Wintery Knight has posted the video below from a debate of Senator Jim Demint speaking on the proposed hate crimes amendment currently before the US Senate. I do not agree with all of the Senator’s arguments; the Senator seems to oppose the idea that some crimes or assaults are worse than others; however, having distinctions […]
Entries Tagged as 'Jurisprudence'
Senator Jim Demint on the Proposed Hate Crimes Amendment
July 18th, 2009 16 Comments
Tags: Hate Crimes
Fisking Margaret Mayman: The Flawed Moral Theology on the Smacking Referendum
July 7th, 2009 7 Comments
In “A Christian Perspective on the Child Discipline Referendum,” Rev Dr Margaret Mayman presents a theological justification for retaining the amended section 59 of the Crimes Act 1961, which has criminalised force used against a child for the purposes of parental correction. Mayman began by offering three standard arguments for repealing the old section 59, […]
Tags: Crimes Act · David Benatar · Hermeneutics · Margaret Mayman · Referendum · s59 · Smacking · Theology
The Foreshore and Seabed Repeal: The Inconvenience of Due Process
July 2nd, 2009 14 Comments
That the state is not above the law but also subject to it is surely one of the foundational concepts of any just and free society. This notion has found its place in the writings of many influential philosophers, jurists and theologians, it can be found in the constitutions and bills of rights of most […]
Tags: Foreshore and Seabed · Human Rights · Jurisprudence · Justice · Liberty · Māori Land · Ngāti Apa
How to Find the Reported Judicial Decision on the David Bain Re-Trial
June 3rd, 2009 3 Comments
The blogosphere has featured many posts on many blogs regarding David Bain’s guilt or innocence regarding the homicide of his family. We have refused to participate in this speculation and have made our opinions on speculating on the Bain case before the court has ruled clear. I do not intend to break this self-imposed rule […]
Tags: David Bain · Justice
Twitter Updates on David Bain Trial?
March 8th, 2009 6 Comments
MandM have just one thing to say on the David Bain trial: Innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Do not expect any commentary or speculation on the trial at MandM until the verdict is in.
Tags: Justice
Studying at Otago University no Riot
February 25th, 2009 20 Comments
From 2002-06 I had the pleasure of studying at Otago University. I also taught there in various roles as a researcher, tutor and fill-in lecturer for the Theology, Philosophy and Law schools. Otago was an intellectually rigorous and stimulating place; it’s reputation for being the one of the best Universities in New Zealand and the […]
Tags: Student Associations · Student Riots · University of Otago · Voluntary Student Membership
A common objection to belief in the God of the Bible is that a good, kind, and loving deity would never command the wholesale slaughter of nations. In the tradition of his popular Is God a Moral Monster?, Paul Copan teams up with Matthew Flannagan to tackle some of the most confusing and uncomfortable passages of Scripture. Together they help the Christian and nonbeliever alike understand the biblical, theological, philosophical, and ethical implications of Old Testament warfare passages.
No Defences Permitted for the Accused
June 19th, 2009 36 Comments
In, The referendum campaign is underway, No Right Turn’s Idiot/Savant gives an excellent example of an argument we see coming up a lot in the debate around the upcoming referendum on smacking. In addition to trotting out the standard ad hominem, that everyone who supports the reinstatement of the old section 59 of the Crimes […]
Tags: Bad Reasoning · Crimes Act · Defences · Idiot/Savant · Referendum · s59 · Smacking · Sue Bradford · William Blackstone