday said: "A number of allegations of inappropriate behavior have been made against the cardinal The cardinal has sought legal advice, and it would be inappropriate to comment at this time. There will be further statements in due course."
President of the Few Exaggerates Impact of Sequestration
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Now I know that for many folk, the sequestration is either serious or not. Although I do accept the ramifications of the process, it is hard to get real involved in make believe political nuance. But as such, It is equally as hard not to weigh in on the inside the beltway kabuki theater we surmise as Washington politics. First, what get me is the big deal folk make out of this entire thing per an economic issue. If anything it is an issue of national security first and foremost (42 percent of cuts will come from defense). But I suspect this is what President Obama anticipated when he first proposed sequestration for whatever reason in 2011 (which in itself is another essay). I say this because I think he really believed that Congress would bow down to protect their cash cow “defense spending.” But they have since then taken his player card.
Truth be told from a federal agency perspective, it only $85 Billion (north of $40 billion this year), that they have to cut. I think what is missed mostly in all of this is that our issue really isn’t related to debt or the deficit, but rather credit and borrowing. Yes we spend too much no question, but ours is a credit problem – we borrow too much which makes economics ignore what is essential – that one can address the debt and deficit and encourage economic growth by leasing in on cutting wasted and duplicated spending.
Again it is just $85 billion. AIG got two times as much when the government bailed them out, yet we can find money to bailout Wall Street but not cut from what we already spend? I find that hard to believe because the average individual, family and small business owner, if had to, could cut less than three cents from each dollar earned without going bankrupt or homeless. I know less than 3 percent is possible from history alone. If FDR could cut the federal budget by almost 40 percent at the start of WW II in one year, surely we can locate 3 pennies of each government dollar currently spent.
Maybe this is why the theater. Three cents on the dollar won’t hurt if done correctly (end waste and duplication.) But if it hurt anybody it will be us, the poor folks in America who depend on services like head start and similar provisions. President Obama knew he was taking a risk, but instead of the wealthy he pretends he wants to tax, he put folk on the hook who live pay check to pay check, struggling to survive in poverty and who depend on head start on the hook as bait for house republicans. And they didn’t take it because they only grab on behalf of rich lobbyist (as well as democrats). Now we are back to Washington at its best, seeing that pointing fingers is more important to the administration and the congress than moving pencils and using erasers. The result is all outside in real America being stuck in the weeds on this matter.
In four days we will have Armageddon as the president describes it. Although all parties agreed to it, why is it Armageddon now and it wasn’t then? America outside the beltway isn’t growing fast like Washington, DC and Wall Street. Since looking at what has happened from 2009 to 2011, more than twenty major corporations have paid no income taxes. Including the likes of General Electric, Boeing, Verizon and Amazon [Amazon made billions in sales in 2011, while paying nothing in corporate taxes]. The reality is that since Obama has taken office, corporate taxes in the U.S., at an all-time low in which we see the most profitable companies paying nothing at all. Yet instead of fighting for the payroll holiday to continue President Obama did not fight for it, for these people were on the hook as bait. In 2011, Facebook made billions and paid not taxes yet was given a rebate of more than $400 million dollars the same year.
The fact is all of the above demonstrates that both the present administration and the members on the hill have only corporate interest at hand. Not only is it government for the few, it is also President of the few. Drake almost got it right, but I would say “we started from the bottom and we still here.”
Now I know that for many folk, the sequestration is either serious or not. Although I do accept the ramifications of the process, it is hard to get real involved in make believe political nuance. But as such, It is equally as hard not to weigh in on the inside the beltway kabuki theater we surmise as Washington politics. First, what get me is the big deal folk make out of this entire thing per an economic issue. If anything it is an issue of national security first and foremost (42 percent of cuts will come from defense). But I suspect this is what President Obama anticipated when he first proposed sequestration for whatever reason in 2011 (which in itself is another essay). I say this because I think he really believed that Congress would bow down to protect their cash cow “defense spending.” But they have since then taken his player card.Truth be told from a federal agency perspective, it only $85 Billion (north of $40 billion this year), that they have to cut. I think what is missed mostly in all of this is that our issue really isn’t related to debt or the deficit, but rather credit and borrowing. Yes we spend too much no question, but ours is a credit problem – we borrow too much which makes economics ignore what is essential – that one can address the debt and deficit and encourage economic growth by leasing in on cutting wasted and duplicated spending.
