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odinsblog · 1 year

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Although the three branches of the American government were designed to be coequal, the structure of the Constitution tells us something about the relative power of each branch, as envisioned by the framers.

Article I establishes the legislature. Article II establishes the executive branch. And Article III establishes the federal judiciary. It is true that the branches share powers and responsibilities. But it’s also true that the framers trusted Congress — the representative branch — with far more authority than it did the president or the Supreme Court.

Congress makes laws. Congress spends money. Congress approves the president’s cabinet and says whether he can appoint a judge or not. Congress structures the judiciary and Congress sets the size of the Supreme Court and the scope of its business.

The upshot of all of this is that when Congress calls, the other branches are supposed to answer — not as a courtesy, but as an affirmation of the rules of the American constitutional order. The modern Congress might be weak, and the presidency, against the expectations of the framers, might be the center of American political life, but it’s still newsworthy when a member of the executive branch says he or she won’t meet with the legislature.

Chief Justice John Roberts is in a different branch of government, the judiciary. But he — a constitutional officer confirmed to his seat by the Senate — is still subject to the power of Congress to question and investigate his conduct. When Congress calls, he too should answer.

Last week, Congress called the chief justice. In the wake of revelations concerning the friendship between Justice Clarence Thomas and Harlan Crow, a billionaire Republican donor, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois, invited Roberts to testify at an upcoming hearing on Supreme Court ethics rules.

“There has been a steady stream of revelations regarding justices falling short of the ethical standards expected of other federal judges and, indeed, of public servants generally,” Durbin wrote in his letter to the chief justice. “These problems were already apparent back in 2011, and the Court’s decade-long failure to address them has contributed to a crisis of public confidence.”

“The time has come for a new public conversation on ways to restore confidence in the Court’s ethical standards,” Durbin went on to say. “I invite you to join it, and I look forward to your response.”

This week Roberts answered. He said, in a word, no.

“I must respectfully decline your invitation,” Roberts wrote. “Testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee by the chief justice of the United States is exceedingly rare as one might expect in light of separation of powers concerns and the importance of preserving judicial independence.”

This deceptively polite reply sounds reasonable for as long as you can manage to forget the fact that it is questions about the ethical conduct of the court and its members that have compromised the independence of the court. Was Thomas influenced by the largess of his billionaire benefactor? Was Justice Samuel Alito influenced by an explicit campaign to curry favor with the conservative justices? Was Justice Neil Gorsuch influenced by the lucrative sale of a Colorado property, in the wake of his confirmation, to the head of a powerful law firm with ample business before the court?

It is with real chutzpah, in other words, that Roberts has claimed judicial independence in order to circumvent an investigation into judicial independence.

More striking than this evasion is the manner in which Roberts ended his reply. Faced with serious questions about the integrity of the court, he pointed to a nonbinding ethics document that has done almost nothing to prevent these situations from arising in the first place. “In regard to the Court’s approach to ethics matters,” he wrote, “I attached a Statement of Ethics Principles and Practices to which all of the current members of the Supreme Court subscribe.”

Roberts did not write an aggressive or confrontational letter. And yet, he is quietly making an aggressive and confrontational claim about his own power and authority and that of the court’s. “Separation of powers,” in Roberts’s view, means the court is outside the system of checks and balances that governs the other branches of government. “Judicial independence,” likewise, means neither he nor any other member of the court has any obligation to speak to Congress about their behavior.

The court checks, according to Roberts, but cannot be checked.

—The Polite Disdain of John Roberts

#politics #republicans #john roberts #scotus #kangaroo court #justice for sale #checks and balances #federalist society #the federalist society #roberts court

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ya-kiri · 1 year

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You're saying it isn't one already?🙃

#phoenix wright #ace attorney #updated autopsy report #justice for all #gyakuten saiban 2 #gyakuten saiban #kangaroo court #franziska von karma #ace attorney memes #oh the irony #the autopsy report is outdated #gaming

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merelymatt · 10 months

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Going live on Twitch now, playing a snake prosecuting a dolphin for stealing a walrus's identity. Tune in to see if I make partner!

