PS: I'm not saying there's no benefit to judicial policy making or activism—it's what drags the law forward—and gives society an opportunity to define and clarify its values—I'm just saying we should stop pretending it doesn't happen across the entire political spectrum.

*By "activism" I mean pushing the boundaries of an argument beyond the intentions of the stated law—from a practitioner & teacher perspective, an unbelievably irritating situation. Try explaining to 1st year students that the law is structured & rules-based—except for all the policy-based decisions!

One of the biggest legal fictions I encountered in law school was the idea that only "progressive" judges were "activists" (I lost marks for challenging that notion—fortunately legal studies have progressed since then). Occasionally liberal judges go too far—but they have nothing on "conservatives".

"The ruling means the Illinois National Guard remains under federal authority — at least for now — but cannot be used on the ground in Chicago or elsewhere in the state."

Regrettably relevant research today

Disguised Repression: Targeting Opponents with Nonpolitical Crimes to Undermine Dissent
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/...

"Forty-two judges went so far as to say that the Supreme Court’s emergency orders had caused 'some' or 'major' harm to the public’s perception of the judiciary[,] [including] nearly half of the Republican-nominated judges."

gift link 👉 www.nytimes.com/2025/10/11/u...

What a strange fortnight—we keep losing iconic women (& a few iconic men)! RIP #DianeKeaton

Whoever is pulling the MTG strings is/continues to be incredibly politically astute.

🍿

So…
They presented the case to a grand jury, which found no crimes.

Then they presented the case to a different GJ - WITHOUT the evidence that proved that there weren’t any crimes…

Disturbing (but also hope-inducing) to see lower court judges so demoralised by the increasingly whimsical & reckless US Supreme Court. Lawyers individually have a duty to keep the legal system working properly & while it's unusual for judges to speak out, they must do what's required. #SCOTUS

Amazing what happens when you give the guy a plane

Excellent adaptation of Peter Høeg's novel (a strange experience in itself). Given the current US MAGA/tech bro situation, the futuristic post-climate/post-nature setting, complete with "additional loyalty tests" for "immigrants of less than 2 generations", is deeply unsettling. Via SBS On Demand.

It reads like an Onion headline.
www.nbcnews.com/politics/sup...

Before it won the 2022 federal election, the Labor Party promised stronger action to curb climate change. Since then, it has approved coal and gas projects that will emit a cumulative 6.5 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide. satpa.pe/Fix1oXv

For everyone who is grinding through each day .,.

CBS Mornings captures the joy of the relentless 24/7 news cycle

“I’m worried about my community… I’m out here in a frog costume to show how ridiculous the notion that we’re violent terrorists is, and showcase how that narrative is wrong…”

Serious Q: is it too late to give this dude the Nobel Peace Prize? 🐸 🏆

His slip of the tongue reveals who’s really in charge. trib.al/mIvP0yE

“Illinois governor says we’re provoking actions that are unlawful,” Miller said on CNN. “If I put federal law enforcement and National Guard into a nice sleepy Southern town, is anyone gonna riot?”

We have breaking news in Inside Medicine.

We had heard rumors of RIFs to CDC.

But this is the first visual confirmation that it has occurred tonight, and at high levels in the agency.

Here is what we know...and then some well-sourced rumors (but rumors, nonetheless, not confirmed) 🧵...

{ gift article } www.nytimes.com/2025/10/09/u...

Holy crap

Amazing thing about this isn’t even that none of it is true (none of it is), but that on Sunday morning, every news show will have Republicans on to soft-pedal some similar fiction to cover for the fact that ICE is literally kidnapping people in the streets and Republicans shutdown the government.

“All of these actions reflect a buoyed commander in chief who feels emboldened to go further after feeling as though he has faced surprisingly little resistance to his ambitious agenda in the first nine months. He has even remarked to aides that he is shocked how easy it has all proven to be.”

@eggerdc.bsky.social: "There is no comparison between the acts Letitia James took as attorney general of New York to hit Trump’s companies and the ones he is now taking...It’s the difference between the application of law and the application of raw power."
www.thebulwark.com/p/insidious-...