Police in Turkey were cracking down Saturday on protesters who returned to Taksim Square, a site that has been the subject of protests for over a month. Reports indicate that police are using water cannons and tear gas against the protesters.
From the Associated Press:
Police on...
Posted by David Gerstman
on July 06, 201317 Comments
1) Debating the coup at the New York Times
Much of the editorial opinion and some of the reporting in the mainstream media has opposed the Egyptian military's forcible removal of Mohammed Morsi as President of Egypt. Actually, surprisingly, there's a debate about it on the opinion pages of the New York Times. It's surprising because the reporting of the New York Times has been skeptical of the Tamarod, the protest movement that sought Morsi's resignation. It's doubly surprising because the New York Times isn't usually known for offering a diversity of opinion.
On the one side there's an unsigned editorial, and an op-ed by Shadi Hamid. But perhaps the clearest anti-protest expression came from Samer Shehata, In Egypt, Democrats vs. Liberals.
Egypt has a dilemma: its politics are dominated by democrats who are not liberals and liberals who are not democrats.
In this case, the favored democrats are defined narrowly as the group that has won an election, but ignoring how it behaved once it achieved power.
On the other side are Roger Cohen and David Brooks. But the clearest anti-Morsi sentiment came from Sara Khorshid, A Coup, but Backed by the People.
Make no mistake: there is no democracy under military rule. Yet I supported the June 30 protests knowing that military rule was imminent, because Mr. Morsi’s rule had not been democratic, either.
Throughout the year of his presidency, protesters who opposed him were violently crushed by the police and by Muslim Brotherhood members. He supported the Interior Ministry in its violent tactics against demonstrators and failed to investigate incidents in which protesters were killed. Journalists and activists were arrested, and the president issued an edict giving him immunity from judicial review. The presidential election, conducted without a clear legal framework, was not enough to make Mr. Morsi’s rule democratic.
Despite Mr. Morsi’s constant claims that someone was undermining his efforts, his actions always seemed aimed at extending the Muslim Brotherhood’s domination of state institutions. He was in constant conflict with the judiciary, most recently with a proposal to lower the retirement age to clear the way for the appointment of his allies.
The nature of the Muslim Brotherhood seems to have been grasped by David Brooks, but not Roger Cohen.
Posted by William A. Jacobson
on July 06, 2013304 Comments
Considering the wonderful job Andrew Branca has done covering the George Zimmerman trial, I've been relegated to something approaching potted plant status here.
It ain't broke, so I ain't gonna fix that. But I will weigh in with my own thoughts on the case and the...
Posted by William A. Jacobson
on July 06, 20134 Comments
The Great Unpaid:
The Joke’s on NBC: SNL interns join class action suit seeking unpaid wages
American U. Student: Unpaid internships exacerbate inequality
U. of Arizona Student: Paid internships should be the rule, not the exception
(from the Legal Insurrection archives) Elizabeth Warren pays interns $0 per hour
Are about...
Posted by William A. Jacobson
on July 06, 20138 Comments
If you are reading this on a Saturday over a holiday weekend then the video below from Legal Insurrection reader and sometimes commenter Bill Dyszel probably applies to you.
You may remember Bill from these classics previously featured here:
Top 10 Patriotic Junk Food Songs
Mercurial Redemption, An...
Posted by Andrew Branca
on July 05, 2013811 Comments
Today began with the expectation that it would the the day on which the State rested its case. That proved true, and it was. It was also among the most bizarre and disturbing days of a lengthy trial full to the brim with bizarre and disturbing days.
Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin's Mother
The first State witness of the day was, as anticipated Sybrina Fulton. She had two missions for her appearance: (1) identify the screamer in the background of the Jenna Lauer 911 recording as her son, Trayvon Martin; and (2) avoid saying anything nice about the reputation or character of her son that would open the door to the defense introducing into evidence Martin's history of violence and drug use. She accomplished both.
There was never, of course, any question that she would say exactly that, nor that the defense would fail to point out the suggestive conditions in which the identification initially took place--in the Mayor's office, surrounded by family and family lawyers/advisors, and without any law enforcement officer present. Ms. Fulton's credibility was also substantively damaged when she claimed that she had not known before hearing the tape that it was believed to contain the sound of her son's last, desperate screams. That the persons responsible for playing that tape would not have prepared her beforehand for the shock--to not do so could only be described as monstrous.
Jahvaris Fulton, Trayvon Martin's Half-brother
Next up was Martin's half-brother, Jahvaris Fulton, also a son of Sybrina Fulton. He testified on the stand that the screamer was Trayvon Martin. On cross-examination, as so often has happened to State witnesses, the credibility of his testimony quickly vanished. Defense counsel O'Mara pointed out that two weeks after first hearing the recording played Jahvaris was still stating to reporters that he wasn't sure that the recorded screams were those of Trayvon. When pressed, his answers became a series of "don't know," "not sure, " can't remember," almost as if he'd been pushed outside the boundaries of the coaching for his testimony.
Note: You may reprint this cartoon provided you link back to this source. To see more Legal Insurrection Branco cartoons, click here. Branco’s page is Cartoonist A.F.Branco
[caption id="attachment_57795" align="alignnone" width="590"] Hollywood to Promote Obama-care[/caption]...
A Health Ministry official indicated that ten people have been killed in clashes between Morsi supporters and opponents as demonstrations continued across Egypt today, according to the Associated Press.
A Health Ministry official says 10 people have been killed and 210 wounded in clashes around the...
As the US prepares to meet with China next week, recent leaks by Edward Snowden appear to have put cybersecurity talks in jeopardy.
From The Hill:
The Obama administration had hoped to press China on the issue during the fifth round of the U.S.-China Strategic & Economic...