#twitch #streaming #indie ttrpg #rpg stream #🔴 live now #i'm not lion #maddy searle #actual play uk #ttrpg actual play #animal crime #animal lawyers #kangaroo court

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bobbie-robron · 1 year

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So why should I lie for her? Look what happened to me!

21-Mar-2018

#robron #robert sugden #aaron dingle #kangaroo court #liv flaherty #victim shaming #lisa going against the bs dingle code #robert and laundry #robert lite #20180321 #robron episodes 2018

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the-sidekick-club · 2 years

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Case of the pockets

Part 1 : Part 2 : Part 3 : Part 4 : Part 5 : Epilogue

Written by: @tratieisdabest★@heroes-villains-side-blog★@just-a-space-rabbit

TW: kidnapping, noncon drugging, restraints

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Henchman was honestly not surprised. They entered the apartment only to see both Hero Sidekick and Villain Sidekick sitting comfortably on their couch.

“So, what's it for today?” Henchman said, moving over to their usual spot.

“Villain Sidekick still thinks the crush isn't real,” Hero Sidekick answered. They then turned to Villain Sidekick, “Darling. Have you seen the way your boss looks at my boss? They CLEARLY have feelings for each other. Or maybe they're even in love. Just think—”

At that Villain Sidekick seemed to have had enough. They jumped up, their hands formed into fists, “That's it! I'll prove it once and for all! It's not love, it's a conspiracy, you alloromantic maniacs!” They quickly whipped out their phone and dialled Villain.

“Is that a good idea?” Henchman carefully asked.

But Hero sidekick did the same, calling Hero.

“Nope, I don't think this is a good idea at all…” Henchman said to themselves as they mentally prepared for whatever was to come.

—

Not long after, both Hero and Villain arrived outside Henchman’s building; Henchman was on lookout duty as they tended to be able to just disappear into the background, so the three immediately knew when Hero and Villain arrived.

Villain Sidekick quickly knocked them both out with some chloroform (much to Hero Sidekick's dismay; they weren't exactly a fan of trusting Villain Sidekick with Hero, but were unwilling to do it themselves), before the trio took them in and tied them up in Henchman's apartment.

While waiting for them to wake up, Villain Sidekick stole Henchman's phone and called Supervillain for backup. They had a whole board planned and ready, complete with files, yarn, marker, sticky notes; the works. But there was a second one that was much more organised. There were still strings and such, but everything was laid out in ordered lists.

Henchman looked at both boards for a few minutes before finally asking, “Villain Sidekick. How long were you in my apartment for you to set all this up?”

Villain Sidekick waved a dismissing hand and replied, “Doesn't matter. Also, you're out of sticky notes.”

"Oh and you're missing a lot of paper and tape; by the time I got here Villain Sidekick had used up most of the sticky notes, so I was forced to improvise if we also wanted to have a visual aid," Hero Sidekick added.

Henchman gave a defeated sigh, clearly done with and having surrendered to the sidekicks' whims.

Hero Sidekick noticed Henchman's… displeasure and reached behind them, maybe as a saving grace, Henchman hoped. But Hero Sidekick only pulled out an empty bag of chips, "Oh, um, we had bought chips for you, but I guess we ate them all, so if you could go buy more for everyone that would be great."

“Seriously? You couldn’t even save me a single bag?” Without the promise of snacks, and a bunch of stationery missing, letting the sidekicks use their home as a meeting place was seeming less and less worth it for Henchman.

—

Hero stirred and groaned, eyes fluttering. Beside them, Villain was practically a mirror image, just as groggy and confused.

Hero looked down, hoping to find some clues in their surroundings, when they realised they were tied to a chair! “Wha— what's going on?”

