TresSugar

FL Judge: Droopy Drawers Are a Constitutional Right

TresSugar — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 12:00:00 PDT

In 2008, 72 percent of voters in Riviera Beach, FL, passed a ban on pants that ride below the waist exposing skin or underwear. But wait: turns out loose waistbands are a civil liberty. A judge ruled this week that the ordinance violated the 14th amendment of the constitution, because there was no legitimate government interest in the law regulating style.

The city argued that the ban on saggy pants wasn't based on sartorial concerns, but safety concerns, since residents could hide weapons in their loose-fitting clothes. The judge didn't buy that.

Police in various states around the country have cracked down on baggy pants. In Flint, MI, the new chief announced last year that he would begin arresting people with droopy drawers for indecency and make offenders face a $500 fine and up to three months in jail.

In addition to the judge in Florida, the laws have raised the concerns of the ACLU and the NAACP, which worry about the racial implications. They think the baggy ban has the potential to disproportionately target the black community.

Source

Two Out of Three Americans Living in Constitution-Free Zone

CitizenSugar — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 10:00:50 PDT

Welcome to the border - where anyone can be stopped and searched. It used to be just the point of entry along Canada and Mexico, but Homeland Security has taken an increasingly loose - or wide - interpretation of it. Now? It's a 100-mile radius that wraps around the border of the United States.

Oh yes. It’s called the Constitution-Free Zone by the ACLU. The concern is that it erodes the rights of the Fourth Amendment - the one that protects against unreasonable searches and seizes - for two-thirds of Americans. That's 197.4 million people, and pretty much all of New England.

Authority that the Constitution would have prohibited can now be exercised by the US Customs and Border Protection. It’s been setting up inland checkpoints where it typically questions citizenship; however, people have reported extended questioning and increased pressure to permit searches.

Many are calling for congress to investigate and pass new laws to protect Americans before things go too far. Do you fear it will? Or are you glad to see a protective barrier ringing the country regardless?

The Decider Says He Doesn't Have to Follow Certain Laws

LibertySugar — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 11:00:39 PDT

After signing two bills into law this week, President Bush said that he could bypass numerous parts of the laws. In a signing statement Bush said a military authorization act and a measure giving inspectors general greater independence from the White House unlawfully constrained the president's constitutional powers.

So which parts will Bush ignore?

A section forbidding money from being used "to exercise United States control of the oil resources of Iraq."
A section requiring negotiations for an agreement by which Iraq would share some of the costs of the American military operation.
Two sections strengthening legal protections against political interference with internal watchdog officials at executive agencies.

The past 42 presidents have issued 600 signing statements combined while Bush himself has put out 1,100. Legal scholars assert that Bush's disobedience contradicts the rule of law, and the separations of power between Congress and the president. Do you think the next president will follow Bush's signing statements, or go even further by following his example of issuing many more signing statements?

Source

Do Tell: What Would you Change?

DearSugar — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 08:30:00 PDT

The Constitution was instated in its original form in 1787 and its contents continually spark conversation and debate about the American ways. When political or moral conversation gets heated, we always add in our two cents, and most times much more. But what if you could actually change the laws on the issues you don't agree with? What if you could single handedly abolish, add, or reconstruct any aspect of the American Constitution? Ladies, do tell, what would you alter?

Source

Drug Testing in Public Schools, A Good Idea?

FitSugar — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 03:00:00 PST

We have all heard about random drug testing in our respective places of employment and in professional sports, but what about in public schools?

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy recently announced that it would be holding four regional summits promoting random student drug testing in public middle and high schools. The program, which has actually already been implemented in almost 1,000 schools across the country, requires that kids submit to random drug testing if they would like to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities. The tests would be looking for cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy, opium-based substances, oxycontin and steroids.

Do you guys think random drug testing in our schools is a good idea?

Obama Corrects Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Clarifies His View on Gay Marriage

Annie Scudder — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:35:19 PDT

President Obama came on The View today to talk hot topics, specifically gay marriage. The ladies on the show made for supportive hosts, as even the most conservative of the bunch, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, has voiced support for equal marriage rights in the past. Even so, Elisabeth challenged the president to explain how his position of letting the states define marriage differs from Mitt Romney's. She said, "at this point, you both said leave it to the states to decide." Obama was ready to respond, saying, "Elisabeth, that's actually not true," pointing out that Mitt Romney favors a federal constitutional amendment that would define marriage as between a man and a woman. Obama also promised that gay marriage would provide a big contrast between him and his GOP rival. Watch the clip, and tell us if you think Obama's smart to make gay marriage a campaign issue.

President Obama Backs Gay Marriage

Annie Scudder — Wed, 09 May 2012 12:19:00 PDT

President Obama has become the first US president in office to support gay marriage explicitly. In an interview with ABC's Robin Roberts, yet to air, Obama comes out in favor of full marriage rights for same-sex couples. The move could be politically complicated, as it comes the day after voters in North Carolina - an important swing state - passed a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. The president said:

"I have to tell you that over the course of several years as I have talked to friends and family and neighbors when I think about members of my own staff who are in incredibly committed monogamous relationships, same-sex relationships, who are raising kids together, when I think about those soldiers or airmen or marines or sailors who are out there fighting on my behalf and yet feel constrained, even now that Don't Ask Don't Tell is gone, because they are not able to commit themselves in a marriage, at a certain point I’ve just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be able to get married."

Previously, the president has had a complicated relationship with the issue. We have a rundown of Barack Obama's quotes on gay marriage over the years. They ranged from "I believe marriage is between a man and a woman," to "my feelings about this are constantly evolving." Well today those feelings evolved into full support of equal marriage rights for same-sex couples. What do you make of the president's move?

