Assignments for December, 2008

Class will be held at 6:00PM, Monday, December 1, 2008, in Ev 104, unless you are otherwise notified by the instructor via email

Read  Chapter 7 from Sullivan, the required text.

All Short, Written Assignments are now overdue.  This Monday’s Class will be your last opportunity to hand in late papers.

This class will be your last chance to ask any questions you may have about your research papers, which are due 6:00PM, Monday, December 8, 2008.

 

NOTE:  On December 15, 2008, I will hand back your corrected research papers.  The number grade will be your score for the research paper.  The letter grade will be your final grade for the class.  Upon receiving your papers and grades, you will complete a “Student Evaluation Form” .  All of this will be done in Ev 212 at 5:30PM.  Please note the change of time and place for this last class.

National Coalition Against Censorship

This site is an excellent starting point for current issues in censorship and free speech.

Of special interest is the film censorship history timeline.

November 24, 2008 Assignments

Class will be held at 6:00PM, Monday, November 24, 2008, in Ev 104.

Read Discussion Questions 5 and 6 of Chapter 2 from Sullivan, the required text.

I will be handing out the “Writing Styles Matrix” I promised you for your research papers.

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Third, Short Written Assignment:

The final exercise will require the construction of a “Works Cited” page for the research paper. There should be at least ten (10) entries in the proper format for both the entries and the page.

The intent of this exercise is to get you going on reading and researching your topics for your research papers. The ideal would be that you are already working on your first draft and have parenthetical references for each of the works cited.

I will review your assignment, correct the format, and comment on the sources you have chosen. This should provide you with feedback about your research for your paper. Are you using too many advocacy sites? Have you cited a parody in error? Are you finding what you need to address your topic?

The Third, Short Written Assignment is due November 24, 2008. Please….no more late papers.

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P.S. Please be prompt as we will have a faculty visitor with us for class.

District Court Orders Release of Five Guantanamo Bay Detainees

BOUMEDIENE V. BUSH – MEMORANDUM ORDER
(U.S. Dist. Ct., D.C. Dist., November 20, 2008) – The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled against the Bush administration by granting habeas corpus to five “enemy combatants” detained in Guantanamo Bay. The court order directed the government to immediately take all necessary and appropriate diplomatic efforts to facilitate the release of the prisoners.

Related Resources
• Judge Orders Release of 5 Terror Suspects at Gitmo
• The Supreme Court Opinion Clarifying Detainees’ Right to Petition for Habeas Corpus
• FindLaw’s Writ: How to Close Guantánamo in Six Steps
• FindLaw’s Writ on the Ordered Release of Detained Chinese Uiughurs

November 17, 2008–Assignments

Read Chapter 6 of Sullivan, the required text.

Those who have not done so must hand in their corrected, revised, or belated first attempt at the second, short, written assignment on Monday, November 17, 2008.

For those who are redoing this assignment, if you hand in nothing further, you will keep your failing grade. For those who have handed in nothing, you will receive “0″.

P.S. No one who said they would email their assignment has done so.

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Third, Short Written Assignment:

The final exercise will require the construction of a “Works Cited” page for the research paper. There should be at least ten (10) entries in the proper format for both the entries and the page.

The intent of this exercise is to get you going on reading and researching your topics for your research papers. The ideal would be that you are already working on your first draft and have parenthetical references for each of the works cited.

I will review your assignment, correct the format, and comment on the sources you have chosen. This should provide you with feedback about your research for your paper. Are you using too many advocacy sites? Have you cited a parody in error? Are you finding what you need to address your topic?

The Third, Short Written Assignment is due November 24, 2008. Please….no more late papers.

New York Amish Headed to Federal Court

From Prof. Patty Salkin’s “Law of the Land” blog:

 

Over the summer, this blog reported that a local justice court in upstate New York held that the enforcement of the building code for all residents, including the Amish, does not violate the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. Click here for the posting.

 

According to the Watertown Times, it now appears, that with the assistance of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, the Amish are about to file a claim in federal court (Northern District of New York) claiming that their religious beliefs are being violated by the Town forcing them to install smoke detectors in their homes, to submit engineering plans and to allow home inspections.  In March 2008 the Becket Fundsubmitted a letter to the Town outlining their analysis and charging selective enforcement of the building code against the Amish. Town officials claim that the building code is enforced for all residents in the Town and that neglecting to enforce the Code for Amish homes would be unfair to the rest of the residents in the Town.

Hannah’s Choice: Saying No to a New Heart

By NANCY GIBBS Time.com

Thursday, Nov. 13, 2008

Hannah Jones, 13, has turned down a lifesaving heart transplant to die at home with her family. (Read full text of article)

Long Island Hate Crime

Daily News (Karoliszyn et al): Long Island ‘lynch mob’ killed our American Dream

The brother of an Ecuadoran immigrant who was murdered on Long Island for being Hispanic said Monday his “American Dream” was crushed. His words came as the teenagers accused of killing 37-year-old Marcello Lucero were denounced in court as a “lynch mob” by a prosecutor. “Sometimes the dream comes true,” Lucero’s brother Josell said outside his Patchogue home. “Sometimes they take your life, like my brother.” Lucero, who was murdered late Saturday night, emigrated to the U.S. 16 years ago, toiled for a dry cleaner in Riverside and “was the support of my family,” his brother said. “I just want to get justice,” said Josell Lucero, 34. “I want these guys to stay in jail for a long time.” Gov. Paterson says he’s directed state law enforcers to give local officials whatever assistance they need “to ensure swift and certain justice for this heinous crime.” The feds also are monitoring the case.

See also:

NY Post (Algar et al): 7 TEENS STALKED MEXICANS: DA

November 10, 2008–Class Assignments–Late Assignments

Class will be held at 6:00PM, Monday, November 10, 2008, at Ev 104.

Please finish reading Chapter 5 of Sullivan, the required text.

Anyone who has not handed in his/her 2d short written assignment, please do so tomorrow.  Those of you who were permitted to redo their papers should also hand in the revised assignment.

FINDLAW: Challenge to California’s Same Sex Marriage Ban as Invalid Constitutional Revision

STRAUSS V. HORTON (Full Text of Petition)
(California Supreme Ct., Nov. 5, 2008) – Six same sex couples, along with Equity California, filed a petition for relief from the recently passed Proposition 8, which sought to change California’s Constitution by adding “only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” The suit argues that Proposition 8 is an invalid revision, rather than an amendment of California’s Constitution, which cannot be enacted through ballot initiative. Petitioners seek an immediate stay against enforcement of Prop 8 until its validity is determined.

Related Resources
• California Constitution Article 18 on Amending versus Revising the Constitution
• Same-Sex Marriage: A Historical Introduction
• March 2005 California Supreme Court Opinion Recognizing Same Sex Marriage Rights
• FindLaw Special Coverage: Same Sex Marriage