Posted by David Gerstman
on July 05, 201326 Comments
As Mandy Nagy previously noted here, the employer mandate of the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as ObamaCare, will now be delayed until 2015.
The decision to delay Obamacare's employer mandate could cost the U.S. billions: http://t.co/bzOYrJAYj3— MarketWatch (@MarketWatch) July 4, 2013
News of the O-care employer...
Posted by Andrew Branca
on July 05, 2013869 Comments
I trust that everyone had a safe and satisfying celebration of the birthday of the greatest nation on earth yesterday, and that no fireworks were left unexpended (if any were left unexpended, deduct 10% from "man-card"--and for Pete's sake, don't tell anybody).
Today we will again be covering the Zimmerman Trial live, all day, with streaming video. Continuing commentary will be posted in the Twitter feed of selected contributors below the first video feed, and breaking news will be added at the bottom of this post.
During the lunch recess, or immediately thereafter, we will post a mid-day update. We'll then follow up with the usual detailed end-of-day wrap up, including video and embedded Tweets, at the usual time in the evening.
ALERT! Court started at 8:40AM, early than expected. Trayvon Martin's mother, Sabryna Fulton, is currently on the stand. It is anticipated that the State will finish with the last of its witnesses today and rest its case. At that point I expect the defense will submit a motion for a directed verdict, Judge Nelson will deny the motion, and the defense will begin to present its case.
Yesterday I posted up a general review of the trial to date, with some prognostication of how things may role out in the coming days. To take a look at that, click here:
(NOTE: If you do wander over to the LOSD blog, be sure to come back to Legal Insurrection to comment, as nearly all my time is spent here for the duration of the trial.)
Live Stream Video
WITH COMMENTARY FROM CHANNEL 9 IN SANFORD
[For live-stream video without commentary, see NBC live feed at bottom of this post.]
Posted by William A. Jacobson
on July 05, 201311 Comments
(Live video and Twitter feeds at bottom of post.)
In the past two years the Muslim Brotherhood has shown the ability to put millions of people on the street.
They have called for a day of protest today over the removal of Mohamed Morsi from office.
We'll have live coverage and updates.
This AP article gives interesting background on how Morsi was removed, and how it was clear it would happen two weeks ago, In his final days, Morsi was isolated but defiant:
In the end, Egypt's first freely elected president found himself isolated, with allies abandoning him and no one in the army or police willing to support him.
Even his Republican Guards simply stepped away as army commandos came to take him to an undisclosed Defense Ministry facility....
The African Union has suspended Egypt, and Turkey -- which has an Islamist political party in power and has seen protests -- is in the lead in condemning the removal of Morsi.
Updates:
https://twitter.com/michaelkbusch/statuses/353148522872320001
https://twitter.com/hany2m/statuses/353158875882590209
https://twitter.com/Truthcaller/statuses/353162001356292096
Hi, Prof. J:
Attached is a photo snapped at our local 4th of July parade (Chicago suburb). I think these guys are the same homegrown Occupiers that I usually see protesting across from our library every Saturday afternoon. They also had a placard that said something about keeping corporate money out of politics. However, they failed to have a corresponding one for union money and politics :)
Keep up the good work -
Loyal LI reader JL
Posted by Andrew Branca
on July 04, 2013270 Comments
As the State prepares to rest its case against George Zimmerman as early as tomorrow, I can’t help but juxtapose where we ought to be in terms of the weight of evidence of Zimmerman’s guilt of second degree murder, and contrast it with where we...
The Fourth of July weekend is a perfect time to spend with friends and family, especially when you can mix in a little history and entertainment. I thought it might be helpful to round up a few good lists out there to make eating and...
Posted by William A. Jacobson
on July 04, 201330 Comments
(Live video and Twitter feeds at Muslim Brotherhood “Day of Rejection” in Egypt.)
Kind of back to the future, considering how Mubarak cracked down on the Muslim Brotherhood for decades.
There may be elections in the future, but the military seems intend on weakening the MB in the interim, via NBC News:
A crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood movement got underway in Egypt Thursday with the arrest of several leading members following the military overthrow of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi and his replacement by a top judge.
A leading member of the Muslim Brotherhood warned ouster of Morsi, a member of the movement, could prompt some groups to resort to violence, though he said the Brotherhood would not do so.
The deposed president was under house arrest at the Republican Guard Club and that most members of presidential team had also been placed under house arrest, a Brotherhood spokesman said.
Judge Tharwat Hammad said Thursday that judicial authorities had opened an investigation into accusations Morsi and eight other senior leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood had defamed the judiciary. A travel ban was imposed on all of them. The prosecutor expects to question Morsi some time next week.
A prosecutor also ordered the arrest of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Supreme Guide Mohammed Badie, and a top deputy, Khairat el-Shater, for allegedly ordering the killing of protesters outside of the Brotherhood’s headquarters on Sunday, judicial sources said.
https://twitter.com/Steiner1776/status/352819060058238976
Al-Jazeera's offices were shut, as it was seen as sympathetic to Morsi:
https://twitter.com/leloveluck/status/352818178017083396
Other MB television and media channels have been shut as well.
According to the Iranians, Morsi's biggest mistake was not taking full control of the military and security services, via Fox News:
Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of the Iranian parliament's Committee on National Security and Foreign Policy, said Morsi "mistakenly" failed to reshape Egypt's powerful military and other security agencies.
"The first mistake by the ... Brotherhood was that they thought they would be able to conclude the revolution only by toppling Hosni Mubarak," he said, adding that Morsi also failed to solve key economic problems in Egypt.
It remains to be seen whether the MB will try to exert itself on the streets. Consider it likely.
https://twitter.com/Bazramit/status/352818569714741248
