Oregon, Hawaii May Name Official State Microbes
“Is there a competing microbe?” one legislator asked.
April 2013
Well, at Least He Wasn’t Texting
Here's your headline of the [insert appropriate time frame]: Witnesses: Man drove 90 mph with genitals hanging out the window It looks as though an alleged reign of terror may be coming to an end, after three of what police…
The Day Justice Douglas Threw a Book Out the Window
From the book In Chambers: Stories of Supreme Court Law Clerks and Their Justices, noted by Andrew Cohen in The Atlantic : Law clerks in this era all learned that none of [Justice William O.] Douglas' rules were ever to be ignored….
Blade Walks in Daylight Again
Meaning, of course, Wesley Snipes, whose film career has been on hold lately due to being in federal prison. Snipes was convicted in 2008 of not filing federal tax returns, and received a three-year sentence. He is still under house…
Official State Crap: Arkansas
Official state nickname: "The Natural State." First official state motto: Regnant Populi ("The People(s) Rule"?). Year they decided that was either grammatically incorrect in Latin or not quite what they wanted to say: 1907. Current official state motto: Regnat Populus ("The People Rule")….
North Carolina Would Like to Opt Out of the Supremacy Clause
It has tried this before, as you may recall, and that didn't really turn out so well. That time was also much more of a serious group effort, whereas at least so far this is just a resolution sponsored by…
Good Reason to Kill #31: Refused Second Pretzel Dip
At least this time no firearms were used (see "Man Demands Hot Sauce at Gunpoint" (Sept. 22, 2011)), but for whatever reason there seems to be something extra stupid about resorting to violence over a little plastic thing of hot-pretzel…
Trump Dismisses “Spawn of Orangutan” Lawsuit
You may recall that a couple of months ago, Donald Trump sued Bill Maher for breach of contract after Maher offered to give $5 million to charity if Trump could prove he was not descended from an orangutan. It was…
Court: “Driving Carefully,” “Probably an Indian” Not Probable Cause for Stop
From the opinion in People v Deer, decided March 19 in St. Lawrence County, New York: [Border Patrol Agent] Carrier on cross examination said the reasons he stopped the vehicle were that the driver had both hands on the wheel with…