Again it is just $85 billion. AIG got two times as much when the government bailed them out, yet we can find money to bailout Wall Street but not cut from what we already spend? I find that hard to believe because the average individual, family and small business owner, if had to, could cut less than three cents from each dollar earned without going bankrupt or homeless. I know less than 3 percent is possible from history alone. If FDR could cut the federal budget by almost 40 percent at the start of WW II in one year, surely we can locate 3 pennies of each government dollar currently spent.
Maybe this is why the theater. Three cents on the dollar won’t hurt if done correctly (end waste and duplication.) But if it hurt anybody it will be us, the poor folks in America who depend on services like head start and similar provisions. President Obama knew he was taking a risk, but instead of the wealthy he pretends he wants to tax, he put folk on the hook who live pay check to pay check, struggling to survive in poverty and who depend on head start on the hook as bait for house republicans. And they didn’t take it because they only grab on behalf of rich lobbyist (as well as democrats). Now we are back to Washington at its best, seeing that pointing fingers is more important to the administration and the congress than moving pencils and using erasers. The result is all outside in real America being stuck in the weeds on this matter.
In four days we will have Armageddon as the president describes it. Although all parties agreed to it, why is it Armageddon now and it wasn’t then? America outside the beltway isn’t growing fast like Washington, DC and Wall Street. Since looking at what has happened from 2009 to 2011, more than twenty major corporations have paid no income taxes. Including the likes of General Electric, Boeing, Verizon and Amazon [Amazon made billions in sales in 2011, while paying nothing in corporate taxes]. The reality is that since Obama has taken office, corporate taxes in the U.S., at an all-time low in which we see the most profitable companies paying nothing at all. Yet instead of fighting for the payroll holiday to continue President Obama did not fight for it, for these people were on the hook as bait. In 2011, Facebook made billions and paid not taxes yet was given a rebate of more than $400 million dollars the same year.
The fact is all of the above demonstrates that both the present administration and the members on the hill have only corporate interest at hand. Not only is it government for the few, it is also President of the few. Drake almost got it right, but I would say “we started from the bottom and we still here.”
24 Şubat 2013 Pazar
New AFJ resource tracks judicial vacancies without nominations
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In many parts of the country, vacant federal judgeships have languished without nominees for more than two years, according to a new resource from Alliance for Justice.
Much attention has been paid to what happens after someone is nominated to fill a vacancy – in particular the obstruction of nominees by Senate Republicans. But before a nomination ever reaches the Senate it goes through a complex, potentially lengthy process involving the White House and, with few exceptions, a state’s two United States Senators. At every step, a nomination can be delayed. In particular, this resource highlights the little-examined role that senators play in the pre-nomination process.
"This new report shines a spotlight on this often-neglected part of the process,” said AFJ President Nan Aron. “It illustrates the need for a renewed sense of urgency that should begin the moment a judgeship becomes vacant.”
Aron cited examples of unconscionable delay:
“Because of a dispute between senators from California and Idaho, a seat on the 9th Circuit has been vacantfor more than eight years,” Aron said. “A seat on the 7th Circuit has been vacant for nearly four years. This kind of systemic failure has to end. The American people deserve better.”
When it comes to seats on federal district courts, there have been delays of two years or more in sending a nominee to the Senate in five states:
“These data, including detailed maps, track the status of every federal court vacancy for which there is not yet a nominee, giving Americans the information they need to demand action,” Aron said.
