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Author: William A. Jacobson

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William A. Jacobson

William A. Jacobson is a Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Securities Law Clinic at Cornell Law School.

He is a 1981 graduate of Hamilton College and a 1984 graduate of Harvard Law School. At Harvard he was Senior Editor of the Harvard International Law Journal and Director of Litigation for the Harvard Prison Legal Assistance Project.

Prior to joining the Cornell law faculty in 2007, Professor Jacobson had a highly successful civil litigation and arbitration practice in Providence, Rhode Island, concentrating in investment, employment, and business disputes in the securities industry, including many high profile cases reported in leading newspapers and magazines.

Professor Jacobson has argued cases in numerous federal and state courts, including the Courts of Appeal for the First, Fifth and Sixth Circuits, and the Rhode Island Supreme Court.

Professor Jacobson has a national reputation as a leading practitioner in securities arbitration. He was Treasurer, and is a former member of the Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association, a professional organization of attorneys dedicated to protecting public investors. He frequently is quoted in national media on issues related to investment fraud and investor protection, and in the past has served as one of a small number of private practice attorneys who trained new arbitrators for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

Professor Jacobson is co-author of the Securities Arbitration Desk Reference (Thomson-Reuters), updated annually.

Professor Jacobson is frequently quoted in the media on political and legal topics, has authored many Op-Eds in major publications, and appears on television and radio to discuss politics and the law.

A more complete listing of Professor Jacobson's professional background is available at the Cornell Law School website. The views expressed here are his own and not those of any employer or organization,

The best way to reach Prof. Jacobson is by e-mail here.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 19, 2013 29 Comments
He was acquitted of corruption charges. Somehow I doubt that would have happened but for the non-coup coup. The most recent reports are that he will be released within 48 hours. https://twitter.com/CBSNews/status/369417801930264576 Remember, Obama told Mubarak to leave "yesterday" rather than allow the 9 month transition Mubarak was suggesting. It was an error we criticized at the time because the only political party at the time with the organization to win an election was the Muslim Brotherhood. The more secular and civil elements of society did not have time to make up for lost ground, and the rest is history. The anti-democratic MB won the elections and proceeded to act like everyone predicted. Now we're almost back to square one. https://twitter.com/EslamMouniir/status/369442004586868736 Updates to follow. https://twitter.com/AlArabiya_Urdu/status/369439753734590464 The Sinai continues to spin out of control, with 24 Egyptian policemen killed in an ambush near the Gaza border, which Egypt has now closed. There are reports they were executed: https://twitter.com/nycjim/status/369409135483183104 Don't be surprised if Egypt ends up attacking Gaza, which the MB now uses as a safe haven and also is the home to even more extremist Islamist groups.

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 18, 2013 8 Comments

From Phillip: This was found in the parking lot of a supermarket near downtown Dallas. Oak Lawn section of Dallas. ...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 17, 2013 20 Comments
Remember when Joan Walsh of non-tokenist Salon.com kicked off an intra-progressive Twitter war after writing:
“I deeply resent people who insist that white progressives who criticize Obama are deluding themselves that they’re his ‘base,’ when his ‘base’ is actually not white progressives, but people of color.”
Sure you do, Dem Base Fractures Into Twitter War And Charges Of Racism Against Professional Left: https://twitter.com/joanwalsh/status/55783212164718592 http://twitter.com/joanwalsh/status/55841811423436800 http://twitter.com/joanwalsh/status/55795875955478528 Nothing brings out the popcorn faster at LI than intra-progressive racial grievances. And this past week possibly was the largest bucket of popcorn ever seen upon the face of the Earth, with the hashtag #SolidarityIsForWhiteWomen.   vid-spacer The guy they're talking about, Hugo Schwyzer, also is known as the Pasadena Porn Professor, who we have covered at College Insurrection, and you can read more about at The Other McCain. (By this point you're thinking, this is the weirdest Saturday Night Card Game post ever.) However it started, as convoluted as it was, the result was pure hysteria (via Al Jazeera)(click on the date of each tweet to see responses to it, some of which were more "interesting" than the tweet itself):

