So, we won. Or did we?
As David Cohen points out, Chicago theoretically won on both arguments. The margins can be interpreted more than one way. In essence, this case was an 8-1 loss for Gura's Privileges or Immunities argument. Given that Justice Thomas’ vote was for PorI, we can also see this as a 4-5 loss for Due Process incorporation.
I’m going to throw temperance to the wind for a moment and suggest that Clarence Thomas is the only Justice currently sitting with a spine.
We did achieve a very important philosophical victory, but the practical ramifications remain to be seen.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
McDonald v. Chicago, 5-4
The 7th Circuit's decision in McDonald v. Chicago has been reversed by the Supreme Court and remanded for further proceedings. That means we won.
To some extent, that is.
The ruling [pdf] was a narrow 5-4 decision, and the 2nd Amendment has been incorporated against the states through the Due Process clause of the 14th.
We get incorporation, but Slaughterhouse stands.
To some extent, that is.
The ruling [pdf] was a narrow 5-4 decision, and the 2nd Amendment has been incorporated against the states through the Due Process clause of the 14th.
We get incorporation, but Slaughterhouse stands.
Friday, June 25, 2010
McDonald v. Chicago: Come Monday
Monday is the last day for opinions, and the consensus seems to be that the opinion for McDonald v. Chicago will be written by Justice Alito.
From a 2nd Amendment perspective, this is a good thing. It may also be glad tidings for the 14th.
Jim March thinks that having Justice Alito author the opinion signals the Court's willingness to revive the Privileges or Immunities clause. I'd lost hope for that mechanism when I first parsed the oral arguments. Justice Scalia's naked rancor for the approach seemed to have doomed it in favor of Due Process.
However, Mr. March points out a couple of utterances from Justice Alito that I'd missed, including his invocation of Justice Harlan (the 1st), himself a champion of total incorporation. Alito has also been in agreement with Justice Thomas in the majority of cases, and Thomas has been an ardent defender of an originalist reading of the 14th Amendment.
I'm still not sure that the Court is ready to ignite a small revolution in jurisprudence, but I would love nothing more than to be proven wrong.
From a 2nd Amendment perspective, this is a good thing. It may also be glad tidings for the 14th.
Jim March thinks that having Justice Alito author the opinion signals the Court's willingness to revive the Privileges or Immunities clause. I'd lost hope for that mechanism when I first parsed the oral arguments. Justice Scalia's naked rancor for the approach seemed to have doomed it in favor of Due Process.
However, Mr. March points out a couple of utterances from Justice Alito that I'd missed, including his invocation of Justice Harlan (the 1st), himself a champion of total incorporation. Alito has also been in agreement with Justice Thomas in the majority of cases, and Thomas has been an ardent defender of an originalist reading of the 14th Amendment.
I'm still not sure that the Court is ready to ignite a small revolution in jurisprudence, but I would love nothing more than to be proven wrong.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
H.R. 5175
H.R. 5175, also known as the DISCLOSE Act, passed the House 219-206 yesterday. The NRA exemption is still intact, but this will affect a large spectrum of political groups.
It's unlikely it will be heard by the Senate before recess next week, but they will push for passage afterwards. Chambliss and Isakson have both assured me that they will be voting against it, but anyone outside of Georgia needs to get in touch with their Senators immediately regarding this.
Georgia Representatives who voted for the Act were Hank Johnson, John Lewis and David Scott. I find it inconceivable that we have nobody in those districts who would be opposed to the Act, yet my understanding from one Representative is that I was one of only three people to contact him regarding it.
For all the chest-beating and screaming about it, nobody's actually doing anything. Given all the "I'm not going to take it any more" slogans I get chanted at me all day, it's blatantly obvious that most of these people can't even get off the couch to call their Congressmen.
This is how we lose.
H.R. 1575 a callous, cynical, arrogant measure designed to thwart the very idea of "fairness" that its advocates claim they lost with the Citizens United decision. Even though it can be challenged (and likely overturned) in court, that won't take place until after this year's midterm elections.
Which is just long enough to help the re-election prospects of those who sponsored it.
It's unlikely it will be heard by the Senate before recess next week, but they will push for passage afterwards. Chambliss and Isakson have both assured me that they will be voting against it, but anyone outside of Georgia needs to get in touch with their Senators immediately regarding this.
