#is a legal citizen

[reasonsforhope]

"Palestinian plaintiffs and their legal representatives on Friday [January 26, 2024] presented a powerful case in federal court accusing President Joe Biden and other top US officials of complicity in Israel's genocide in Gaza.

People around the world tuned in for the long-awaited hearing in Oakland, with plaintiffs appearing in person and over Zoom in an unprecedented effort to hold the Biden administration accountable for its actions in Gaza.

The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) filed the lawsuit in November 2023 on behalf of Defense for Children International–Palestine, Al-Haq, and eight Palestinians in the US and Palestine. The complaint accuses President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin of failing to live up to their legal responsibilities under the 1948 Genocide Convention and the 1988 Genocide Convention Implementation Act.

The United Nations convention classifies complicity in genocide, or the intentional destruction of a people in whole or in part, as a crime under international law and requires that states take measures to prevent such atrocities.

[Note: This is a big reason why politicians almost never call it a genocide, btw. Because if a country recognizes that it's a genocide, then they actually are legally required to do a bunch of things to stop it, under international law.]

The historic lawsuit contends that the Biden administration has failed to uphold its obligations by continuing to provide diplomatic and military support for Israel's brutal campaign in Gaza. Plaintiffs are asking the court to stop Biden from sending more weapons and munitions to Israel that are being used to kill Palestinians en masse.

The hearing before the US District Court for the Northern District of California took place just hours after the International Court of Justice issued provisional measures against Israel in a landmark case brought by South Africa.

-via TAG24, January 26, 2024. Article continues below.

Court contends with questions of jurisdiction and responsibility

In evaluating the allegations, questioning in Friday's hearing revolved around the so-called political question doctrine, by which federal courts regularly refrain from ruling on political matters seen as best resolved by the president and Congress.

The Department of Justice argued that according to the doctrine, the court has no jurisdiction to rule in the case.

"If the court condemns United States foreign policy toward Israel, it could cause international embarrassment and undermine foreign policy decisions in the sensitive context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict," defense counsel Jean Lin told Senior District Judge Jeffrey S. White.

Katherine Gallagher of the CCR countered that the court does, indeed, have a responsibility to step in: "Here, the question is a legal one, whether the actions undertaken by the United States failed to uphold the obligation to prevent genocide, and that is an active obligation that requires that the United States not provide the means by which a genocide is being furthered."

"There is no discretion for any state to evade its obligations, its legal obligations. These are not policy decisions," she said.

Palestinian plaintiffs share powerful testimonies before the court

After legal arguments in the case, Judge White heard two hours of gut-wrenching testimony from Palestinian plaintiffs and a renowned Holocaust and genocide expert.

Rubin Presidential Chair of Jewish History at Wake Forest University Dr. Barry Trachtenberg shared his remarks before the court in spite of vehement US government opposition.

"To have an event fall under the 1948 Convention on Genocide requires both action and intent, and here we see that very, very clearly in a way that seems really quite unique in history," he stated, noting that there is now an opportunity to stop Israel's unfolding genocide in real time to prevent further loss of lives...

Judge White said he would take the testimonies to heart as he evaluates his constitutional responsibilities, describing the case as "the most difficult judicial decision" he has ever had to make."

-via TAG24, January 26, 2024

-

Note: I know a lot of people are really not gonna appreciate that last line. I'm not thrilled with it either. But it is worth noting that having a federal court overrule the US president's huge foreign policy and military decisions would be an absolutely massive deal/precedent

This is a case that deserves to be ruled on with an incredible amount of seriousness, if only because if you're a federal judge who's going to make that call, your written decision/legal justification needs to be unimpeachable

That said, if the judge uses jurisdiction to pass the buck here and avoid his legal and human responsibility to do what he can to stop a genocide, I'm gonna be pissed

#palestine #cw war #free palestine #united states #us politics #oakland #california #legal system #foreign policy #war crimes #cw genocide #anti zionisim #isreal #current events #good news #hope #also this decision runs right up against the fact that #if US citizens can sue the US for war crimes/violating international law #and actually force change #then suddenly the gates will open to similar lawsuits for EVERY future war #which btw they SHOULD and international humanitarian law SHOULD be enforceablle #and it will also be a major step forward for something the US is trying really really hard to stave off #which is being investigated/sued by the International Criminal Court for war crimes during the Afghanistan and Iraq wars #or you know be held accountable for those war crimes in any way #which again I AM ALL FOR #genuinely how do you stop rich white countries from committing war crimes without an actual way to hold them accountable #and actually enforce international law #reminder that all posts related to the war are tagged palestine and cw war

[kkbardd]

Wild West Yuri !!!!