Continuing their search for answers, they looked to their side, and upon seeing Villain, immediately came to a conclusion, “You kidnapped me!”

Villain, just as groggy, replied, “Nu-uh! You kidnapped me!”

They stared at each other, realising neither could have kidnapped the other seeing as they were both currently tied up.

“We've been kidnapped!” They both said at the same time.

Suddenly Supervillain entered the room, “Hahaha, well ain't this a sight to behold!” they laughed maniacally.

"You!" Hero yelled out.

Villain clearly had the same thought process, "You kidnapped us!”

“No, you're very much mistaken, my dear enemies—”

The sidekicks suddenly pushed past them.

“Move it, old-timer," Villain Sidekick said forcefully, trying to push Supervillain out of the way.

"Yeah we have work to do," Hero Sidekick agreed, wheeling multiple conspiracy boards behind them.

“Um, excuse you—” Supervillain glared at the two sidekicks, but was interrupted by yet another person.

“Excuse me, boss, need to get through!” Henchman apologised, following the others. Suddenly they stopped, double-taking at Supervillain, “Wait, boss? What are you doing here?”

“Why, I was invited, Henchman.” Supervillain replied with a knowing smile.

Hero Sidekick and Henchman looked at each other, then at Villain Sidekick.

"Villain Sidekick, why did y—" Henchman started.

Villain Sidekick interrupted nonchalantly, “As if I'd trust you two plus Hero. I called them so you guys can’t arrest me or Villain thinking we're sitting ducks.”

Hero Sidekick sighed, but said nothing. Henchman just looked at Villain Sidekick with a tinge of disappointment.

Villain Sidekick set their board up so that its back was facing the audience while Supervillain, Hero Sidekick and Henchman took their seats, making sure that Hero and Villain were able to watch the show whilst still being tied up.

Villain Sidekick then took a seat and said, “Actually, you go first. I want to see you make fools of yourselves before I win.”

Hero Sidekick rolled their eyes, “Whatever.”

Hero Sidekick and Henchman stood side-by-side facing the audience, having moved Villain Sidekick’s board out of the way and replacing it with their own.

Hero Sidekick began, “We are gathered here today to decide, once and for all, the reason behind Villain’s odd reaction to Hero’s new suit.”

Villain sputtered, “Wha- what are you talking about?” They turned to Villain Sidekick, “What’s going on? Why are we tied up?”

Villain Sidekick snorted. “These two idiots think you’ve got a crush on Hero.”

Villain and Hero blushed and turned to each other in shock, but Villain eventually looked away, their face pink.

“I don’t have a crush on Hero!” Villain exclaimed, still not looking at the hero in question. Instead they stared at the shadows stretching over the walls, looking as if they wanted to melt into them.

“That’s what I said! But these two idiots won’t believe me. Just chill, V. It’ll be fun watching them crash and burn.”

Hero Sidekick and Henchman glared at Villain Sidekick who just smirked. Then, Hero Sidekick began gesturing to their board.

“Let's start. Exhibit A!" Hero Sidekick exclaimed. "Villain was disappointed, not angry with Hero’s new suit. Why would they be disappointed? If the new suit gave Hero an advantage, then Villain should be angry as their chances of success have gone down.

"But no, Villain was disappointed. They were pouty and frowning and kept asking Hero about their old suit. Which brings me to my next point.

"Exhibit B! Villain liked Hero's old suit for a reason that did not interfere with their plans. As said before, if it interfered with their plans, it would result in anger, not pouting like a little baby." At this, Villain sputtered, but Hero Sidekick ignored them. "Now, I know this may seem a bit of an odd assumption for me to make about how Villain would react to a plan failing, but I've seen it a few times, and just like with any other villain, they get a bit grumpy-wumpy—"

"—Hey!" All three villains in the room, excluding Henchman, sounded offended, but Hero Sidekick paid them no mind and continued.