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 17, 2013 7 Comments

First they came for the "Israel Lobby," but I didn't speak out, because I didn't want to be called an ISLAMOPHOBE! George Mason U. Student: “Jews had their golden age under Muslim rule” Then they came for Florida Atlantic University, but I didn't speak out, because it already tops the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 17, 2013 12 Comments

Not you. Your economy.  Try growing it.  It's the only chance you have left in Obamerica. From KK: Taken in a State Park in WV...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 16, 2013 14 Comments
NOTE - This post will be updated throughout the day, with "breaking" news at the top, other updates below, and the live streams at the bottom: After several hundred people were killed yesterday, the Muslim Brotherhood has called for "Friday of Anger" protests across the country. https://twitter.com/PGrandperrin/status/368498324271165441 https://twitter.com/ladams828/status/368430215657033729 https://twitter.com/ABC/status/368408526969794561 https://twitter.com/assem21/status/368429998287630336 https://twitter.com/BuzzFeedNews/status/368429296165322753 https://twitter.com/RichardEngel/status/368404153199915008

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 16, 2013 9 Comments

Dick Durbin earned the nickname Turban Durbin when he compared U.S. soldiers to Nazis in 2005, a verbal example of Godwin's law: As an online discussion grows longer, the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Hitler approaches one Norbie remembered it: Snapped this pic at a red light on...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 15, 2013 6 Comments
We predicted this would happen when Hezbollah intervened on behalf of Assad in Syria, including the conquest of Qusayr, and the ongoing battles in Homs and Aleppo. Hezbollah's chief, Hassan Nasrallah, openly bragged that Hezbollah was in Syria to the bitter end. The death toll is rising at this writing, so keep track at the Twitter feed at the bottom of the post. From The Daily Star of Lebanon, Car bomb kills 10 in Beirut southern suburb:
A car bomb killed at least 10 people in the southern suburb of Beirut Thursday, a stronghold of Hezbollah, security sources told The Daily Star. The sources said at least 30 people were also wounded in the blast on the main road between Rwais and Bir al-Abed, a neighborhood of the southern suburb that in July was the target of a similar car explosion. Caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel confirmed that the blast was the result of car explosion. TV footage showed scores of residents screaming while trying to flee the carnage with dozens of cars in flames and other extensive damage in the area. Emergency response teams rushed to the scene of the blast that caused thick plumes of smoke to fill the sky over the Lebanese capital. Over 50 people were wounded on July 9 after a car bomb ripped through the Bir al-Abed neighborhood of the southern suburb of Beirut, in an incident widely linked to the crisis in neighboring Syria.
NOW Lebanon has live coverage. Car Bomb Beirut NOW Lebanon screen shot https://twitter.com/RT_com/status/368047408308944896 https://twitter.com/yesimcf/status/368049589481263104

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 15, 2013 52 Comments

Larry Sabato came out with his rankings of presidential contenders today. I was going to write about the downgrade of Marco Rubio, but that's old news. More interesting is the rankings of Democrats. There is no "First Tier" other than Hillary. The drop from Hillary to Joe...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 15, 2013 9 Comments
NOTE - This post will be updated throughout the day, with "breaking" news at the top, other updates below, and the live streams at the bottom: BREAKING - OBAMA STATEMENT - Condemns violence, cancels joint military exercise, but no aid cutoff:

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

--------------- The death toll from yesterday's violence has risen to over 500, including numerous policemen. https://twitter.com/haaretzcom/status/367962951564525568 It's also becoming clear that the Muslim Brotherhood fired weapons on police who sought to evict the protester's encampment, which likely contributed to the high death toll as police responded with live fire (video via WaPo): Attacks on Christian churches by Islamists also have spread (list here).

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 15, 2013 5 Comments

Saw a lot of these in 2012. But now that he's reelected, displaying one of these may be deemed a capital offense. So ride 'em cowboy, while you still can. From Nanette: I LOVE Texas!! My favorite so far this year!!! ...

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