Tag Archives: civil rights
Judge Walker Was Wrong
The issue was not Judge Walker’s homosexuality, which in itself should not raise reasonable doubts about his ability to be fair and impartial, but his long term same sex relationship. He had a duty to disclose this at the outset, and based on the standard articulated above, was ethically bound to recuse himself. Not doing so was a breach of judicial ethics. Continue reading
Obama’s Quality of Mercy: Strained
President Obama finally pardoned somebody who wasn’t a turkey last week, but not before he became slowest Democratic president in U.S. history to use Article II of the Constitution to right a judicial wrong or just exercise his power to demonstrate the ethical virtue of mercy. Continue reading
Filed under Government & Politics, History, Law & Law Enforcement, Leadership, U.S. Society
Obama’s Halftime Pardon Score: Turkeys 2, Human Beings 0
As of last Wednesday, President Obama has pardoned more turkeys than human beings. He has continued the cutesy presidential tradition of bestowing a presidential pardon on a turkey destined for the Thanksgiving table each November of his two years in office, but is approaching a record for the most days in office before finding a U.S. citizen equally worthy of mercy and forgiveness. Continue reading
The Supreme Court Rejects a Bad Argument
There is nothing unfair, unreasonable or cruel about the government declaring that staying out of jail is a prerequisite for voting, no matter what race one may be. Continue reading
The Ethics of Killing Theresa Lewis
There were five arguments for not executing murderess Theresa Lewis, who just became the first woman put to death by Virginia in almost a century. Four of the arguments were flawed, but one was not. And one should have been enough to save her life. Continue reading
Ethics Quote of the Month: Judge Vaughn Walker
Judge Walker makes the case for basic ethical values in striking down California’s same-sex marriage ban. Continue reading
“Genetic Surveillance” and Law Enforcement Ethics
The “Grim Sleeper” serial killer was caught because California authorities found a partial DNA match with an individual in its database. That meant that the killer was probably related to the owner of that DNA, and indeed he was. We … Continue reading
Filed under Bioethics, Citizenship, Law & Law Enforcement, Race, Science & Technology
The Justice Department’s Voter Intimidation Cover-Up: The Blue Line Breaks
Racially biased enforcement of the laws protecting a citizen’s right to vote should be a concern to all Americans, white or black, Democrat or Republican, Right or Left. The fact that much of our news media takes a week to accept that fact should concern all Americans as well. Continue reading
Ethics Outrage and Cover-Up: Racial Bias At the Justice Department
The story told by former Department of Justice attorney J. Christian Adams is shocking in many ways. It shows an abject refusal of Attorney General Holder’s D.O.J. to enforce the law equally with black and white. It shows sympathy within the Obama Administration for, of all, groups, the Black Panthers, a racist organization. It details perjury by high ranking officials, and a hard breach of President Obama’s pledges to uphold the rule of law, embrace transparency, and to embody a post-racial philosophy. Finally, it shows the same kind of manipulation of law enforcement by ideological zealots that stained the Bush Department of Justice. Continue reading
Baseball and Civil Rights: Doing the Right Thing, Kicking and Screaming
An impotent, rationalization-filled memo by the leaders of Major League Baseball, that was obsolete before it ink was dry,shouldn’t tarnish the crucial role played by baseball in moving America toward a fair and equal society.
Nor should an impotent, rationalization-filled memo by the leaders of Major League Baseball, that was obsolete before it ink was dry, tarnish the crucial role played by baseball in moving America toward a fair and equal society.
