Remember good ole Oily Taints, er, ORLY TAITZ?  She’s the attorney/dentist/real estate agent that has been the most visible face of the anti-Obama “Birthers”, who believe that Obama is not a natural U.S. citizen and therefore not legally allowed to be the President.  I first wrote about her in August, 2009 in a post called “Who is Orly Taitz?”

It appears she’s been feeling the heat because she is under “increasing legal attack in the United States from groups and individuals opposed to her legal actions challenging the Constitutional qualifications of Barrack Hussein Obama to hold the office of President of the United States.”

Perhaps some of the heat came from the Georgia Judge who fined Orly Taitz $20,000 in October for, among other things, “baseless attacks on the Court.”

Where does she turn?  The United Nations, of course, where she has appealed for “urgent action under the mandate for human rights defenders.”  Taitz claims she has been the victim of death threats, vandalism, false complaints, and a suspected assassination attempt and that her reports to law enforcement have been ignored.

Could it be because Orly Taitz is the antichrist?

Orly Taitz Appeals to United Nations for Protection, Investigation « The Washington Independent.

I swear I don’t go looking for this stuff.

Once again the Orlando Sentinel website has outdone itself, this time a story by Amy L. Edwards where some porn people are suing other porn people.    Amy Edwards is the “Breaking News” reporter for the Orlando Sentinel.   She apparently filed this gem at 6:26pm on January 18th….JUST AS THE STORY BROKE…

“Photos on male escort Web site at center of lawsuit”

Forget about whether or not this is BREAKING NEWS, HOW IS THIS NEWS AT ALL???????

Newspapers are crying about how they are losing money?  It’s because their reporters are busy writing about civil cases involving PORN.  That’s right…go for the cheap clickthroughs, Amy.  Tight work there, hun.

Photos on male escort Web site at center of lawsuit – OrlandoSentinel.com.

“Every time the reform seems less likely that it will happen, the entire group trades higher,” said Perry, who has advised his clients to buy shares of Wellcare Health Plans Inc. (WCG), recently up 1.3% to $36.74, and Humana Inc. (HUM), up 1% to $42.26.

Among the other recent gainers in the sector, Aetna rose 2.7% to $32.65, Cigna Corp. (CI) added 2.3% to $36.41 and Well Point Inc. (WLP) gained 2.7% to $58.07. Meanwhile, UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH) added 1.6% to $30.99.

Insurance Stocks Soar on News of Lieberman’s Obstructionism | CommonDreams.org.

Alan Grayson has been kicking ass lately…most recently when he said Dick Cheney needs to STFU.

One of the “conservative right’s” loudest crusades has been their effort to undermine the Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now (ACORN), following the release of a series of videos showing ACORN employees behaving inappropriately (something Haliburton employees never do).

Hypocritical “conservatives” in Congress have done everything possible to strip ACORN of all federal funding.  Many legal experts have warned that these measures may be unconstitutional because lawmakers cannot punish a group or individual without a trial.   They even have a term for it…”bills of attainder“:

Bills of attainder, ex post facto laws, and laws impairing the obligations of contracts, are contrary to the first principles of the social compact, and to every principle of sound legislation. – James Madison

So here’s 5 minutes during a hearing of the Science and Technology committee where Alan Grayson gives Rep. Paul Broun from Georgia a beat down about the constitutionality of “bills of attainder”.

And now a court ruling supporting Grayson:

December 12, 2009:  A federal judge today issued an injunction preventing the implementation of a congressional ban on funding for ACORN. Judge Nina Gershon concluded that the ban amounted to a “bill of attainder” that unfairly singled out ACORN

More here:  Judge Rules on ACORN Funding

There’s an increasing breakdown of the traditional social boundaries between workplace and homelife, and personal and public information.

Let’s say a Facebook user in England sues another user in Australia for defamatory comments posted on the site. Who has jurisdiction over the case, which country’s laws should be applied:  England’s, Australia’s or those of the United States, where Facebook is based?

