Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Premature SCOTUS Roundup

I thought I was taking a SCOTUS tour tomorrow, but it's next week. Sorry for forcing folks to rearrange their schedules because I can't successfully read outlook.

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The top rate of the original income tax, established in 1913, was 7 percent. Four years later, it was 67%. Cynics might suggest that, given the timing, and the fact that the bill which hiked it was called the "War Revenue Act", this increase probably was attributable to the US entering into, you know, a war. Silly liberals.

Neat-o story about an Israeli law school with a program focused on providing legal education to religious leaders (Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and otherwise). Israel (regrettably, in my view) maintains a system of religious courts (each religion controls its own members' affairs), but many of the religious leaders who serve on these courts have no legal background.

The big polling news is not a poll at all, but reports that Daily Kos will be suing its former pollster, Research 2000, for fraud.

Without commenting on the underlying case itself -- you can be charged with being an "unruly child" in Ohio? Really?

The Vatican is angry at one of its Cardinals who helped expose sex abuse inside the Church. Perhaps it come steer some of that ire towards the abusers (and their enablers) instead?

"The Green Prince" -- the son of a top Hamas leader who became a spy for Israel -- has been granted asylum in the US.

1 comment:

joe said...

Any thoughts on the perennial Philadelphia voter intimidation allegations from 2008?

I haven't read much about it, but my first impression is that we're going to hear a lot of eager criticism from the same Fox types who laud those "open carry" guys who show up at rallies and speeches as concerned citizens. I wonder what accounts for the disparity.

(Spoiler alert: No, I don't really wonder. It's racism. Cloaked in willful ignorance, of course.)