In association with the International Commission of Jurists

Recent Posts

25 Feb

David Rittgers, a Cato legal analyst and former Special Forces officer, has an excellent op-ed in today’s Wall Street Journal on the use of Predator drones.  He cautions, on the one hand, against reflexively regarding drone attacks as nonjudicial execution or, really, functionally different from other weapons that soldiers might use — as well as cautioning against the idea that Congress or courts could somehow micromanage the use of these weapons.  On the other hand, he cautions against thinking that the problem of drones is that the US should be seeking to capture rather than kill because of the loss of intelligence; he notes that operationally, there are many reasons why capture is very often infeasible.  It’s a good piece, measured and sensible, and I highly recommend it. I’ve been quiet around here in the last little while as I, too, have been writing about Predators and targeted killing — expanding and moving beyond my book chapter from last year  on this topic.  Barring some big news on health care or some such, the Weekly Standard will be running a piece from me next week arguing something I’ve developed at Volokh Conspiracy and here at OJ blog:  first, that the administration’s lawyers need to step up to the plate and defend targeted killing using Predators and, second, the proper legal basis on which to defend it to the full extent undertaken by the Obama administration is the international law of self-defense, rather than simply the law of armed conflict, targeting combatants.
|
24 Feb

It is amazing how much effort has been expended in countries like Japan and Australia to argue about whaling.  It is fascinating from say, a realist perspective, since it is hard to imagine that either side has any real meaningful national interest.  And as far as I can tell, Australia's government is acting on essentially moral grounds, which is er,...

|
24 Feb

The invaluable "Turtle Bay" Blog points me to this recent Gallup poll on the U.S. public's view of the United Nations. I'm a bit surprised the UN polls so badly (26 percent is pretty low).  Then again, Americans are a tough lot. Congress rates even lower, and President Obama is heading in this direction.  So the UN is actually doing quite...

|
24 Feb

Despite all the grumbling from NGOs, there does appear to be some modest progress toward more peace and stability in Sudan. Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir has signed a framework ceasefire deal with one of Darfur's main rebel groups, the Justice and Equality Movement (Jem). The power-sharing agreement in Qatar is seen as an important step towards peace, though the other main rebel...

|
24 Feb

Emerging disputes over oil drilling and natural gas exploration in the Falklands should provide an ideal test case for international dispute resolution. Argentina appears to be ready to contest UK drilling for hydrocarbons in the Falklands' exclusive economic zone. Britain rejected Argentine objections to oil exploration off the disputed Falkland Islands on Tuesday, saying the drilling was within international law. Argentine President...

|
23 Feb

The following is a guest-post -- actually a short book-proposal -- by my friend Mark Osiel, the Aliber Family Chair in Law at the University of Iowa.  I have agreed to post it despite the inordinate jealousy I feel toward his remarkable productivity.  Mark would greatly appreciate comments and criticisms, especially examples and counter-examples of what he is trying to...

|
23 Feb

That's the question, sort of, raised in Totes-Isotoner v. United States, the most interesting tariff classification case you will ever read. Under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, men's glove have a tariff rate of 14 percent whereas gloves "for other persons" have a rate of 12.6 percent. An importer of gloves, Totes-Isotoner, argues that these duties unconstitutionally discriminate on...

|
23 Feb

Sure, it's in Roman Polanski's new film, The Ghost Writer.  But it's still cool -- especially when the Prime Minister, played by an excellent Pierce Brosnan, is charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity for aiding and abetting torture by the United States! I have to admit, I never thought I'd live to see Article 25(3)(c) of the Rome Statute...

|
22 Feb

The usual meeting of U.S. governors this year has an added wrinkle: the participation of premiers from Canadian provinces. Provincial leaders wrapped up three days of meetings with U.S. governors in Washington, D.C., on Sunday and Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger said the unprecedented get-together paves the way for improved relations between Canada and the U.S. “It’s the first time the governors and...

|
22 Feb

I am sitting in the Indianapolis airport as I write this, heading home from a conference on the Milosevic trial.  The conference was easily the most enjoyable I've ever attended -- I vastly prefer small, specialized conferences to mega-events like the AALS or ASIL.  The attendees were a superb mix of academics, former OTP investigators and analysts, and defence attorneys. ...

|