#asurei #from a twitter req #btw if y’all have any asurei doodle reqs send me an ask! #legally obligated to draw this historic image as a Texas citizen #doodle #asuka x rei

[tearsofthekingdomcountup]

Would you support king Charles dying on Tears of the Kingdom release date?

Still 6 days remaining. Yes, yes I would. I mean Elizabeth died right before Nintendo dropped the name for Tears of the Kingdom so it would be the height of comedy for Charles to kick it on the release date. Tears of the Kingdom but its tears of joy that he's gone. Like to charge, reblog to cast.

#for legal reasons this is a joke #Im not a uk citizen but it sounds like the coronation sucks ass #legend of zelda #tears of the kingdom #loz #loz botw2 #totk #asks #princess zelda #loz totk

[cognitivejustice]

In a landmark decision, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has today ruled that climate change violates the right to respect for one’s private and family life.

The case was brought by an association of older Swiss women concerned about the impact of global warming on their health, who claim the Swiss government is not taking enough action.

The ECHR ruled by 16 judges to 1 that the KlimaSeniorinnen (Swiss Elders for Climate Protection) were subject to a violation of Article 8 as well as (unanimously) Article 6 - the right to a fair trial in their country.

“While we do not have all the details yet - this decision is historic!” writes Sébastien Duyck, senior attorney at the Center for International Environmmental Law. “The Court has found the petition admissible and finds a violation of the rights of the Klimaseniorinnen both on process and on the substance!”

Two other climate cases - brought by a former French mayor, and six Portuguese youth - were found to be inadmissible, however.

#solarpunk #solar punk #climate change #switzerland #inaction by government on climate change affects citizens welfare and human rights #legal case #law #europe

[mageofcolors]

I would do anything for Sonic. I would give him my credit card information and SSN number if he asked (not that he would, but my point still stands). I would shower him in chili-dogs

tbh idk if he even knows what a social security number is

#is he a legal citizen anywhere? who knows! #mage answer #mage post

[possiblytracker]

courtesy of the enablers in my notes, here is my Flamingo Wisdom gained from the catch today

first of all, a flamingo separated from its flock (as it has to be when you are moving that beast around) is kind of like a horse, in that it will freak the fuck out if a leaf so much as moves in the corner of its eye, and it really really really wants to break its stupid twig legs by any means necessary. and you really cannot let them do this, because they will probably die, but they are stronger than they look and despite their insane 70+yrs captive lifespan they appear pretty fucking determined to spectacularly remove themselves from this mortal coil. if they cannot kill themselves, they will simply attempt to kill something else; if you do not personally clamp their beaks shut using your entire hand they will reach around with their long stupid tube necks and start swinging without hesitation. they bite, and will rip out hair and earrings and whatever else in reach they can get their fucked up beaks on. several of the flamingos were covered in visible blood stains of unknown origin before even picking them up, and half the day was spent wondering if one had been attacked and was doing all this bleeding, but as far as i know nobody ended up finding any which left way more questions than answers

to transport a flamingo is a two-person effort, because they are so long and so desperate to fuck up themselves or whoever is around them that you need at least two sets of hands to pull it off safely. one person holds the flamingo facing backwards tucked under one arm kind of like a set of bagpipes. with the other arm you have to hold both legs apart, because if they are allowed to lash out you get fun accidents like "vet tech pummeled in the balls with full force of both flamingo feet at once, advised to leave premises". you have to hold the legs facing downwards, otherwise the circulation gets cut off, as they are physically incapable of pumping their own blood down there without the effects of gravity. the resulting effect looks kind of like you are holding a guitar wrong, or slow-dancing in a really fucked up way. it is also objectively impossible to place your hands on the bird in a way that you will not get pissed on.

the second person has to stand just behind the first and supervises the head, holding its beak shut as shown and supporting the neck in a comfortable position. some flamingos do not Have a comfortable position and will just spend the entire time wriggling and trying to bite you, which you just kind of have to deal with. you also get direct eye contact with the beast at all times, which is. interesting and unnerving

the only people handling them solo were the vet in charge of weighing the animals, the guy sticking them into the back of a van, and my boss, who stood in the corral chasing groups of them into a smaller pen for catching. every time a pair came to collect their next bird he would open the door to the pen, head in alone, you'd briefly hear the most fucked up cartoon fistfight-esque noises from inside, and about thirty seconds later he would reappear with an entire flamingo tucked casually under one arm like a football and just hand it to you. most baffling part of the entire experience, i think

despite the turbulence however they did make it safely to their new home :)

