CategoryLaw
The Lies in New York’s Assisted Suicide Bill
New York is close to passing a bill to legalize assisted suicide. Having passed the assembly, it is currently being considered in the senate
Dead Man “Returns” via Deepfake to Testify Against Killer
An eerie deepfake video was allowed to impersonate a manslaughter victim talking about his thoughts and feelings in the courtroom
New York State: Bill of Rights Proposed for Lakes, Waterways
Imagine the disruption of normal life if waterways could not be used to make a living or be treated as property at all. But that’s the goal
How Our Expert Classes Have Torpedoed Public Trust
Long time free speech advocate Greg Lukianoff and Angel Eduardo dissect the Cancel Culture that makes distrust a quite reasonable choice
Bioethicists Get Legacy of Terri Schiavo Death Wrong
Some bioethicists complain that her protracted starvation death has powered pro-life forces into political prominence
Should the Iconic Stanford Prison Experiment Study Be Retracted?
Within six months of the death of the famous sociologist who devised it, long-simmering questions have risen to the surface
PETA Sues NIH: Claims First Amendment Right to Talk to Monkeys
The complaint alleges the animal rights advocates have a right to receive communications from “fellow primates” that are “willing speakers.”
Science Blogger: Make Violating “Scientific Consensus” a Crime
Attitudes like those expressed by Ethan Siegel have cost the scientific sector much of the public’s trust and goodwill.
Swiss Canton Liberates Suicide Tourism from Police Investigation
Suicidal people are increasingly abandoned to lethal assistance, with steps continually taken to make death easier to access
Montana Senate Passes Bill Outlawing Physician-Assisted Suicide
In a muddled legal situation, the bill declares assisted suicide to be contrary to Montana public policy, making a previous courtroom defense unavailable
DeepSeek: Honing In on the Challenges It Presents
Although the program is admirably streamlined, censorship, data breaches, copyright violation, and lack of guardrails are among the most prominent challenges
Did China’s DeepSeek Violate OpenAI’s Legal Rights?
“Distillation” technology may have allowed DeepSeek to piggy-back on ChatGPT to capture market share
New Zealand Mountain Named a Person with Rights, Responsibilities
And what responsibilities can the mountain possibly assume? Can it be sued for an avalanche?
Gender-Dysphoric Children Protected from “Gender-Affirming Care”
The American medical establishment is increasingly the fringe advocate on this issue
Colorado Supremes Unanimously Nix Elephant Personhood
The court further ruled that such a radical and culture-destroying change in law should not be imposed by courts but rather legislatures
Can AI Really Code the Value of Humans?
The new book Soulless Intelligence urges that we program all AI systems to treat all humans as infinitely valuable – the only exceptions being criminals and aggressors
Edge of Sentience Summarizes Research on Animals’, AIs’ Feelings
And animal rights laws as well. But there is a dark side to Jonathan Birch’s approach too…Philosophy prof Jonathan Birch, principal investigator of the Animal Sentience Project at the London School of Economics, has written a book on whether and how animals feel things: The Edge of Sentience (Oxford University Press 2024). It’s not as arcane a topic as it might at first appear. It shows up in new legislation and think tanks. At Amazon, we learn, for example, “In 2021, he led a review for the UK government that shaped the Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022. In 2022-23, he was part of a working group that investigated the question of sentience in AI.” And as Birch told Marc Bekoff at Psychology Today, I’m probably best-known for my work on invertebrate sentience, which is one part Read More ›
High UN Official Supports Nature Rights and Environmental Lawfare
Nature doesn't really go to court. People with political agendas do