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Category Archives: Politics
Memory Hole or Bottomless Pit?
Down, down the memory hole we go. Where we stop, nobody knows. I was born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. Despite growing up in the capital of the Confederacy, and later attending Washington & Lee (as in “Robert E.”) University, I … Continue reading
What Was Lost
Today’s ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges represents the culmination of a perfectly executed public-relations campaign. It is impossible not to be impressed by what this activist-driven effort accomplished—I mean in real terms, not the unserious victory slogans of the campaign … Continue reading
Is Dylann Roof America Personified?
The horrific, racially motivated murder spree by Dylann Roof also served as a call to action for those who see the awful events of Wednesday night as corroboration of their core beliefs about the poisonous nature of American culture. Briefly, … Continue reading
The Debate Behind the Debate
The debate over Indiana’s version of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act has already taken some curious twists and turns. The initial response from opponents was to go to the playbook that has been so wildly successful over the past five … Continue reading
Let’s Talk About Oklahoma and Free Speech
With the news that University of Oklahoma President David Boren would be expelling two members of the SAE fraternity for singing a racial-slur-laden song, there has been an expected uptick in First Amendment experts in the comments sections of the … Continue reading
Fun with Offensive Trademarks
For no particular reason whatsoever, I thought it might be worthwhile to take some time to poke around the USPTO database. I wanted to see what potentially “disparaging,” “immoral,” or “scandalous” trademarks and service marks are still live in 2014. Here’s a … Continue reading
Posted in Commentary, Politics, Sports
Tagged Commentary, Free Speech, Intellectual Property, Offensiveness, Oneida, Politics, Racism?, Redskins, Sports, The First Amendment, Trademark, Washington Redskins
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A “Free Speech” Misconception
If there’s an upside to having to listen to national arguments about “offensive” ideas on a weekly basis, it’s this: The increasing frequency of those debates has highlighted a misguided point repeatedly made about “free speech.” The argument normally follows these … Continue reading
Why I Never Read the Comments Section
This is why I live by a “never read the comments section” rule. You can’t take too seriously what idiots on the Internet say. Why? Because the Internet makes people feel artificially disconnected, and that disconnect makes them behave in … Continue reading
Posted in Commentary, Politics, Sports, Videos
Tagged Commentary, Jimmy Fallon, Major League Baseball, New York Yankees, Politics, Robinson Cano, Seattle Mariners, Sports, The Tonight Show, Videos
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The Urge to Purge
As I’ve said before, the primitive desire to purge our society of anything that makes us feel bad—particularly things that relate to history—will continue, unabated, until people stand up and say “enough.” Consider this opinion piece in the Washington Post, headlined … Continue reading →