#THIS IS NOT 100% ACCURATE SOME DETAILS ARE SLIGHTLY EMBELLISHED FOR FUNNY PURPOSES. IF ANYONE AT WORK SEES THIS DONT FIRE ME #i am only Barely exaggerating though like im not Lying #only learning the most vital skills for my resume at my work experience volunteering job. at the Duck Zoo. flamingo holder #most fucked up birds ive ever been up close to i am fascinated and appalled. #the first image is a rambunctious young man (born 2017) the second image is a senior citizen (caught as an adult bird in 1961) #LIKE. some of these birds have been here since the sixties when it was still legal for a guy to just Take Birds from places #isnt that insane. its insane to me #anyway that it thats the post #tw unsanitary #ask to tag

[chaoswithcausation]

me and the gang on april 26th when the knuckles series comes out

#reminder not to support paramount :3 👍 #[for reasons pertaining to the legal implications of my statements here I should like to clarify that this is satire. #Worry not. I am of course a law-abiding citizen :) I say this genuinely. Totally :)))] #sth #knuckles the echidna #knuckles series #sonic meme #sonic shitpost

[clownprince]

Mfw the comic books that I illegally pirate online aren't available within 6 hours after they're released to the public

#WHY ARE RHYE NOT UP YET #SHAKING MY COMPUTER FURIOUSLY #DID I GET THE DATES WRONG. ARE THESE OENS JUST RELEASED LATER IN THE DAY #WAUUUU #crying this is so mean and cruel #FOR LEGAL REASONS THIS IS A JOKE BTW #I pay for comics all of the time I love capitalism I am a good law abiding citizen <3 <3

[captainjonnitkessler]

My mom's been bitching about her new employee lately, about how he thinks he's so smart but he's actually wrong about everything. And I thought she was overblowing it but apparently he told her today with absolute and full confidence that, since Pennsylvania is a commonwealth and not a state, they don't have to follow federal law. So she might be right on this one.

#from the rest of her stories he doesn't seem like a sovereign citizen type #but that's the only type of person i know who would torture a legal definition like that in order to exempt themself from federal law

[ghost-in-the-corner]

So my father - who is, unfortunately, a Trumper - approached me, and began talking about this 'new woke video game' that was apparently terrible and how I wasn't allowed to get it (never mind the fact that I'm an adult with my own income) so I wouldn't support the leftists that made it.

I looked at him for a moment before raising my arm. "You know the tattoo I've had for two years?" I asked, pointing at it. He scoffed and nodded (he doesn't believe women should get tattoos but that's a whole other can of worms). "Yeah, it is literally based on that video game. The quote looks this way because it's the game's font. It's that game that I was ridiculously excited for last February, the one I talked about for two weeks straight. So, idk, but I think we're well beyond me not supporting it."

He pressed his lips together before muttering 'fine' and playing casino games on his phone.

#god i wish i was joking #literally i hate how conservative he is #it's stupid that he's a trumper because we're literally not american #we're legal non-citizens we cannot vote in this country #whatever #i already played the dlc and i adore it #horizon #horizon forbidden west #horizon burning shores #horizon zero dawn #horizon frozen wilds #hfw #hzd #aloy #seyka #erend vanguardsman #erend #varl #zo #kotallo #sylens #alva #gaia #talanah khane padish #beta #seyloy #ashly burch #corner conversations #rant

[existennialmemes]

Happy Leap Day!

Go about your business, Citizens!

Do not think about the arbitrary nature of Time, nor how we could redesign our entire calendar to suit our needs, instead of the avaricious whims of tyrants. Just don't think about it!

#shitpost #shitposting #leap year #leap day #leftist memes #I'm team 13 month year #but first we have to end capitalism #so rent and debt collectors can't use it to extort a 13th yearly payment #while bosses divide your same salary across 13 months so they can pay you less with each check #also i mean citizens in a generic way not in the legal sense

[forestryfae]

off topic but in s3 ep 5 Plight at the Museum. when tobys like bitching at walter because hes married to happy and hes like "once again youve mastered the art of thinking about yourself"? like WHAT. hes WHAT. toby my guy the extra scrutiny theyd do could get him DEPORTED he could literally lose scorpion and his home and the gang. and like if theyd waited theyd have found out she wasnt even pregnant and they could like. plan everything a little bit better. done some better forgeries. practiced their fake marriage a little bit more. maybe even waited a little bit.

#i dont know HOW long theyd have waited for him to be a legal citizen tho idk how laws work #talkies #cbs scorpion

[ahsoka-in-a-hood]

I think we all know, in our heart of hearts, that had Qui-Gon not already hit the problem of Watto being mind-trick resistant he WOULD have simply stolen Anakin and Shmi.