>>ReadAFJ’s new resource
>>Judicial nomination timeline
How many judgeships are vacant in your state - without even a nominee? Use AFJ's new resource to find out:
In many parts of the country, vacant federal judgeships have languished without nominees for more than two years, according to a new resource from Alliance for Justice.Much attention has been paid to what happens after someone is nominated to fill a vacancy – in particular the obstruction of nominees by Senate Republicans. But before a nomination ever reaches the Senate it goes through a complex, potentially lengthy process involving the White House and, with few exceptions, a state’s two United States Senators. At every step, a nomination can be delayed. In particular, this resource highlights the little-examined role that senators play in the pre-nomination process.
"This new report shines a spotlight on this often-neglected part of the process,” said AFJ President Nan Aron. “It illustrates the need for a renewed sense of urgency that should begin the moment a judgeship becomes vacant.”
Aron cited examples of unconscionable delay:
“Because of a dispute between senators from California and Idaho, a seat on the 9th Circuit has been vacantfor more than eight years,” Aron said. “A seat on the 7th Circuit has been vacant for nearly four years. This kind of systemic failure has to end. The American people deserve better.”
When it comes to seats on federal district courts, there have been delays of two years or more in sending a nominee to the Senate in five states:
- Eastern District of North Carolina: 2,654 days
- Western District of Texas: 1,650 days
- District of Kansas: 1,163 days
- District of Arizona: 1,049 days
- District of Massachusetts: 889 days
“These data, including detailed maps, track the status of every federal court vacancy for which there is not yet a nominee, giving Americans the information they need to demand action,” Aron said.
>>ReadAFJ’s new resource
>>Judicial nomination timeline
AFJ calls for swift filling of vacancies on nation's second most important court
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The creation of yet another vacancy – the fourth – on what is widely-known as the nation’s second most important court is a stark reminder of the urgent need to fill vacancies on that court.
With Judge David Sentelle taking seniorstatus today, the D.C. Circuit now has more vacancies than any other circuitcourt of appeals. One of these seats has been vacant for more than sevenyears, another for more than four years. But the Senate has yet toconfirm President Obama’s two nominees.
In contrast, President George W. Bushnamed four judges to the D.C. Circuit, President Bill Clinton named three,President George H.W. Bush also named three and President Ronald Reagan namedeight.
“Only the U.S. Supreme Court itself hasmore of an impact on the lives of everyday Americans than the D.C. Circuit,”said AFJ President Nan Aron.
Because this court is so important ithas become a farm team for future Supreme Court justices. Four of the ninecurrent justices - Roberts, Ginsburg, Scalia and Thomas – served on the D.C.Circuit.
“Most D.C. Circuit cases will never bereviewed by the Supreme Court,” Aron said. “The D.C. Circuit often standsas the final arbiter of President Obama’s legislative legacy and decades ofpolicy achievements long supported by the American people. We callupon the Senate to quickly confirm the pending nominees for this court, and weurge President Obama to nominate strong judges who understand the role ofgovernment in protecting everyday Americans.”
The creation of yet another vacancy – the fourth – on what is widely-known as the nation’s second most important court is a stark reminder of the urgent need to fill vacancies on that court.
 |
| Judge David Sentelle |
In contrast, President George W. Bushnamed four judges to the D.C. Circuit, President Bill Clinton named three,President George H.W. Bush also named three and President Ronald Reagan namedeight.
“Only the U.S. Supreme Court itself hasmore of an impact on the lives of everyday Americans than the D.C. Circuit,”said AFJ President Nan Aron.
Because this court is so important ithas become a farm team for future Supreme Court justices. Four of the ninecurrent justices - Roberts, Ginsburg, Scalia and Thomas – served on the D.C.Circuit.
“Most D.C. Circuit cases will never bereviewed by the Supreme Court,” Aron said. “The D.C. Circuit often standsas the final arbiter of President Obama’s legislative legacy and decades ofpolicy achievements long supported by the American people. We callupon the Senate to quickly confirm the pending nominees for this court, and weurge President Obama to nominate strong judges who understand the role ofgovernment in protecting everyday Americans.”
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