FAC

Dr. Laura, Sarah Palin, and the fight over free speech

Commentary on the controversy of Dr. Laura Schlessinger and her decision to end her radio show after using a racial epithet. -SM Yahoo! News August 20, 2010 By Ken Paulson In the wake of Dr. Laura Schlessinger’s decision to end her radio show after repeatedly using a racial epithet, she’s spent quite a bit of time talking about freedom of speech. “I want to regain my First Amendment rights,” Schlessinger said, contending that special-interest groups

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Google ignites debate about privacy

Internet giant Google has sparked a fiery privacy debate this week by claiming future teenagers will need to change their names when they reach adulthood to escape embarrassing online pasts. The Courier Mail August 20, 2010 By Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson In a warning experts have labelled hypocritical, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said the company knew “roughly who you are, roughly what you care about, roughly who your friends are”, and the implications of sharing that information

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Stolen Valor Act Violates Free Speech, Court Says

Non-defamatory lies are protected under the right to free speech, the 9th Circuit, overturning the conviction of a man who lied about having been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. The Courthouse News Service August 20, 2010 By Elizabeth Banicki (CN) -Xavier Alvarez was convicted of violating the Stolen Valor Act for telling fellow members of the Los Angeles-based Three Valley Water District Board of Directors that he had been in the Marines for 25

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N.M. court: Complaints against police must be released

Citizen complaints brought against police are subject to public disclosure, according to a state Court of Appeals ruling that reinforces a New Mexico sunshine law granting access to government records. August 20, 2010 By The Associated Press SANTA FE, N.M. — The court ruled this week against the state Department of Public Safety, which refused to release complaints against one of its law enforcement officers on grounds that they were confidential personnel records. In a

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Giuliani supports moving mosque farther from WTC site

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani yesterday joined a growing number of politicians supporting a move of a proposed Islamic center and mosque near ground zero to state-owned land farther from the Sept. 11 attack site. August 20, 2010 By The Associated Press NEW YORK — Giuliani, who led New Yorkers through Sept. 11 and its aftermath and whose opinion on the mosque could carry considerable clout, made his comments as the imam leading plans for the

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