Jackson’s Parrot
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Reynolds v. United States
This week’s religious freedom case is one near to my experience as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the “Church”). Reynolds v. United States, 98 U.S. 145 (1878), is a case in which the United States Supreme Court upheld a statute that restricted the free exercise of religion by Mr.…
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Permoli v. New Orleans
Today’s case, Permoli v. New Orleans, 44 U. S. 589 (1845), deals with a city ordinance which required all funerals to be performed at a specified “obituary chapel” rather than at individual houses of worship. The case text does not specifically identify why this restriction was imposed, nor does it identify who was entitled to…
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The Power to Destroy
It is an often stated maxim that the power to tax is the power to destroy. The national Canadian government seems not to understand this. A recently passed law requires Facebook (and other similar companies) to make payments to Canadian news organizations if the site allows links to those sites in Canada. So, for instance,…
Got any book recommendations?