#qui gon jinn #............okay so realistically i hate it when people underestimate the method of enforcement #you can't fuck around with those chips #there's a reason why shmi and anakin are both freed via a legal transaction #it's not because qui gon is a law-abiding citizen #but i'm thinking. #say the mind trick wore off. and Watto could go to an enforcer and get them to set off a secondary detonator #a mechanism that might well exist on tatooine! yeah it's a shithole but slave states are paranoid af #but then i'm imagining him trying to prove that this apparently legal transaction was actually mind control #idk i'm not sure that would work out for him either #on the other hand. #maybe he could prove jedi involvement #then they better have gotten ani to the surgeon quick quick quick or the boy is gonna blow #so. i'm not sure of the risk level here. more information is needed.

[handweavers]

saw mahathir's statement on palestine and it's like 'heartbreaking: worst person you know just made a great point' because what he says is true and right and needs to be said (calling out US's vested interest in israel as a proxy state, their funding of israeli apartheid, US lying about WMDs to justify iraq war and biden lying about seeing photos of beheaded babies to justify anti-palestinian ethnic cleansing) but his and other malaysian pm's support for palestine past and present will forever feel hollow to me considering mahathir and co are also proponents of ketuanan melayu which enshrines its own kind of racial apartheid system in malaysia like... hello

#like you can recognize that institutionalized racial segregation and having entire ethnic groups legally enshrined as second class citizens #is wrong in israel but not in malaysia. okay #the hypocrisy is just. something

[palmtreepalmtree]

I'm guessing a lot of people have heard this already, but if you are a U.S. citizen and need your passport renewed, the expedited process is taking between 7 to 9 weeks. Many countries around the world require that your passport has at least six months validity remaining when you travel. Get your renewal request in as early as possible before your scheduled travel.

If you have upcoming travel scheduled within 1 to 2 weeks, you may be able to get additional assistance expediting your renewal through a passport agency, but you will need to provide your travel confirmation - plane tickets or the equivalent.

As a last ditch, but often effective, way to go, you can email your Congressperson for help for urgent, unexpected travel. Be prepared to explain why your travel is urgent for business or personal reasons. They may help if it's just a vacation, but they're more likely to help if it's something significant and truly unexpected like family illness or business that cannot be conducted remotely.

A standard passport book is about $130, with additional $60 for expediting.

Hope this helps someone!

#psa #renew your u.s. passport #i recommend all u.s. citizens have a valid passport #assuming you can afford the processing fee #this is not legal advice #just general advice

[silksworn]

[ cut in ] you look lovely in that dress, by the way.

Consider the dessert fork. A small, unassuming bit of silverware left unattended on several tables that the servants have not gotten to cleaning yet. Iraestra spots one temptingly close out of the corner of her eye. How much damage could she do to the soft of a throat with one? A tongue? An eye?

Longing consumes her utterly; if she could only steer her partner and herself a little closer, she might be able to reach behind her back and seize hold of one...

"...why, the value of electrum decreases by the day! Wars are disastrous for commerce, don't you know? Terrible, terrible business." The lord continues braying like a mule, quite unaware of Iraestra's disinterest, or how murderously her thoughts stray. This is their third turn around the room and she fears that with another she will quite thoroughly prove just how bloodthirsty her people can be. "Not that a lady as lovely as you need worry her head about such things."

Iraestra stiffens with the suddenness of her rage. She stops dancing entirely, making the inept little man stumble over his own feet. Lord or no, his flayed hide will be hers. Let her make a proper drow celebration of this ball.

"Vith'rell," she seethes, stepping dangerously close to her former dance partner. Her hand itches for a dessert fork. "Do you even comprehend with whom you speak? I am not one of your surface women to order around like a dog -"

"Lord Morely. You wouldn't mind overmuch if I were to steal your partner away, would you?" A familiar voice drawls. Though worded as a question, it is more a statement. Enver. He places himself quite thoroughly between the two of them, the only object shielding the cowering lord from her wrath.

The lord remains much too stunned to reply. Enver does not wait for such anyhow, placing a hand on Iraestra's lower back to guide her away. He murmurs the next words for her ears only. "That imbecile only spoke the truth once this entire evening. You do look lovely in that dress."

Iraestra scowls grandly. "I would have it so he never wagged his tongue again, compliments or not. Where have you been?" Watching, no doubt, for the perfect moment to make himself known.

dance magic dance ! / @fatewoven

#i'm sorry you sent this in and i had to IMMEDIATELY respond #my legal obligation and i am nothing if not a law abiding citizen #iraestra: were it not for the laws of this land and me attempting to play nice with all your little surface lords for Information Gathering #i would have ritually slaughtered this man #pokes fingers together UHHH I HOPE THIS IS OKAY??? #if not i go scurry away #fatewoven