Georgia Representatives who voted for the Act were Hank Johnson, John Lewis and David Scott. I find it inconceivable that we have nobody in those districts who would be opposed to the Act, yet my understanding from one Representative is that I was one of only three people to contact him regarding it.
For all the chest-beating and screaming about it, nobody's actually doing anything. Given all the "I'm not going to take it any more" slogans I get chanted at me all day, it's blatantly obvious that most of these people can't even get off the couch to call their Congressmen.
This is how we lose.
H.R. 1575 a callous, cynical, arrogant measure designed to thwart the very idea of "fairness" that its advocates claim they lost with the Citizens United decision. Even though it can be challenged (and likely overturned) in court, that won't take place until after this year's midterm elections.
Which is just long enough to help the re-election prospects of those who sponsored it.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Wait...what?
Just yesterday, the Gun Owners of America was castigating the NRA for supposedly "selling out" other gun organizations by carving themselves an exemption from the provisions of HR 5175 (also known as the DISCLOSE Act). Today, they're taking credit for killing the thing. Go figure.
The NRA's "carve out" exemption was the poison pill that killed the act. The 1st Amendment is at best a tangential issue for the NRA, but in this case, they had to get involved to protect the interests of their membership. Getting directly involved in a 1st Amendment battle takes them a bit off the reservation, but tainting the bill with an exemption that was bound to offend its sponsors was a good strategy.
It may be cynical, but it works. Two years in a row, sponsors of the DC Voting Rights Act have chosen to abandon efforts at passage rather than accept reforms to the District's onerous gun laws.
If anything, this whole situation proves that the Blue Dogs are still active, and that they've got a healthy fear of the NRA.
Of course, those with little or no understanding of politics didn't get this. Even Cleta Mitchell, for whom I now regret voting, had to jump in and cry foul. It's truly depressing how many people will nip at the NRA's heels while happily riding their coattails.
The NRA's "carve out" exemption was the poison pill that killed the act. The 1st Amendment is at best a tangential issue for the NRA, but in this case, they had to get involved to protect the interests of their membership. Getting directly involved in a 1st Amendment battle takes them a bit off the reservation, but tainting the bill with an exemption that was bound to offend its sponsors was a good strategy.
It may be cynical, but it works. Two years in a row, sponsors of the DC Voting Rights Act have chosen to abandon efforts at passage rather than accept reforms to the District's onerous gun laws.
If anything, this whole situation proves that the Blue Dogs are still active, and that they've got a healthy fear of the NRA.
Of course, those with little or no understanding of politics didn't get this. Even Cleta Mitchell, for whom I now regret voting, had to jump in and cry foul. It's truly depressing how many people will nip at the NRA's heels while happily riding their coattails.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Autechre: Move of Ten
Only three months, and we've got the EP to accompany Oversteps. Thank goodness Bleep is doing American distribution. With the dollar the way it is, this would have been about $623.95 if I'd ordered it from England.
No record is worth that much unless it has Tiny Tim. We've got a recession going here, and we have to hitch a ride with the Russians just to get into orbit these days. I mean, really. One has to have priorities.
But, is it worth ten bucks? Definitely.
No record is worth that much unless it has Tiny Tim. We've got a recession going here, and we have to hitch a ride with the Russians just to get into orbit these days. I mean, really. One has to have priorities.
But, is it worth ten bucks? Definitely.
Friday, June 11, 2010
S&W SD Series
The SD9 and SD40 are Smith & Wesson's most recent polymer pistols. Their price places them squarely between the Sigma and M&P, which would be around $420 on the street.
The Sigma pistols are excellent guns for the money, but a few things have always been lacking. First off is the dreadful trigger pull, which is a long and uneven. They have plastic sights which are prone to breakage during adjustment, and the accessory rail is of proprietary design.
The SD pistols seem to address these issues. In fact, it appears that this model is simply an improved Sigma in many respects. What follows is a brief comparison.
The Sigma pistols are excellent guns for the money, but a few things have always been lacking. First off is the dreadful trigger pull, which is a long and uneven. They have plastic sights which are prone to breakage during adjustment, and the accessory rail is of proprietary design.
The SD pistols seem to address these issues. In fact, it appears that this model is simply an improved Sigma in many respects. What follows is a brief comparison.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Thursday, June 3, 2010
CZ P-01 Revisited
18 months now, ~2400 rounds, one failure. One, and that was with oddball 147gr subsonic ammunition. The pistol has fed nine separate factory defensive loadings and countless target loads without fail.
I continue to be quite pleased with it.
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