Common Sense

I have thus far refrained from writng about Purgegate, mostly because there are so many other bloggers that are covering this and I haven’t had anything substantive to add to the discussion.
I think its worth noting my opinion, though.
I see shades of Watergate in this. Everyone is making that analogy now it seems, but it […]

And to drive that fact home to us mere mortals yesterday, Duane Chapman, best known from his hit A&E television show Dog the Bounty Hunter, was arrested in Hawaii Thursday. Why, you ask? The Mexican government requested it because he allegedly jumped bail in that country.
The charges stem from Chapman’s capture of Max Factor heir […]

I found this NY Times article while reading Luke’s site today. It’s about “modeling” sites that skirt the edge of illegality by showing sexually-suggestive images of really underage kids… but their fully clothed.
Well, not fully clothed.
Based on the images and wording from online advertisements, the sites show toddlers wearing tight thongs, and slightly older children […]

I totally missed this post from Muse on the procedure for write-in candidates.
First of all, according to the Secretary of State’s Office, a person has to declare themselves as a write-in candidate by August 29th. For congressional office, there is a filing fee of $3125 and a requirement of 500 signautres.
The Texas Election Code spells […]

(Ed. note: You try thinking of a funny headline using his name.)
The Texas Republican Party went to Justice Antonin Scalia today. Tina Benkiser wanted him to issue a stay on the order from the 5th Circuit that says he must remain on the November ballot.
A scant two hours later, ‘Scalia said no way‘.
I’m not even […]

Judge orders compromise between Sheehan and county
I wish I could just order people to compromise and they would have to do it. I order all Mets and Yankees fans to get along. This I command.
Sheehan and her followers want to stop the county from enforcing two ordinances that they claim limit protest activities. One prohibits […]

As I mentioned before, the 5th Circuit ruled against the Texas Republican Party yesterday, saying Tom DeLay must remain on the November ballot.
The indomitable Tina Benkiser (who totally freaks me out) is appealing to the Supreme Court. I’m not sure why. Even DeLay admitted on the witness stand that he could not be sure he […]

Tour de France winner Floyd Landis has hired Howard Jacobs to defend him should his B sample of urine come back a neon green color. Jacobs is well-known for defending athletes accused of doping.
“He wants to be ready to defend himself, in case the B sample comes back positive,” Jacobs said in a telephone interview. […]

I wonder if this guy will be classified as a judicial activist.
A federal judge has barred the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission from seizing material it deems obscene without getting a ruling from a judge, saying the practice violates the constitutional protection of free speech.
U.S. District Judge Gray Miller, ruling in a lawsuit by a distributor […]

As mentioned yesterday, the American Bar Association has some problems with President Bush and his signing statements.
WASHINGTON — President Bush has vetoed only one piece of legislation during more than five years in office, but he has issued more than 800 challenges to bills that he has signed into law with formal “signing statements,” more […]