Can the law keep up with technology? – CNN.com.

Orly Taitz is the lawyer leading the charge that Barack Obama is not a U.S. citizen and therefore isn’t legally the president. She’s been quiet for a few months but apparently has now pissed off a judge in Georgia.

“Her response…is breathtaking in its arrogance and borders on delusional. ”

“…failed to make coherent legal arguments but instead wasted the Court’s time with press conference sound bites and speeches.”

“…she continues her baseless attacks on the Court.”

Read more about Orly here: Who is Orly Taitz?

Orly Taitz Sanctioned for $20,000 « The Washington Independent.

Gov.uscourts.gamd.77605.28.0

The Twitterverse is still recovering from the sudden departure of Courtney Love and her daughter.   Courtney Love has closed down her Twitter account just days after her daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, went after Ali Lohan — Lindsay’s sister — on the micro-blogging service. Mother and daughter are both tweet-obsolete for the moment.

Love is dealing with a defamation claim after tweeting disgust at a fashion designer, and Demi Moore and Perez Hilton were also exploring legal action after their war of 140 characters or less with each other last month.

The law on what you can and can’t say on Twitter hasn’t been refined yet by a court, but assuming it follows the general defamation book, it’ll be hard to win a defamation lawsuit. But that won’t stop many plaintiffs from trying.

Tweet Delete: Celebs Exit Twitter – ABC News.

A court in the UK is allowing a law firm to serve an injunction via Twitter. According to the BBC, “the injunction – known as the Blaney’s Blarney Order – is due to be served at 1930BST and will include a link to the text of the full court order.”

The BBC adds that in the UK, injunctions can already be served by email, so it’s not completely out of left field for the court order via Twitter to be allowed. Nonetheless, it’s an innovative move by the court, and one we could see in the future as public figures look to protect their identity and brand on the social web.

You’ve Been Served … A Court Order, Via Twitter.

This past June, President Obama signed “The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act” granting the Food and Drug Administration greater regulatory power over the amount of nicotine in tobacco products, and the authority to ban candy flavorings that appeal to kids and block misleading labels such “low tar” and “light.”

Starting today, September 22nd, 2009 it is no longer legal to sell flavored cigarettes…

…a cigarette or any of its component parts (including the tobacco, filter, or paper) shall not contain, as a constituent (including a smoke constituent) or additive, an artificial or natural flavor (other than tobacco or menthol) or an herb or spice, including strawberry, grape, orange, clove, cinnamon, pineapple, vanilla, coconut, licorice, cocoa, chocolate, cherry, or coffee, that is a characterizing flavor of the tobacco product or tobacco smoke.  SOURCE:  FDA Letter to Industry on Cigarettes Containing Certain Characterizing Flavors

Despite a significant decrease in the percentage of Americans who smoke in recent decades, more than 400,000 Americans still die from tobacco-related illnesses every year.  Tobacco-related health care costs exceed $100 billion annually.  SOURCE:  CNN Obama Signs Bill Putting Tobacco Products Under FDA

Every year, almost 1,000 smokers and non-smokers are killed in home fires caused by cigarettes and other smoking materials.  SOURCE:  U.S. Fire Administration

The first time I quit cigarettes, it was the cloves that drew be back….because I had convinced myself that cloves weren’t really cigarettes (and therefore somehow okay?!?).   Then I quit again, only to pick them up 5 years later after my divorce.   But this time it was the Marlboro Ultra Lights I smoked…again somehow convincing myself I was doing less damage than if I smoked Lights or Regulars.

I  am happy to say smoked my last cigarette (clove or otherwise) on December 12th 2008.   I wish I’d have quit sooner (or never started).

Ban on flavored cigarettes goes into effect — OrlandoSentinel.com.

Did someone neglect to mention to the Nigerians that they might have some scammers in their midst?

Nigerian 419: Nigeria Demands Apology For Sony Ad Implying They’re A Source Of Scams.  Here’s the offending video: