The Pulitzer Prizes were announced yesterday and several of the prizes recognized subjects of international concern. Here they are: Explanatory Reporting: David Finkel of the Washington Post for "his ambitious, clear-eyed case study of the United States government's attempt to bring democracy to Yemen."Beat Reporting: Dana Priest of the Washington Post for "her persistent, painstaking reports on secret...
The Supreme Court denied cert. today in the case of Schneider v. Kissinger, a case involving a claim that Henry Kissinger, CIA Director Richard Helms, and the United States were liable for the Chilean coup led by Augusto Pinochet that deposed Salvador Allende. According to the D.C. Circuit opinion, the "complaint alleged that in 1970 the leader of the Chilean...
The tax man cometh. The overwhelming majority of us will dutifully pay our taxes today, perhaps with reservations, but not with actual resistance. For most I suspect income taxes are viewed as a regrettable but inevitable part of modern life. But as noted in various news reports, a small percentage will refuse to pay a portion of...
In his first Easter address, Pope Benedict XVI called on the international community to bring relief and security in Africa, peace in Iraq and in the Holy Land, assistance to the Palestinians, recognition of Israel, a diplomatic solution to the nuclear crisis with Iran, and an end to the threat of terrorism. If one wanted to identify the top...
Melissa Waters over at Concurring Opinions discusses Justice Kennedy's speech at the ASIL and asks, "Is there anything new to be said on the subject of the role of foreign and international law in U.S. courts?" Good question. Here are a few suggestions: For those who propose a role for foreign and international law in constitutional interpretation,...
Yesterday the New York Times had a lengthy, fawning obituary of William Sloane Coffin. Coffin was an historic figure who had his share of shining moments (1961 Freedom Rider) and controversial anti-war tactics (1967 draft dodging demonstrations). While he was far too much of an establishment anti-establishmentarian for my taste, give him credit for being a minister...
In yet another interesting twist on the role of the WTO to address volatile political issues, the House of Representatives last week passed a resolution calling on Saudi Arabia to live up to its WTO commitments by ending the economic boycott of Israel. H. Con. Res. 370 provides: That it is the sense of the Congress that--(1) Saudi Arabia...
So Iran is now a member of the nuclear club. What are the ramifications of this momentous news? I do not feel competent to discuss this subject in detail, but fortunately top nuclear experts met at a Council on Foreign Relations' meeting in New York last week to discuss Iran's nuclear development and production. Here is the transcript of...
A federal district court in Washington D.C. last week ruled that an alleged Colombian terrorist is not a lawful combatant within the meaning of the Geneva Conventions. The case involved a criminal indictment filed against Junvenal Pineda (a.k.a. Simon Trinidad) for conspiracy to commit hostage taking, hostage taking, aiding and abetting and causing an act to be done, and material...
Bill Hing over at ImmigrationProf Blog has some interesting thoughts on the connection between immigration reform and national security. Quoting a West Point national security expert, he argues that "By bringing the people that are here out of the shadows, and creating an orderly mechanism for identifying and documenting the low-risk individuals who travel to this country to work,...
Franz Jägerstätter is not a name most of us know. But to those who have studied the pantheon of great conscientious objectors, his name is well known. Essentially, Jägerstätter was a quiet Austrian peasant who refused to serve in the Third Reich after the 1938 German Anschluss. For this stance he was tried as a deserter and executed in 1943....
Who is the best international commercial arbitrator in the world? For the answer click "show" below. (show) The answer is Albert Jan van den Berg. According to the International Who's Who of Business Lawyers 2006, van den Berg was named the best international commercial arbitrator in the world. Here is an excerpt of their announcement: "Albert Jan van den...
