In 2006 as the Human Rights Council was being set up, I wrote an opinion piece on this website in which I shared, among other aspects, my impressions as to how the Council would shape up. Experience thus far produced mixed assessment. The transition from the Commission to the Council took a couple of years, [...]
Search Results for: 2015-10-18
Controlling Nuclear Risks: A Basic Obligation of U.S, Law and Policy
Abstract: In principle, especially during a rare historical moment of extra-terrestrial exploration and immunological control, our species ought to render itself capable of managing nuclear threats. Prima facie, after all, the difficulties of transporting complex instrumentation to Mars and simultaneously fashioning effective vaccines against deadly pathogens should exceed even the most complex challenges of international peace. Nonetheless, [...]
Federal grand jury indicts six members of Oath Keepers in connection to US capitol attack
A federal grand jury on Friday indicted six new members of the Oath Keepers, a right-wing extremist group, for conspiring to prevent Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory. The six members were arrested earlier this week and were included as co-defendants in a superseding indictment alleging that the individuals joined in a [...]
A Miscarriage of Justice: The Pleaing of Tony DeDolph and the Elusion of Accountability
On January 23, 2021, Chief Petty Officer Tony DeDolph of the U.S. Navy Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) was sentenced to ten years in prison for the involuntary manslaughter of Staff Sergeant Logan Melgar of the U.S. Army Green Berets. DeDolph, “pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit assault, involuntary manslaughter, hazing, and obstruction of justice,” [...]
I. Introduction Much of U.S. governance is held together by goodwill, unwritten norms, and the ideals that “that would never happen” and “no one would ever do that.” Every hope of continued reliance on these norms was “shattered” on January 6, 2021, when armed insurrectionists invaded the U.S. Capitol. Under the direction of the President, [...]
The Abolitionist Law Center published a report Tuesday highlighting racial disparities in Pittsburgh policing. The report shows that in 2019, Black people accounted for 43.6 percent of traffic stops and 71.4 percent of all frisks, though Black people only account for 23.2 percent of the city’s population. The report also shows that Black people also [...]
On November 25, 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States issued an emergency opinion in the case of Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, New York, v. Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of New York (Application No. 20A87) ostensibly to protect the freedom of religion. The 5 to 4 decision appealing denials of a stay from [...]
The Indian economic model for defence expenditure relies heavily on Foreign Direct Investment or ‘FDI’ and for a country that spends 1.6% of its GDP on its defence, India meets more than 90% of essential requirements via imports whereas 30% of the total budget is spent on capital acquisitions. In light of the recent Indo-China [...]
Section 144 and the Pandemic: A Look at Freedom of Speech in Mumbai
The spread of fake news and misinformation during the pandemic has been unprecedented. Governments have been prompted to take measures to curb this spread in order to quell panic amongst the public. One such measure was taken by Mumbai Police by promulgating a prohibitory order under Section 144 of India’s Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). [...]
In the present confirmation hearings, I would like someone to ask Judge Barrett a question left unanswered by Justice Scalia, her mentor: 1. What influence does the fact that many of the founders and framers were slave owners have on your originalist views? And then I would like to ask a follow-up: 2. What is [...]