Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

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Fayd
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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by Fayd » Sat Oct 16, 2010 11:54 am

aristide1 wrote:Check out this classy ad.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39698327/ns ... sion_2010/

Anybody recall billboards like this one of W?

not really. i do recall there having been equally weird shit having been said about bush, though.

but i did love this billboard.

http://www.mediaite.com/online/creepy-g ... ss-me-yet/

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Sun Oct 17, 2010 4:07 pm

but i did love this billboard.
An unequivocal NO to answer that question.

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NBC TV airs vote "caging" exposè on Tim Griffin.

Post by NeilBlanchard » Wed Oct 20, 2010 1:26 pm

"SarahPAC Candidate "Should Be in Jail"
Here's how caging à la Griffin works: In 2004, Griffin and the Bush re-election committee sent letters to Democratic voters marked "do not forward." Griffin seemed especially interested in sending notes to active duty soldiers sent overseas, especially soldiers of color. When the letters to the servicemen were returned to the RNC as "undeliverable," the Bush crew would then challenge the soldiers' absentee ballots as fraudulent. In other words: Go to Iraq, lose your vote. Mission accomplished.

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by Fayd » Wed Oct 20, 2010 5:20 pm

aristide1 wrote:
but i did love this billboard.
An unequivocal NO to answer that question.
maybe for you.

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by NeilBlanchard » Wed Oct 20, 2010 6:29 pm

This is outta' the blue:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... =130709372
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/201 ... awyer-says
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... =130699168

This is the most troubling part:
Long active in conservative politics, Virginia Thomas has assumed a far more visible role in the past year, founding a group called Liberty Central, which advertises itself as linked to the Tea Party. She ha...s spoken publicly about opposing what she calls the "tyranny" of the Obama administration and congressional Democrats. As president and CEO of Liberty Central, she has raised money from anonymous donors — more than $500,000 to begin with, and presumably much more since then; all of which has raised questions about a potential conflict of interest for her husband, Justice Thomas.

While some critics have said they are troubled by Virginia Thomas' political activities, the conflict-of-interest statute is aimed primarily at financial conflicts. Therefore, legal ethics experts say that a spouse's political opinions don't matter. That is particularly true in the modern age when spouses have their own careers and are free to express themselves politically. As Northwestern Law School legal ethics expert Steven Lubet observes, the conflict-of-interest law governs a justice's conduct, not his spouse's. New York University ethics expert Stephen Gillers agrees, noting that Supreme Court justices have an obligation to avoid recusal if they can. Unlike lower court judges, who can recuse themselves and be replaced by another judge, that is not true on the Supreme Court.

On the other hand, the conflict-of-interest law also counsels judges to avoid the appearance of conflict. Failure to do so could potentially cause the public to lose confidence in a justice or even in the impartiality of the court itself. Would the public, for example, come to regard the court with the same cynicism it regards other institutions if a justice's spouse is front and center, campaigning against the health care bill, and then that bill comes before the court, without the justice's stepping aside?

The ethics experts all say that the law does not impute a spouse's views to the justice she is married to. They say the only solution to the problem is restraint on the part of the spouse or, in the alternative, recusal by the justice.

That assumes there is no financial conflict. In the case of Virginia Thomas, there is one fly in the ointment, according to professor Gillers.

Liberty Central, the organization founded by Virginia Thomas, has accepted a great deal of money from anonymous donors, all of which is legal under the Supreme Court's 2010 decision striking down many of the previous limits on campaign spending. But Gillers notes Virginia Thomas is CEO and president of the group and that an opportunistic donor, by giving money to an organization that pays Virginia Thomas' salary, is in fact giving a financial benefit to Justice Thomas, too. And that could constitute a financial conflict.

That raises one critical question: How will we know if such a conflict exists, when the donors' identities are secret?

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by NeilBlanchard » Thu Oct 21, 2010 2:54 am

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/stor ... =130715322
A Latino conservative activist says his political ad was clumsily edited. Liberals say it's evidence that Republicans are trying to suppress voter turnout among Hispanics. Before the edit the tag line was "Don't vote for those who betrayed you." After the edit the line was cut to "Don't vote."

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Tea Party candidate in 10th Congressional District

Post by NeilBlanchard » Thu Oct 21, 2010 9:30 am

Jeff Perry is the Republican/Tea Party candidate in the 10th Congressional District, and about 19 years ago he was a Police Sargent, and he looked the other way when one of his officers illegally strip searched a 14 year old girl, who was never arrested. He was on the same location, and she screamed and protested -- but Mr. Perry denies hearing her, and even though the officer plead guilty and was convicted, Perry still denies that he should have done something to protect the girl, and not his officer. There are other very nasty instances of unethical behavior by Perry, including backing the same officer in another strip search of a young woman, even though he was *not* a witness:

http://electionwire.wbur.org/2010/10/21 ... gop-impact
http://www.wbur.org/2010/10/21/perry-police

Both Scott Brown and Mitt Romney have made ads supporting Mr. Perry's candidacy -- ooops!

