Today’s post will simply make note of an interesting (and alarming) email I’ve received from a reader. Please do share this widely. Some time ago I was researching the random bag check policy for the NYC subway system and stumbled across your blog posting [on random searches on the New York subway]. Until today IContinue reading “Random Searches on the New York Subway: A User’s Story”
Category Archives: Law and Legal Theory
The New York State Assembly is First Amendment-Illiterate
Earlier this morning, on both my Facebook and Twitter pages, I wondered aloud Is the Empire State particularly hostile to academic freedom? Is it particularly illiterate about the First Amendment? The reason for this slightly despairing query? Read this and despair for free speech: The New York State Assembly is currently considering a bill (A.8392) to prohibitContinue reading “The New York State Assembly is First Amendment-Illiterate”
Personhood for Non-Humans (including Artificial Agents)
As these articles in recent issues of the New York Times (here and here) and the holding of the Personhood Beyond the Human conference indicate, personhood for non-humans is a live issue, both philosophical and legal. As I noted during the Concurring Opinions online symposium on my book A Legal Theory for Autonomous Artificial AgentsContinue reading “Personhood for Non-Humans (including Artificial Agents)”
The Personhood Beyond the Human Conference
This weekend (Dec 7-8) I am attending the Personhood Beyond the Human conference at Yale University. Here is a description of the conference’s agenda: The event will focus on personhood for nonhuman animals, including great apes, cetaceans, and elephants, and will explore the evolving notions of personhood by analyzing them through the frameworks of neuroscience,Continue reading “The Personhood Beyond the Human Conference”
The All Too Inevitable Denouement of the Trayvon Martin Story
In commenting on the murder of Trayvon Martin last year, I wrote: The killing of Trayvon Martin is a classically American nightmare: a suburb somewhere, a dark night, a young black man on the streets, guns in the hands of people who imagine it will make them safer, calls to 911 that provide grim, brief,Continue reading “The All Too Inevitable Denouement of the Trayvon Martin Story”
The Asymmetric Panopticon
As I’ve noted before on this blog–in unison with many other commentators–the ‘if you’ve got nothing to hide, then you shouldn’t mind the government spying on you’ argument is among the dumbest to be made in defense of the NSA‘s surveillance program. A related argument is the ‘we don’t have privacy anyway, so quit tiltingContinue reading “The Asymmetric Panopticon”
Nice Try NSA-Defenders (Not!)
There are two very bad arguments and one rather illiterate confusion making the rounds in the wake of the NSA surveillance scandal. I’ll consider each of them briefly. First, we have the ‘it was legal’ argument: the surveillance was sanctioned by the Patriot Act, approved by FISA courts, and Congress was in the loop etc.Continue reading “Nice Try NSA-Defenders (Not!)”
S.2402 Makes The Thin Blue Line Just A Little Meaner
You might have thought that with laws prohibiting assault already in the books, there would be no need for S.2402, the bill passed by the New York State Senate on June 5th that ‘creates the crime of aggravated harassment of a police or peace officer.’ Sponsored by Senator Joe Griffo, S. 2402 ‘would make it aContinue reading “S.2402 Makes The Thin Blue Line Just A Little Meaner”
The NSA Needs Better Apologists than Charles Shanor
Professor Charles Shanor of Emory university thinks that ‘liberals and civil libertarians’ are making a mountain out of a digital molehill. Apparently, we should be reassured by the fact that the NSA‘s data collection was legal under the terms of the Patriot Act (you know, that civil liberties disaster), that FISA judges approved it, that selectContinue reading “The NSA Needs Better Apologists than Charles Shanor”
Amazon, E-Commerce and Monopolies
A couple of interesting comments in response to my post yesterday on Matthew Yglesias and Amazon. First, JW writes: I’m not sure I agree with your point…I think the reason e-commerce and Amazon are less scary is that it is harder to charge monopolistic prices because entry is so easy. If Amazon starts charging monopolisticContinue reading “Amazon, E-Commerce and Monopolies”
Samir Chopra 