Land Of The Flea

Why So Much Faith in Supreme Court Justices?

"A quick reading of the decision in Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857) should cause any reasonable person to question the assumption of judicial infallibility, and the wisdom of granting judges the definitive and final say in all cases. In essence, the Supreme Court declared black people inferior and that even free blacks were not citizens under the Constitution. The court reasoned that since black people – even those not held in slavery – were not citizens and possessed no rights, Scott had no standing to sue in court." Continue reading →

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Will Grigg: Abolish Your Local Police

"Ronald Weekley, Jr. , a 20-year-old college student from Venice, California, was riding his skateboard on the 'wrong side' of the street in front of his house when he was assaulted by four armed gangsters and severely beaten. The assailants then abducted the victim and accused him of a criminal offense because he was insufficiently docile while being beaten. They also claimed that Weekley had previously been seen on their turf, without permission, after sundown. The assailants belonged to that privileged caste of social misfits and intellectually stunted functionaries called 'police officers.'" Continue reading →

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Eric Margolis: Are We Becoming What We Once Hated?

"In the late 1980’s, an old friend of mine based in Moscow was calling her husband in the USA late one night. She said it was a 'typical dumb husband/wife call,' mostly about a broken garage door. Around midnight, a gruff voice broke into the call. 'This is your KGB listener. This is the most boring, stupid call I’ve ever listened to. Shut up and go to bed!' Ah, those innocent Cold War days. Today, Big Brother listens to your calls, reads your email, and follows your internet searches on silent cat’s feet. China’s Taoists warned, 'you become what you hate.' They are right." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEric Margolis: Are We Becoming What We Once Hated?

Minnesota Starts to Regulate and Track Gold Coin Dealers

"Minnesota has passed legislation that would regulate bullion coin dealers. But it has coin dealers and coin club officials scratching their heads over just what it means and how to comply. Implementation of the bill will have the effect of licensing bullion coin dealers in the state. Bullion coin dealers will be subjected to registration as of July 1, 2014, with the state commissioner of commerce at a fee of $25 for a bullion coin dealer and $10 for his representatives. The legislation defines 'bullion coin' as any coin that contains 'more than one percent by weight of silver, gold, platinum, or other precious metals.'" Continue reading →

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Tennessee newspaper editor is fired after writing an anti-Obama headline

"A Tennessee newspaper editor has been fired after writing a headline critical of President Obama. Drew Johnson's editorial, titled, 'Take your jobs plan and shove it, Mr. President: Your policies have harmed Chattanooga enough,' was published in the Chattanooga Times Free Press earlier this week when Obama visited the city. The timing of the column gave it a national audience it might not otherwise have had. As a result, it went viral online and Johnson, the editor of the Times Free Press editorial page, has since been let go. 'I just became the first person in the history of newspapers to be fired for writing a paper's most-read article,' he tweeted." Continue reading →

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Defiant nuns and monks refuse to give up Kentucky land for gas pipeline

"Two Kentucky Catholic religious orders that collectively own more than 3,000 acres of historic farmland are refusing to give up portions of their lands for a proposed natural-gas pipeline that would channel millions of gallons of pressurized, highly flammable natural-gas liquids through the area. The nuns of the Sisters of Loretto and the monks of the Abbey of Gethsemani have denied surveyors permission to survey the land ahead of the pipeline project and say that they have no interest in helping it along. 'We’ve been on this property since 1824,' said Sister Maria Visse. 'We feel entrusted with this (land). It’s a gift. It’s not a commodity.'" Continue reading →

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Courts Quietly Move From “May” Convict to “Must” Convict Jury Instructions Over 40 Years

"The Dougherty case began in 1969 when nine pacifist Catholic priests and nuns broke into the D.C. offices of Dow Chemical Corporation to protest the company’s production of Napalm for the Vietnam War. There were similar antiwar protests being staged elsewhere during the period, including the cases of 'the Catonsville Nine' (who burned draft board files), the 'Baltimore Four' (ditto), the 'Harrisburg Seven' (tried for mentioning the possible kidnapping of Henry Kissinger in intercepted letters), the 'Milwaukee 14' (tried for burning draft records), and the 'Harrisburg Seven' (tried for planning to arrest Henry Kissinger for waging an illegal war [..])." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCourts Quietly Move From “May” Convict to “Must” Convict Jury Instructions Over 40 Years

Father of foster child who died after being seized by state over marijuana speaks out

"Alex was living with foster parents after DFPS removed her from her parents' home last November for 'neglectful supervision.' Hill admits they were smoking pot when their daughter was asleep. 'We never hurt our daughter. She was never sick, she was never in the hospital, and she never had any issues until she went into state care.' For two months, Alex was placed in a home that Hill says was dangerous. 'She would come to visitation with bruises on her, and mold and mildew in her bag. It got to a point where I actually told CPS that they would have to have me arrested because I wouldn't let her go back.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFather of foster child who died after being seized by state over marijuana speaks out

Free State Project Demands Apology For “Domestic Terrorism” Claims In Tank Grant Application

"As president of the Free State Project ('FSP'), a NH-based non-profit organization with the sole mission of attracting 20,000 pro-freedom people to the Granite State, I am alarmed and appalled at the cleverly worded insinuation that the FSP is a domestic terrorist threat, or that 'Free Staters' are 'active and present daily challenges' to the Concord Police Department. Individuals who sign up for the FSP generally subscribe to an ethical stance which asserts that 'aggression' is inherently illegitimate. Sadly, the DHS grant application only came to light through an ACLU public records request, and not as a result of transparent governance." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFree State Project Demands Apology For “Domestic Terrorism” Claims In Tank Grant Application