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Thu Nov 25, 2010 6:39 am

On this Thanksgiving it's good to have an event that adds meaning:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40362816/ns ... _politics/

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Tue Dec 14, 2010 6:00 pm

The biggest dirt bag of the 21st Century may decide to simply pay up.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/12 ... l?hpt=Sbin

"Cheney's atttorney has said that there is no reason to suspect that his client is guilty."

Of course not, Cheney's handing over 1/4 billion dollars because he wants to spread the wealth.

When the story broke people were laughing at Nigeria:

http://world-news.newsvine.com/_news/20 ... ry-scandal

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by NeilBlanchard » Tue Dec 14, 2010 6:15 pm

This ethics lesson is provided (in the negative) by Don Blankenship; former CEO of Massey Energy:

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/17390/236336

*******

Wow, Cheney has lost a lot of weight!

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Wed Dec 15, 2010 7:41 pm

No way people a leopard can not change his spots.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40689080/ns ... _security/

Meet the new BP, same as the old BP.

Hey Cheney, got anything to say?
No please don't shoot, nooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooOOOOoooooOOOooo

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Mon Jan 17, 2011 10:23 am

Chase screws our own soldiers.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41043127/

What new lows can they possibly reach?

Pure scum.

The cure? Don't know, but it sure as hell ain't deregulation.

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by frenchie » Mon Jan 17, 2011 10:37 am

Great comment on that website Aristide1 linked to that summarizes what is going on :
We made mistakes and we are correcting them.......
Right! You mean you got caught!

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Mon Jan 17, 2011 10:48 am

I'm closing my Chase account ASAP. They are beyond reason. And the link where they were bragging they were up 47% from last year? It mysteriously disappeared. I wonder why.

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Wed Jan 19, 2011 9:26 am


frenchie
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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by frenchie » Wed Jan 19, 2011 9:51 am

So far so good with my local bank... I hope they don't get any stupid ideas from the big too-greedy-to-fail...

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by NeilBlanchard » Sat Mar 05, 2011 4:28 am

http://legalschnauzer.blogspot.com/2011 ... r-his.html
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas should be disbarred for his failure to truthfully complete financial-disclosure forms over a 20-year period, according to a complaint filed by the watchdog group Protect Our Elections (POE).

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Sat Mar 05, 2011 5:07 pm

Can I get an amen?!?

Not be outdone by Neil:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41926712/ns/travel-news/

I was planning on asking my economics professor what the difference was between quanitative easing and KY jelly for the average Joe, but I decided against it.

:shock:

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by andyb » Sat Mar 05, 2011 6:12 pm

I was planning on asking my economics professor what the difference was between quanitative easing and KY jelly for the average Joe, but I decided against it.
The difference is obvious, you have to pay for the jelly.


Andy

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Tue Jun 21, 2011 4:21 pm


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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by NeilBlanchard » Tue Jun 21, 2011 6:15 pm

Right, another story on the same situation:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/19/us/po ... homas.html

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Tue Jul 05, 2011 8:58 am

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43632089/

Rupert Murdoch's empire of journalistic integrity.

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Wed Jul 06, 2011 4:14 pm

aristide1 wrote:
but i did love this billboard.
An unequivocal NO to answer that question.
Just so we don't underestimated what a dirt bag Murdoch's propaganda empire represents:

http://bigthink.com/ideas/39173

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/868557-fami ... ne-hacking

Just how low can he go?

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Murdoch’s Watergate?

Post by NeilBlanchard » Mon Jul 11, 2011 6:09 pm

The question is from Carl Bernstein, no less.

http://www.newsweek.com/2011/07/10/murd ... print.html

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Mon Jul 18, 2011 10:00 pm


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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by NeilBlanchard » Tue Jul 19, 2011 8:32 am

Aris,

Are you listening to the hearing on the BBC? Rupert and James Murdoch are using a variation on the "Reagan defense" i.e. they conveniently don't remember much and anybody who does know anything is already left News Corporation...

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Tue Jul 19, 2011 9:49 am

I don't understand the Brits at all. He's essentially been running the government over there and they weren't happy about it, but they refused to speak up. Ironically, like the story of the emperor with no clothes on, it took a child to bring them to their senses. I suspect there's a lot of pent up hostility over there that's going to be vented in a short period of time.

And to allow a foreigner to play such a strategic role in their government. What the hell were they thinking?

Meanwhile the FCC is till kissing Murdoch's butt. No mention of what Roger Ailes is doing, which according to Rolling Stone Murdoch is afraid of Ailes.

Welcome to the great global corporatocracy, and the sheeple that believe it's a good thing.

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Tue Jul 26, 2011 1:15 pm

The old saying must be true, there is no bad press apparently.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43895169/ns ... ws-europe/

Righties feel free to chime in. :mrgreen:

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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by NeilBlanchard » Wed Jul 27, 2011 4:06 am


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Re: Another Great Example for Ethics Classes

Post by aristide1 » Thu Aug 18, 2011 2:16 pm

After this weekend's announcement one person summed it up best.
Read my lips no new Texans!

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