TresSugar

Supreme Court Considers Legality of Crosses on Public Land

TresSugar — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:05:00 -0700

While the Supreme Court decides whether or not religious symbols can be erected on public land, one justice already has his mind made up. During the oral arguments on the legality of a cross at a World War I memorial, Catholic Justice Antonin Scalia more than hinted at how he is voting. Scalia said yesterday:

What would you have them erect? . . . Some conglomerate of a cross, a Star of David, and you know, a Muslim half moon and star? . . . I don't think you can leap from that to the conclusion that the only war dead that that cross honors are the Christian war dead.

Scalia definitely has no problem avoiding religious sensitivity. He seems to dismiss even the idea of a more inclusive memorial outright. Since the memorial was built more than 75 years ago, there could be a valid argument for preserving it for historical reasons, but it seems only right that today's memorials should not favor one religion. Then again, perhaps the separation of church and state goes even further to dictate that no religious symbols should be found on public land. That is the question the Supreme Court must decide.

What do you think? Should crosses be allowed on public lands, should religious memorials be required to be all-inclusive, or should religious symbols be banned altogether from public land?

Jon Stewart: White Men Can't Judge

TresSugar — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 11:00:00 -0700

Supreme Court confirmation hearings are typically boring, but Jon Stewart found a way to make Sonia Sotomayor's laugh-out-loud funny on last night's Daily Show. Jon took on Republicans, who "want to register their distaste for the nominee" without seeming "as racist as the nominee herself." He didn't spare Democrats, either, as a few of them got a tad bit emotional about the nomination. If you want to keep up on the hearings but can't bring yourself to watch the hours of political posturing, this funny clip will catch you up on all you need to know!

Roe v. Roe: Pro-Life "Jane Roe" Arrested at Sotomayor Hearing

TresSugar — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 14:00:00 -0700

The tale of America's battle over abortion is a complicated one. When asked about Roe v. Wade today, Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor said that the case was settled law. But that's an answer the case's namesake wishes weren't true. Jane Roe, whose real name is Norma McCorvey, was arrested at Sotomayor's hearing yesterday after she began screaming that Sotomayor was wrong about abortion.

Norma McCorvey's pregnancy and subsequent lawsuit - the infamous Roe v. Wade - resulted in the 1973 Supreme Court decision to legalize abortion. But today, McCorvey, who gave birth to the baby in question before her case reached the Supreme Court, opposes abortion. She heads her own pro-life ministry called Roe No More.

In case you don't know much about Norma (aka "Roe"), let me share some of the more intriguing details of her life. Her grandmother was a prostitute and a fortune teller, her father a TV repair man, and her mother an alcoholic. After her first child was born, she told her mother that she preferred women to men, prompting her mother to take the child and banish Norma. She later gave birth to another child, which she gave up for adoption. She got pregnant again with a baby that became the Roe baby. Years later, in 1995, Norma quit her job at an abortion clinic, announced that she was pro-life, and joined Operation Rescue.

McCorvey once wrote: "Though I had never had one, abortion was the sun around which my life orbited." It seems that is still the case.

Front Page: Confirmation Hearings Begin For Sotomayor

TresSugar — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 08:00:04 -0700

Confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor begin today. - MSNBC
Police say former boxing star Arturo Gatti died this weekend after his wife strangled him with her purse while he was sleeping. - New York Daily News
States short on cash are shortening prison sentences while seeking less costly substitutes like treatment and parole. - Washington Post
German prosecutors have arrested a suspected Nazi death camp guard, accused of helping kill about 28,000 Jews during World War II. - New York Times
South Korea's media is reporting that North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has pancreatic cancer. - The Guardian

How Has Being a Woman Impacted Your Job?

TresSugar — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 07:00:00 -0700

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the subject of an extensive New York Times Magazine profile this week in which she discusses "the place of women on the court." At her confirmation hearings in 1993, Ginsburg said she hoped to see at least three or four women seated on the court after her. As she still waits for even one woman to join her, Ginsburg has noticed that she is judged differently than her male counterparts. She recounts one example:

"Once Justice O’Connor was questioning counsel at oral argument. I thought she was done, so I asked a question, and Sandra said: 'Just a minute, I’m not finished.' So I apologized to her and she said, 'It’s OK, Ruth.' The guys do it to each other all the time, they step on each other’s questions. And then there appeared an item in USA Today, and the headline was something like 'Rude Ruth Interrupts Sandra.'"

By simply interrupting a fellow woman Ginsburg was soon portrayed as rude or aggressive, while the same assertive characteristic in a man goes unnoticed. The justice's little anecdote reminds us that sometimes women face different standards in the workplace. Have you ever come across this?

Supreme Court: Strip Search of Girl Was Unconstitutional

TresSugar — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 11:00:00 -0700

I've been following the story of Savana Redding for a while now. When Savana was 13, she was strip searched at school on the false suspicion that she brought prescription-strength Ibuprofen pills to campus.

Well, today the Supreme Court handed down the ruling that it was unconstitutional for the school officials to conduct that nude strip search of Savana. "They asked me to pull out my bra and move it from side to side," she said of the ordeal. "They made me open my legs and pull out my underwear.”

To see what the court said in the 8-1 decision, read more.

The court ruled that there was no reason to suspect that Savana was such a danger to other students that she had to be strip searched, considering the school thought she only had prescription drugs equivalent to two Advil.

Despite ruling that the search was unconstitutional, the court said that Savana cannot sue the school officials because it would have been hard for them to know they were breaking the law.

Do you think the court made the right decision about saying the strip was illegal, or is it important that officials are able to implement a drug-free policy as they see necessary? Even if you think the strip was wrong, should Savana be able to sue?

10 Things You Should Know About Sonia Sotomayor

TresSugar — Tue, 26 May 2009 09:53:15 -0700

This morning President Obama nominated federal judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court. Most of you said a while back that you would like to see a woman nominated to the highest court. Well you got your wish! Here are 10 other things you need to know about Obama's nominee.

She was appointed federal judge by Republican president George Bush.
She was born in the Bronx, NY, to Puerto Rican parents. Her mother raised her in a housing project, and her father died when she was nine years old.
After graduating from Princeton, she went to Yale Law School, and served as the editor of Yale Law Review.
She got real Law and Order experience, working for five years as a prosecutor with the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
She's known for saving baseball because she issued a key injunction against team owners in 1995. It brought major league baseball back after a strike that caused the cancellation of the 1994 World Series.

To see the rest, read more.

She'll presumably be on the court for a while, as she's only 54 years old.
She's the first Hispanic person to be nominated to the Supreme Court.
If she's confirmed by the Senate, she will be only the third woman to ever serve on the Supreme Court.
She thinks her background is an asset. She once said: "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."
An episode of Perry Mason inspired her to become a judge.

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Front Page: Obama Picks Sonia Sotomayor For Supreme Court

TresSugar — Tue, 26 May 2009 08:00:45 -0700

President Obama has selected federal judge Sonia Sotomayor as his nominee for Supreme Court. She is the court's first Hispanic nominee. - New York Times
Following the test of a nuclear missile this weekend, North Korea test-fired two more short-range missiles today. - CNN
California's Supreme Court will rule today whether the Proposition 8 ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Don't expect the battle to end either way. - Wall Street Journal
Mel Gibson has confirmed that his girlfriend Okasana Grigorieva is pregnant with his child. Mel has seven children with his still-wife Robyn. - Fox News
Reality show Jon and Kate Plus 8 premiered last night, but this time the show focused on the couple's marriage troubles. - lilsugar

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Would You Like a Woman Nominated to the Supreme Court?

TresSugar — Mon, 04 May 2009 07:00:00 -0700

In his surprise press conference recently, President Obama vowed that he would replace retiring Justice Souter with an "independent" legal mind. He gave no word on the nominee's gender, but the odds that he will pick a woman are better than 50-50.

Only two women have ever sat on the court, and right now Ruth Bader Ginsburg is the only lady justice. Still, President Bush faced the same situation and he nominated two men to the court during his term.

Do you think being a woman should be on the list of qualifications for Supreme Court Justice?

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Front Page: Supreme Court Justice Souter to Retire

TresSugar — Fri, 01 May 2009 08:00:17 -0700

Supreme Court Justice Souter will retire at the end of the term this June. Now begins the speculation: who will Obama pick to replace him? - Huffington Post
Detainees from Guantanamo Bay may soon be coming to US soil. - New York Times
Republicans have released a new branding ad that features the Pentagon burning on 9/11 and Obama's "bow" to the Saudi leader. - Politico
Actress Kristie Alley told Oprah that Michelle Obama's arms give her inspiration to lose weight. - People
Alarmist comments made by Vice President Joe Biden yesterday have stoked fears about swine flu. - CNN

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