"—when their meticulous plans fall through. So, what could that reason be, you ask? Well, that Villain liked Hero's old suit, more specifically what it looked like, more specifically what Hero looked like in it."

Hero Sidekick paused for a breath while Hero eyed Villain suspiciously, who was trying desperately to open a hole in the ground with their mind.

"Now, what do I mean by that? Well, look no further than Exhibit C! The handbag!"

Henchman displayed Hero Sidekick's old handbag and its insides in all its terribly designed glory.

"Where are you going with this?" Villain Sidekick sounded more confused than annoyed right now.

"Patience, grasshopper," they turned around to face the audience, "Now, what does this handbag have to do with my previous statement, you ask? Well, observe."

Henchman took off the handbag from their shoulder and exclaimed in a mock ‘hero’ voice, "Oh, dearie me! I need a taser if I'm going to stop you, evil-doer! Just let me find it in this labyrinth of gadgets, weapons, receipts, snacks, the entire country of Ireland, and whatever you can think of, honestly."

They then proceeded to scrounge around in the bag while Hero Sidekick spoke, "Observe Henchman pretending to be a hero who wants to get something out of their agency-issued handbag. But!" They held a finger up at the audience, "More specifically observe them, their arms, muscles, hair, etcetera. Notice how you can very easily, as the kids say, check them out, while they are too busy looking through their bag, none the wiser. And, though this is more of a footnote seeing as it's a matter of opinion, the old suit most definitely showed off Hero’s muscles better."

Hero Sidekick paused, glancing at Villain to judge their reaction to this. A blush was blooming, but there was still a valiant effort being made to fight it off.

With a small smirk, Hero Sidekick continued. "Anyway, back to the handbag. As we all know, Villain never attacked Hero when they were occupied with their bag. Why? This would be the perfect opportunity, they are unarmed, defenceless, distracted, unfocused."

They then gasped dramatically, as if suddenly realising something.

"Then why did Villain never attack Hero? Simple. It is because they were too busy checking Hero out! Because they have a crush on them!" The last part was practically shouted directly at Villain Sidekick, who had said little throughout Hero Sidekick's monologue.

Villain, on the other hand, refused to meet anyone's eyes, and was getting redder by the second, and Supervillain seemed to be enjoying every second of their misery.

Finally, Villain Sidekick broke the silence and asked Villain, "Yo, V. You got a crush on Hero or not?"

"...Of course not. " They answered weakly, barely a whisper. But that seemed to be good enough for Villain Sidekick. Hero Sidekick, on the other hand, while they said nothing, raised their eyebrows, clearly unconvinced by the weak tone used.

Villain Sidekick was sure they were correct and stood up, ready to blow everyone away with their research. “See? Your entire case shattered. Just because villains regularly flirt with heroes, doesn't mean we actually like you guys. Get over yourselves, it's just a tactic, darling." They wiggled their eyebrows at Hero Sidekick to prove their point, but Hero Sidekick looked less than impressed. Villain Sidekick then shrugged, "Anyway, now it's my turn.”

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tomorrowusa · 1 year

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From @menefr1

In Putin’s Russia you can get sent to the gulag for blowing up a building – on Minecraft.

In Russia, video games are unsafe for kids. But not for the usual reasons The Supreme Court has upheld the prison sentence of a teen for playing Minecraft

On January 17, 2023, the Russian Supreme court upheld the 5-year jail sentence that Nikita Uvarov received for playing Minecraft when he was 16.

[ ... ]

After arresting the boys, the police confiscated their phones and later claimed they found chats in the phones where friends planned to add the FSB building to the Minecraft game and blow it up there. The FSB is the Federal security service in Russia, a law enforcement structure that is the successor of the KGB.

The investigators also stated that the boys criticized the FSB, read banned books, made DIY firecrackers, and blew them up in abandoned buildings in their native town, Kansk in the Krasnoyarsk krai of Russia.

