Civil Discourse Now

Where the far left and far right overlap for fun and enlightenment

All Blog Posts Tagged 'freedom' (6)

1 piece of paper worth $1 million

Guy in his 20s, charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana, was entering into a diversion agreement. If he stayed out of trouble for a year, followed other terms, there’d be no conviction. His Honor held the agreement up & asked the guy how much that was worth. 1/7

The guy, politely, said “I don’t know, sir.” His Honor said, “One Million Dollars” & explained how a criminal conviction, even for a misdemeanor, could block things in the future: student loans, enlistment in…

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Added by Mark Small on September 28, 2021 at 8:25pm — No Comments

"Education? We don't need no stinking education!"

   With the past week's revelations of communications between then-Governor Mitch Daniels and then-Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Bennett (whom I thought was better either as a singer or as head men's basketball coach at University of Wisconsin), a lot of people have discussed the state of education both in Indiana and in the United States.

   Discussion of public affairs is good, but also can be scary.

  I fear for our educational system because of several elements.…

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Added by Mark Small on July 22, 2013 at 6:35am — 1 Comment

Academic freedom and Mitch Daniels are incompatible.

   In 1975 I helped organize students at DePauw to protest the University's denial of tenure to a professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. The denial had the effect of termination of the professor's employment. DePauw, at the time (maybe still) required that a professor achieve tenure within seven years of that professor's employment, or the employment would end. The professor, Robert Fornaro, held a Ph.D., had published peer-review articles, and had been voted Professor of…

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Added by Mark Small on July 17, 2013 at 5:30am — No Comments

Mr. Santorum: There is an "establishmnt clause" in the First Amendment and it is not an emetic.

When Europeans first came to the shores of this continent, Europe was in turmoil over religion. Between Luther’s 95 Theses to the Treaty of Westphalia over one hundred years of bloodshed passed. Some who came to the North American shores sought refuge from religious persecution. Others came for economic reasons. Some came through no choice—chained and sold, once they arrived here, as chattel. They were slaves.

   Rick Santorum is an odd person to advocate rejection of the separation…

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Added by Mark Small on February 28, 2012 at 7:31am — 8 Comments

   The City of Indianapolis, through its Department of Code Enforcement,  has been kind enough to post an information for "Super Celebration Sites" for the time leading up to, and following, the Supe…

   The City of Indianapolis, through its Department of Code Enforcement,  has been kind enough to post an information for "Super Celebration Sites" for the time leading up to, and following, the Super Bowl.

   Contexts of Orwellian twists on the English language are interesting. To see these phenomena in regard to a sports event staged by a mono(lith)poly would add an element of amusement, were it not for a couple of factors. First, we—taxpayers and citizens of Indianapolis and…

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Added by Mark Small on January 2, 2012 at 7:58am — No Comments

Government should have a reason before depriving us of a freedom.

   Should government have a reason for banning something?

   There are many distinctions between laws. Amongst those distinctions is one of laws that ban certain conduct. Laws that ban conduct that is malum per se (for example, murder, robbery, kidnaping) prohibit conduct society has seen as intrinsically wrong. Laws that ban conduct that is malum prohibitum (for example, jaywalking, possession of marijuana) prohibit conduct because we, or our elected officials, say such conduct is…

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Added by Mark Small on December 1, 2011 at 7:03am — No Comments

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