Charles C. Haynes: Why fifth graders have rights too

  When people ask if kids in public schools have First Amendment rights, I’m tempted to answer “only if you think they’re human.”

  After all, the U.S. Constitution recognizes that every person is born with certain inalienable rights not granted by the government, including freedom of expression guaranteed by the First Amendment.

  But to be polite, I answer by re-framing the question to ask “to what extent are students free to exercise their inherent rights in public schools.”

Sam Fulwood III: What does the Facebook generation think about racism?

  Excited and agitated, my friend and colleague Liz Chen popped into my office yesterday to ask my opinion of the news that had her Facebook friends buzzing.

  Last month noted actor Forest Whitaker was falsely accused of stealing from a popular New York City deli when he stopped in to buy a cup of yogurt. A Milano Market employee frisked the famous black actor, believing him to be one of the shoplifters who pocket items from the store without paying for them. As it turns out, however, Whitaker didn’t steal anything—and when the story hit the celebrity websites, the employee quit his job amid apologies from the storeowner.

Cameron Smith: Bingo, gambling and the rule of law

  For years, Alabamians have read news articles, listened to radio talk shows, or spoken to politicians about gambling in the state. Even so, the issue seems to be a significant source of confusion about policy, politics, and the rule of law.

  The gambling conversation has percolated again after Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange raided the VictoryLand casino and filed suit against the gambling operations of the Poarch Creek Indians earlier this year.

Sally Steenland: The Religious Right wasn’t created to battle abortion

  The Supreme Court is hearing two cases on marriage equality this week, 40 years after it granted women access to legal and safe abortions in the landmark case Roe v. Wade. The timing of these cases—and the fact that both issues have spurred fierce and decisive culture wars—has prompted some legal experts and pundits to worry that a Court decision to legalize marriage for same-sex couples will trigger a public backlash for decades to come.

  This is supposedly what happened with abortion following Roe. According to the pundits and experts, the 1973 decision to legalize abortion outraged millions of Americans and mobilized them into a powerful movement to defend the rights of the unborn. They created the Moral Majority, the Christian Coalition, Focus on the Family, and Concerned Women for America. The Court’s decision in Roe triggered the birth of the religious right—or so the argument goes.

Steve Flowers: Inside the Statehouse: Halfway there

  The Alabama Legislature is approaching the midway point of their 2013 Regular Session. They are grappling with the woes that beset the General Fund Budget. The ongoing struggles with the General Fund are a priority. Despite the lean times, most state agencies will receive level funding. Even though there are increased insurance costs for state employees, the administration will not be forced to lay off or furlough any state workers. However, a pay increase is out of the question.

  Gov. Bentley’s proposed $5.8 billion Education Budget does allow for a 2.5% raise for education employees as well as $12.5 million in additional funding for voluntary pre-kindergarten programs.

James Glaser: I am sick of veterans who wave the flag and send others off to die

  A World War II vet told me something once that I have found to be true:

  “If you walk into a VFW or American Legion Post bar and hear some guy telling everyone what a hero he was and how he fought the enemy so well, but at the end of the bar there sits a man alone not talking to anyone, chances are great that the silent man was the one who really saw the thick of combat, while the braggart never even saw action.”

Eric Alterman: Are journalists any less gullible today than they were 10 years ago?

  It’s a tribute to the good sense of the broader American public that on the 10th anniversary of President George W. Bush’s disastrous decision to invade Iraq, a majority of Americans are aware that the entire enterprise was a bad idea, according to a poll by the Gallup Organization.  As Eric Boehlert noted on the Media Matters for America blog, “To date, that conflict has claimed the lives of nearly 8,000 U.S. service members and contractors and more than 130,000 Iraqi citizens, and is projected to cost the U.S. Treasury more than two trillion dollars.”

Gary Palmer: Why the Accountability Act matters

  In 1963, Alabama Governor George Wallace stood in the doorway of Foster Auditorium to block the “schoolhouse door” in order to prevent black students from enrolling at The University of Alabama. Fifty years later, there are still people trying block “schoolhouse doors.” This time, it is Alabama’s education union and their judicial allies trying to block the door from the outside to keep predominately poor and minority students from leaving failing schools.

Ken Paulson: When online reviews lead to lawsuits

  When a Minnesota man felt his family was treated shabbily by a neurologist, he made sure the world knew about it.

  Dennis Laurion posted caustic reviews of Minnesota neurologist David McKee, saying he was insensitive to his father’s needs and claiming that a nurse called the doctor “a real tool.” This angered McKee, who offered his own prescription: a libel suit.

Sam Fulwood III: Fixing the GOP

  I suspect that those who need to hear it most are unlikely to read—or heed—what I’m about to say. After poring through all 100 pages of the Republican National Committee’s soul-searching report released Monday, the “Growth and Opportunity Project,” I feel compelled to offer the party faithful some advice.

  Yeah, I know that I’m not the sort of person whose ideas are typically associated with a group that would nominate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney for president. But, hey, I’m an American. I want to see a revitalized Republican Party because it’s good for the country to have at least two strong political forces battling in the marketplace of policy.