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As noted, my son died December 3, age 39, leaving me quite shot up. Now handling his probate, and among his assets were a storage area that contained virtually all the contents of his mother’s house in Virginia — she died of cancer in 2003. So I’m cleaning that out, sorting out the keepsakes from things to dispose of (the movers even packed up the cleaning supplies under sinks and a bottle of wine — probably not improved by 20 or so Arizona summers in a sheet metal storage area with no AC). A lot of stuff was handed down…
Continue Reading Just about functional, and….

Smith and Wesson vs. Estados Unitos Mexicanos, handed down today. It’s as smashing a loss as a case can take. 9-0. Justice Kagan, of the liberal wing, writes the opinion. Justice Jackson, also of that wing, writes a concurrence that essentially says, Justice Kagan was too nice to you legal morons, get out of here:

“I view Mexico’s allegations as insufficient to satisfy PLCAA’s predicate exception, regardless of whether the business practices described might suffice to establish aiding-and-abetting or other forms of vicarious liability in distinct statutory or common-law contexts…. Devoid of nonconclusory allegations about particular statutory violations, Mexico’s…
Continue Reading Supreme Court shoots down Mexico's lawsuit against US gun makers

Especially when I reflect that my son was regional director of Trump Force 47 when he died.

From a fundraising email of Everytown:

“We’re approaching 100 days of this second Trump presidency and the assault on gun safety has been fast and blistering.

Already, Trump’s administration has:

Threatened common-sense measures that keep us safe like Engaged In the Business and Arms Brace

Created a Second Amendment Task Force with the intent to repeal every policy that has kept us safe

Repealed “Zero Tolerance”–a life-saving policy that revoked the licenses of gun dealers who willfully violated federal law, including those who
Continue Reading Makes a person feel good

Story here. I dunno how significant the cert denials actually are, though. One concerns carry by 18 to 20 year olds, the other possession on a college campus. The Court might just have felt that these issues were too narrow to merit review. The last time I checked, the Court was getting around 10,000 petitions per Term, and taking under a hundred of them. These petitions may just not have made it to the top.
Continue Reading SCOTUS ducks gun cases for now

An interesting question. The article suggests that between the party’s internal fragmentation, its members’ perception of a need for a change, Hogg’s hopes to primary a ton of moderates, and someone falling heir to Bernie Sanders’ network of donors and supporters, the party will likely go further “woke” when it should be heading the other way.

(We need a better title for “the other side.” Traditionally, they are called “the left,” but their core beliefs have almost nothing to do with left-vs-right. I mean — what did Karl Marx have to say about which bathroom a tranny male should…
Continue Reading Did David Hogg and AOC murder the Demo Party?

GoA v. ATF, DC District Court. GoA filed a FOIA lawsuit, “seeking records about a secret government surveillance program which unlawfully and unconstitutionally monitors and records the firearm purchases of American citizens who are perfectly eligible to purchase and possess firearms.”

ATF disclosed some records, then discovered that it had disclosed some it meant to keep secret, and it got a protective order from the court forbidding GoA to publicize them. GOA, thru Stephen Stamboulieh, now moves to lift the protective order. Here’s another note from the motion:

“As Plaintiffs explained, the NICS Monitoring Program underlying Plaintiffs’ FOIA request…
Continue Reading GoA Hits Gold in FOIA Suit

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes promises to appeal anti-SLAPP ruling in “fake electors” case this morning: “It is not the lawful exercise of free speech to file forged slates of electors to deprive Arizona voters of their right to vote.”The ruling from Superior Court Judge Sam Myers is that the defendants (Anthony Kern, Mark Meadows) have cleared the “prima facie” hurdle to having the Motion to Dismiss further considered. Burden now on the State to prove the indictment was not to deter/retaliate.The “SLAPP” in AZ’s anti-SLAPP law stands for “strategic lawsuits against public participation”. The Arizona Legislature expanded the…
Continue Reading BREAKING: AZ AG Mayes promises to appeal anti-SLAPP ruling in "fake electors" case

Photo trolls suing for failure to provide proper “attribution,” stifling creativity?

Copyright policy is being called into question as more and more “not-so-benevolent” photographers are posting images on various websites such as Flickr and Instagram that can be synched with photo infringement detection websites such as Pixsy, which allow photographers to see if anyone is using their images, drawings, art, illustrations or other creative digital content. Pixsy will surf the internet and social media sites looking for any website that has posted the photographer’s images.

Once a “match” is found, a photographer belonging to Pixsy can send…
Continue Reading Time to change the copyright creative commons licensing terms?

Without fair use, their would be no documentary films or videos!

Congress should create public domain resources and clarify fair use in the United States

What can artists and filmmakers believe in anymore? They have to tell their stories, and THE PEOPLE want and need to hear the great stories that are begging to be told. But, the copyright fair use laws are super tough to understand and apply. Congress needs to create a fair use BILL OF RIGHTS, describing what you CAN and CANNOT do to be protected by the fair use doctrine condified under 17 USC 107. If…
Continue Reading Support Fair Use in the United States

The Chief Judge of Arizona’s U.S. District Court hopes that President Joe Biden will withdraw his veto threat and sign the bill adding two new judges in the state (and 61 additional judgeships) over the next several years.The House passed the bill today, 236-173. Earlier in the week, Biden issued the veto threat, noting that the GOP-controlled House had refused to take the vote before last month’s election. The Senate had passed the bipartisan measure in August.Chief Judge Jennifer Zipps told Arizona’s Law that Arizona greatly needs the two extra judgeships. “The District of Arizona is hopeful…
Continue Reading BREAKING: Arizona Chief Judge Hopes President Biden Withdraws Veto Threat and Signs Bill Adding 2 New AZ Judges; Senator-Elect Gallego Agrees

The Maricopa County Republican Party filed a Sunday dismissal of their election challenge lawsuit against the passage of Prop. 479 (transportation tax extension). The Notice of Dismissal comes after the judge dismissed the Secretary of State from the action last week, and after Maricopa County filed a Motion to Dismiss on Saturday.The ill-fated challenge was brought by MCRC’s attorney, Bryan Blehm, and was based on a belief that it required 60% of voters to approve it rather than a simple majority. Previous case law had established that that requirement did not apply to county votes.The Motion to Dismiss also points…
Continue Reading BREAKING, OOPS, NEVER MIND: Republicans DISMISS Election Challenge to Maricopa County Transportation Tax

I’ve not posted in a while, just thought to mention the reason. My elder son, Mark William Hardy, was hospitalized on Nov. 3, and died on Dec. 3. I spent that time sitting in one or another ICU and was too distracted to blog. I still am.
Continue Reading My silence

BREAKING: In wake of Arizona’s passage of Prop. 139, coalition of groups FILES SUIT to declare state’s 15-week ban as unconstitutional

This article was reported by AZ Law founder Paul Weich. “AZ Law” includes articles, commentaries and updates about opinions from the Arizona Supreme Court, U.S. Supreme Court, as well as trial and appellate courts, etc. AZ Law is founded by Phoenix attorney Paul Weich, and joins Arizona’s Politics on the internet. AZ Law airs on non-profit Sun Sounds of Arizona, a statewide reading service that provides audio access to printed material for people who cannot hold or read …
Continue Reading BREAKING: In wake of Arizona's passage of Prop. 139, coalition of groups FILES SUIT to declare state's 15-week ban as unconstitutional