Gail Murrow, JD, LLM

That Bruen disenfranchises legislatures unless they are attacking a problem similar to how legislatures dealt with what judges deem to be similar problems centuries ago is irrational, illogical, and dangerous. It is also a serious violation of states' rights. www.dorfonlaw.org/2026/02/the-...

highly recommend reading this study, but what the hell do we do about the problem when big conservative money rules journalism?

this is a superb article, thanks

Just War Theory and the Philosophers of Gaza Philosophers have long tried to develop clear moral principles to govern the conduct of warfare. Here's why they're engaged in a fierce debate over Gaza.

I wrote about just war theory and how it applies to the ongoing devastation in the war in Gaza: www.forkingpaths.co/p/just-war-t...

📅 June 24, 1900: Raphael Lemkin was born. He coined the term genocide and played a key role in the 1948 Genocide Convention. His work remains central to efforts to prevent and address mass atrocities.

#RaphaelLemkin #GenocidePrevention

What other country in the world goes back centuries to a time of slavery and obscene oppression to determine legal rights and remedies today? History is important, of course, as a guide, but idiotic as a mandatory rule.

!!

This is awful news and will render the NSF even less effective at supporting science and science education in the US (which seems to be a goal of this admin). 🧪

Scotusblog acquired by conservative Dispatch Media, Inc.
Another one bites the dust.

wow, this is great

Justices Alito and Thomas whining like spoiled little brats in their dissent to the Court’s halting of lawless and egregious behavior by the gov’t shows again what I have been saying about them for decades: not judges, just Republicans.
End of story. www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/24p...

B&W photo of a woman in a beautiful, ornate hat, with a man behind looking at her

Henri Cartier-Bresson, Easter Sunday in Harlem, 1947 www.moma.org/collection/w...

This happened at 1am:

Reminder:

The Social Security Administration is now declaring people dead based on an algorithm—not just on verified reports, as in the past.

And, even more ominously, SSA is falsely & knowingly declaring people dead when they’re alive.

This triggers a nightmare.

www.cbpp.org/blog/trump-a...

The State Department is changing its mind about what it calls human rights The agency's annual human rights reports are being purged of references to prison conditions, political corruption and other abuses.

In 2017, Senator Rubio blasted Rex Tillerson for not presenting the State Department human rights reports with a press conference.
What Secretary Rubio is doing is far worse, systematically editing out descriptions of human rights abuses and corruption.
www.npr.org/2025/04/18/n...

Republicans Are Trying to Steal an Election From Marc | For the sake of our democracy, let us hope the courts once again prevent that from happening.

My latest about how Republicans are trying to steal an election in North Carolina and how it could usher in a new era of unprecedented election subversion. www.democracydocket.com/opinion/repu...

One of the favorite regular guests on my daily podcast is con law scholar from Georgia State U Law school it's @espinsegall.bsky.social

standupwithpete.libsyn.com/1334-prof-er...

Note the heavy traffic -

the question is, do you care more about protesting Musk's politics, or protecting the environment. Tesla is not Musk.

Alani Golanski auf Verfassungsblog Alani Golanski ist Rechtsanwalt in New York.

If you want a great, brief, accessible scholarly article on the formal definition of fascism and how it applies to the current administration, you must read: verfassungsblog.de/author/alani...

I agree, this is a uniquely insightful, unbiased, well researched contribution to understanding the formal definition of fascism and how it may apply--or not truly apply--to the behavior and acts thus far exhibited by the U. S. presidential administration.

I highly recommend this one

"You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him."

-- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who died on this date 1832

This is an excellent, timely article, clarifying and defining fascism with the extreme care, deep fund of knowledge, and dedication to truth and objectivity seen in scholars in legal theory, in the traditional sense, versus, for instance, current ideologically motivated adulations of originalism.

Oklahoma Draft Standards Ask Students to Find 2020 Election 'Discrepancies' The standards intimate that the 2020 presidential election results might not be trustworthy.

Oklahoma Republicans are moving to change the state’s Social Studies curriculum to suggest to kids that the 2020 election was rigged.

They want to order teachers to tell students that the ballots are disputed and have “discrepancies.”

Photo of Clarence Earl Gideon, the defendant in Gideon v. Wainwright. He’s a middle aged white man wearing glasses and a white shirt.

It’s the 62nd anniversary of Gideon v. Wainwright, a case in which SCOTUS ruled that states must provide legal counsel to indigent defendants.

To all public defenders: Thank you for your important, grueling, and often thankless work to protect the rights of the accused.

no you don't, you look earnest

“Thank you again. Thank you again. I won’t forget.”

Historical Photo Credit: National Archives Catalog