I ran out of thread caption jokes. Or is my saying that a thread caption joke in and of itself?
There may come a day when threads stop being published. But it is not this day. I bid you stand, threads of the West!
- ThinkProgress chronicles decades of right-wing opposition to Nelson Mandela, and support for the apartheid regime.
- This is perhaps not the best way to argue for more leniency in your client's murder sentence:
But at Everett's sentencing hearing yesterday—at which he was served a sentence of 29 years to life—defense attorney John Scarpa caught the ire of the judge when he argued against the victim's character. "Shouldn’t that [sentence] be reserved for people who are guilty of killing certain classes of individuals?" he reportedly asked, adding, "Who is the victim in this case? Is the victim a person in the higher end of the community?"
Scarpa says he was speaking about the victim's history, not her status as a transgender person. "He himself was guilty of attempted murder," he told us, referring to Gonzalez-Andujar's HIV-positive status as a prostitute, and detailing her history of drug use. "I thought it was loathsome for the judge to say this was a good person."
I think the message here is: if they're not a straight white dude, kill at will.
- The twitter mandela hall of shame.
- Clearly, this is just a states' rights issue. That's all it has ever been about. States' rights.
- Same-sex weddings are starting in Canberra, but they may not last long.
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) -- Gay and lesbian couples from around Australia joined in fragile marriages in Canberra on Saturday under the nation's beleaguered same-sex union laws that face a challenge in the courts within a week.
The hastily-arranged ceremonies held under blue summer skies were bitter-sweet occasions for some couples who realize the High Court could annul their unions on Thursday.
- Ted Cruz is a full-blown member of the anti-17th Amendment crew:
Although he didn't comment specifically on the ALEC proposal, Cruz had unkind words for the 17th Amendment in his speech on Thursday.
"Prior to the 17th Amendment, the state legislatures' ability and authority to select senators was a powerful check on the federal government coming and intruding on the prerogatives of the state," he said. "Because if you have the ability to hire and fire me, I'm a lot less likely to break into your house and steal your television. So there's no doubt that was a major step toward the explosion of federal power and the undermining of the authority of the states at the local level."
Let's just prevent people from voting on anything and create a landed aristocracy instead. Why not go all the way?
- An entire apartment building in Shanghai just tipped over. Thankfully, it wasn't finished and thus unoccupied. But taking a look at the photos...where the heck is the building's foundation? Seriously.
