Courts and Gay Marriage (Townhall.com) November 14, 2008
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Voters in three states recently voted against same-sex marriage.
Courtesy of Townhall.com
So why is this back in court again? Because we have allowed courts to reinvent themselves as agents of social change.
The founders expected courts to be the weakest of the branches of government, providing a check when the executive or legislative branches stepped out of bounds. But now courts take the initiative, becoming both the protagonist and the decision-maker. In both California and Massachusetts, same-sex marriage was initiated by a 1-judge majority.
A liberal friend of mine says he now believes society would have been better off if the political branches had decided abortion, not courts. It might have taken longer, he said, but there would have been a better acceptance of the outcome.
That is—or was supposed to be—the American way.
To listen to the audio: http://townhall.com/TalkRadio/Show.aspx?RadioShowID=11&ContentGuid=272b87cb-2d4f-4f9e-aeb8-2482684a1a9b
Unfair and Unbalanced (Townhall.com) November 19, 2008
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With Democrats in charge of the White House and Congress, one of the
Courtesy of Townhall.com
few checks conservatives have left is talk radio and the new media. Yet even those may come under attack if Congress has its way.
For years the so-called “fairness doctrine” required media to present both sides of an issue. But 20 years ago, the Federal Communications Commission rightly understood that with so many media outlets competing with one another, each one need not present on both sides.
With the rise of conservative talk radio, especially, liberals would like to return the fairness doctrine to win by law what they have not been able to win in the free market of ideas.
Present-elect Obama has said he doesn’t favor it, but will he veto a bill several powerful democratic Senators say they want? Stay tuned.
To listen to the audio: http://townhall.com/TalkRadio/Show.aspx?RadioShowID=11&ContentGuid=ef7ae41b-8364-4e5e-ad83-849ff2ba4a0e