Showing posts tagged laws

Save Richard O’Dwyer

The UK convicted 24-year-old student Richard O’Dwyer of conspiracy to defraud for posting links to TV and video content on his site. Now the US is trying to get him extradited for violation of copyright law on a much smaller offense.

Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales started a petition on Change.org to stop the extradition.

O’Dwyer is not a US citizen, he’s lived in the UK all his life, his site was not hosted there, and most of his users were not from the US. America is trying to prosecute a UK citizen for an alleged crime which took place on UK soil.

On the few occasions he received requests to remove content from copyright holders, he complied. His site hosted links, not copyrighted content, and these were submitted by users.

Richard O’Dwyer is the human face of the battle between the content industry and the interests of the general public. Earlier this year, in the fight against the anti-copyright bills SOPA and PIPA, the public won its first big victory. This could be our second.

- Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia founder

Read more and SIGN THE PETITION on Change.org

  
Say goodbye to super skinny models “A new Israeli law is trying to fight the spread of eating disorders by banning underweight models from local advertising. The legislation also requires publications to disclose when they use altered images to make people look thinner. The ban appears to be the first time a government has used legislation to take on a fashion industry accused of abetting eating disorders by idealizing extreme thinness. It could be a model for other countries grappling with the spread of anorexia and bulimia, particularly among young women.” View high resolution

Say goodbye to super skinny models


“A new Israeli law is trying to fight the spread of eating disorders by banning underweight models from local advertising.

The legislation also requires publications to disclose when they use altered images to make people look thinner.

The ban appears to be the first time a government has used legislation to take on a fashion industry accused of abetting eating disorders by idealizing extreme thinness. It could be a model for other countries grappling with the spread of anorexia and bulimia, particularly among young women.”


  

164 Anti-Immigration Laws Passed Since 2010?

A Mother Jones analysis.

“To get a better sense of the legislative push that most famously included Arizona’s draconian SB 1070, Mother Jones built a database of the 164 (often curiously similar) anti-immigration laws passed by state legislatures in 2010 and 2011. As you can see, the number of restrictive laws jumped last year, when five states—Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina, and Utah—passed Arizona-style bills.”

  

Whites are 4 times as likely to receive a pardon as minorities

 But new law clinic could spur reforms.

“For years, lawyers, faith-based groups and students have helped file petitions for inmates seeking to cut short lengthy prison sentences. But there have been no comparable resources for felons who sought pardons after serving their time.

That may soon change. In response to stories published in December by ProPublica and The Washington Post, former Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich (R) plans to launch the nation’s first law school clinic and training program devoted to pardons.”

  

Argentine Supreme Court decriminalizes abortion for rape cases

“Under Argentine law, abortion is only allowed in cases where the mother’s life or health are at risk, or if the woman is deemed “of feeble mind”.

The Supreme Court confirmed a lower court’s decision to allow a 15-year-old rape victim to terminate her pregnancy.

An estimated 500,000 illegal abortions are carried out in Argentina each year.”

(Source: nicewebtools.com)

  

Insane sex laws inspired by Republicans

“As Republican lawmakers have pushed ever more intrusive and expansive uterus-related legislation, some of their colleagues across the aisle have fired back with intentionally and equally ridiculous counterproposals. From mandatory rectal exams for guys seeking Viagra to prohibitions on sperm-stifling vasectomies, most of these male-only provisions have, unsurprisingly, flopped. But they’ve scored big as symbolic gestures, spotlighting the inherent sexism of laws that regulate only lady parts.”

One example:

Virginia: As the state Senate debated requiring transvaginal ultrasounds for women seeking abortions, Sen. Janet Howell proposed mandating rectal exams and cardiac stress tests for men seeking erectile dysfunction meds. Her amendment failed by just two votes.

(Source: Mother Jones)