Obama's Complicated Relationship With Gay Marriage

Tara Block — Tue, 08 May 2012 11:25:00 PDT

The Obama administration has had a rocky relationship with its stance on gay marriage, so our interest was piqued at Joe Biden's recent comments in support of same-sex marriage. On Meet the Press the vice president said:

"I am absolutely comfortable with the fact that men marrying men, women marrying women and heterosexual - men and women marrying - are entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil rights, all the civil liberties. And quite frankly, I don't see much of a distinction beyond that."

While Biden has made his stance on the issue clear, Barack Obama hasn't always been forthright in his support of gay marriage. And while he's been quoted as saying he's "evolving" in regards to gay marriage, looking at his track record we have to wonder toward which direction? And things have only gotten more complicated during this election season, when he's trying to appease liberals along with the swing voters. Not only do conservative and working-class groups oppose same-sex marriage, many of his African American supporters do, too. But what has Obama actually said on the issue? Here are some of his quotes on gay marriage:

1996: "I favor legalizing same-sex marriages, and would fight efforts to prohibit such marriages." - questionnaire
2004: "I am a fierce supporter of domestic-partnership and civil-union laws. I am not a supporter of gay marriage as it has been thrown about, primarily just as a strategic issue." - Windy City Times interview
2006: "I agree with most Americans, with Democrats and Republicans, with Vice President Cheney, with over 2,000 religious leaders of all different beliefs, that decisions about marriage, as they always have, should be left to the states." - Federal Marriage Amendment speech
2007: "I will appeal any proposal to amend the U.S. constitution to ban gays and lesbians from marrying. I know how important the issue of equal rights is to the LGBT community. I share your sense of urgency." - speech opposing Defense of Marriage Act
2008: "As the Democratic nominee for President, I am proud to join with and support the LGBT community in an effort to set our nation on a course that recognizes LGBT Americans with full equality under the law." - letter to the Alice B. Toklas LGBT Democratic Club
2008: "I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. I am not in favor of gay marriage." - MTV interview
2010: "I am a strong supporter of civil unions. I have been to this point unwilling to sign on to same-sex marriage primarily because of my understandings of the traditional definitions of marriage. . . . attitudes evolve, including mine. And I think that it is an issue that I wrestle with and think about . . . I think it's fair to say that it's something that I think a lot about." - interview with liberal bloggers
2010: "My feelings about this are constantly evolving. This is something that we're going to continue to debate, and I personally am going to continue to wrestle with going forward." - TV speech

If he's going to call himself a supporter of the LGBT community, do you think it's time for Obama to commit to the gay marriage cause?

What Has Today Show Guest Host Sarah Palin Been Up to Lately?

Annie Scudder — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 02:00:21 PDT

Almost four years after Sarah Palin told Katie Couric she couldn't recall the specific newspapers she reads, the two are going head to head again. This morning, Sarah and Katie are hosting rival morning shows. Liberal-media critic Sarah is this morning's guest host on NBC's Today, while longtime Today show host Katie is cohosting ABC's Good Morning America all week. No, this is not a leftover April Fools' Day joke. If you turned on your TV this morning to see Sarah Palin and wondered what she's been up to lately, here is a rundown.

Keeping up the heat on Obama. She may be out of politics officially, but you can still count on Sarah Palin to weigh in on the day's politics. Last week Sarah said, "President Obama will have ‘more flexibility’ to weaken us if he’s reelected in November."
Backing up Santorum. When GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum accused a New York Times reporter of "bullsh*t" Sarah had his back. She said, “Welcome to my world, Rick, and good on ya."
Handling the Game Change drama. Last month, HBO released its high-profile movie about the 2008 campaign, Game Change, with Julianne Moore playing Sarah Palin. In response, Sarah wrote to ABC News: “I believe my family has the right priorities and knows what really matters/ For instance, our son called from Afghanistan yesterday and he sounded good, and that’s what matters. Being in the good graces of Hollywood’s ‘Team Obama’ isn’t top of my list."
Keeping up with her Facebook friends. If you follow Sarah Palin's Facebook page, you can count on a steady stream of musings. On March 24, she wrote a Facebook note claiming that Alaskan women don't tolerate sexism, titled Last Frontier Women Don’t Tolerate Misogynists. "I personally do not seek an apology from these narrow-minded men. With a full family and productive 'to-do' list everyday, I just don’t have time for them. But I do feel sorry for them and for their obvious need to compensate for something that’s missing in their own lives, which compels them to belittle others in order to feel big," Sarah quipped.
Working for Fox. It's somewhat surprising Sarah Palin is going on NBC, considering she's been a contributor for Fox News. Just last week, she wrote an op-ed on Fox Nation, titled God, Guns, the Constitution – Still Clinging.
Being nominated for a Razzie. At this past weekend's Razzies, Sarah was nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award as worst actress on account of her performance in the documentary The Undefeated, which chronicled her political career. She lost to Jack and Jill, which took home every single Razzie.

Witness a Wild Week at Crufts!

Sara Yoo — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 04:00:00 PDT

Yesterday's best in show judging capped off four days of canine cavorting at the 2012 Crufts Dog Show in Birmingham, England. One of the largest dog events in the world, this year's Crufts saw more than 21,000 canines compete for best in show alone. But Crufts is so much more than an arena dog show: the event boasts contests for obedience, agility, flyball, cross-country, and heelwork set to music as well as demonstrations galore that showcase the breadth of roles dogs play in our lives. This year, the UK's Kennel Club introduced stringent vet checks to ensure that all best of breed contenders demonstrated only the healthiest features and constitutions. As a result, 15 breeds were disqualified from this year's competition.

In the end, it was a lovely Lhasa Apso named Elizabeth who won over the judges for the best in show prize, with second place going to Brutus, a Newfoundland from Slovakia. Ready to check out the action at this year's Crufts? Check out our slideshow!