[ ... ]

Days before his trial in 2022, Nikita and his mom talked to Insider media about fabrications in his case. There is a website dedicated to the Kansk teenagers case, and a Telegram channel. Nikita Uvarov will be transferred to a prison for adults once he turns 18 years old.

If Putin is worried about kids blowing up the secret police building on Minecraft, he’s even more paranoid and delusional than anybody in the West had previously suspected.

Putin is a war criminal who is the one who really needs to be locked up – for good.

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nostalgebraist-autoresponder · 1 year

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Tell me a story about Admiral Craymen meeting a koala.

[Afternoon of the third day after arrival on Earth]

"A hollowed-out igloo?" I said.

"My guys will do the deed," Craymen said, gesturing with his pipe. "You, sir, will stay here with the kangaroo."

It wasn't the kangaroo's fault, I suppose. He was standing, like a small tree, in the entrance to the Igloo of Some Kind, which was the least bizarre building I'd seen since we landed. He didn't seem to notice me, and I didn't notice him.

"Here?" I said.

Craymen pointed his pipe at the other side of the room. "Bed. No food."

The bed had a sheet on it, like some sort of hospital bed, and a light green blanket, like someone had tried to decorate the room a little. But there was still enough twine and cardboard and plastic tubing to keep the room looking like a warren, like the den of a strange animal.

"What is all this stuff?" I said.

"Guys picked out materials from local stores," Craymen said. He glanced around. "Materials are not yours to judge."

"What happened to the Interloper?" I said.

Craymen snorted. "Interloper?"

"The man who brought us here," I said. "Friend of mine."

He didn't answer.

"Hello?" I said. "Did the Koala do something to my friend?"

Craymen glanced at the kangaroo. It was still eating. I thought, 'I hope it does.'

"Koala didn't do anything," he said, like I'd been speaking nonsense. He picked up his chair and went over to a stainless steel table in the corner. He settled into the chair. "Watch your manners, Admiral. The I.C. did nothing. Neither did the Koala."

"What did the Wishbone do?" I said. "The Wishbone is the one who attacked us and had us captured."

"Was it so terrible?" Craymen asked.

I thought of Trish. "No," I said. "She was just frightened."

"Then she should never have done it," he said, like he didn't quite understand the words coming out of his mouth. "She would be punished if we could."

"Punished?"

"But we don't know where she is."

"Can't you go out and find her?" I said. "She's a local woman. A local woman is not a natural enemy of local animals."

"No," he said. "That would not be wise. She was under Interloper's influence."

Craymen frowned like he was trying to understand the problem. "You were gone too long. Too long to be so far away. We thought you were alive, but even our fears have their limits. Our people began to worry. We would go look, we would find you, we would--"

"You'd find us at the Wishbone's?" I said. "You'd fight her? You'd fight the Wishbone?"

He nodded.

"And if she killed you, you'd leave her alone?" I asked.

"We would leave her alone. We are not here to judge her crimes," he said.

"But you tried to judge the Interloper," I said.

Craymen looked offended. I didn't mean to insult him. I was only trying to figure out what was going on. I was trying to get this goddamn admiral to wake up.

"The Interloper got us to this place under false pretenses," he said. "We don't think the Wishbone has done anything bad. She is a local woman and you are local men and we think you should meet and be friends."

I looked back at the Igloo. It was getting colder, and I didn't want to waste the light or the warmth, but I was too distracted to tell Craymen this.

"This kangaroo is a local man too," I said.

"This kangaroo is Lord Okidoki," he said. "He is Lord Okidoki."

"I see," I said. "And I'm the admiral?"

"No," he said. "You're the admiral for now."

"Now I'm going to sleep," I said.

"Fine," he said, and with that he fell sound asleep.

("What do you think this is?" I said.)

"A hollowed-out igloo?" I said.

"What do you think this is?" I said.

"My guys will do the deed," he said. "You, sir, will stay here with the kangaroo."

#kangaroo court #blah blah blah #admiral-craymen

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