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A few weeks ago, I was confronted with an extreme point of view that left me shaking in disbelief. In casual conversation with a fellow civic club member, whom I considered to be one of the kindest, most considerate and thoughtful men I knew, he disclosed his belief that America would be fully justified in barring all Muslims from our country as the United States was a Christian country.

He then repeated the often-debunked assertion that certain Muslim groups had already established Sharia law in two small communities in Michigan. He pointed to a recently reported decision by Denmark to stop accepting Muslim immigrants and send them home.

As a devout Christian myself, I countered that the United States was actually established as a secular country by law that separates church and state and protects freedom of religion, citing the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. I said that this is exactly the kind of line being put out by Trumps immigration policy advisor, Stephen Miller, and white supremacist groups.

He angrily replied, Dont preach to me. I was stunned.

My background in law and political science, as well as my years of government service, taught me that no U.S. state constitution, and no state attorney general, would ever sanction the imposition of Sharia law in one of its municipalities. It just wouldnt happen.

My friends successful background as a conservative businessman and investor apparently didnt tell him that, nor did it teach him to be skeptical of such reporting. Im not sure if he has ever read the First Amendment:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances (emphasis added).

A little internet research on Snopes.com, a well-known fact-checking source, quickly told me that according to an Aug. 8, 2018 report from The Last Line of Defense website, it was now illegal to serve pork and for women to appear in public without wearing burqas (Islamic head coverings) in the 109th congressional district of Michigan:

Following the recent decision by Michigans 109th Congressional district to adopt adherence to Sharia Law as well as traditional Wypipo Law, County Commissioner Art Tubolls took to the podium to announce further plans: A full-scale ban on bacon within the district, and compulsory wearing of a burka by all females in public.

Indeed, as expected, this news proved controversial. Dearborns 200 billion-dollar Allah Justavanosh Mosque was surrounded by protesters, and the phone lines were jammed with angry potato pancakes. County Pastor Johnathan Regarp tried to calm the crowd down.

Of course, according to Snopes, Michigan doesnt have a 109th congressional district (it has 14 congressional districts, total). Nor does it have a so-called Allah Justavanosh Mosque in Dearborn, or a county commissioner named Art Tubolls (both are obviously made-up names, the latter an anagram of the equally faux Busta Troll).

The Snopes fact-checkers say these false details reveal not only that the story is a fabrication, but also that it was generated by the same online trolling operation responsible for cranking out scores of so-called satirical articles.

This example plays on the fears of those who are convinced that Islam is a threat to Western Civilization and intent on destroying America. Dearborn, Michigan, has often (and falsely) been cited as an example of a U.S. city taken over by Muslims.

What this tells me is that my otherwise goodhearted friend had become enraged by false online reporting that played to his fears that Muslims were planning to take over the country. Normally kind, thoughtful and mild-mannered, he became uncharacteristically angry and defensive when challenged, thereby cutting off further discussion. That is unfortunate. We needed to be able to talk.

Im not sure if my friend supports Trump. However, I do know that when folks ask why Trumps supporters are so devoted to him, as Gregory McGann so thoughtfully addressed in a column published Dec. 1, this kind of misinformation provides a clue. He appeals to their prejudices and fears. President Franklin D. Roosevelt famously said the only thing we have to fear is, fear itself.

If we truly believe in the First Amendment, the equality of all people and the rule of law, we should not fear living in a multicultural society, we should embrace it.

Robert Mounts lives in Gainesville.

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Robert Mounts: The scourge of misinformation playing to our fears - The Ledger

Infowars, the website founded by Alex Jones that traffics in conspiracy theories, has been largely banned by Apple, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

But one of the sites personalities still managed to disrupt the House impeachment hearing on Monday, using his verified Twitter account to carry out a publicity stunt.

[Read live updates on Mondays impeachment hearing.]

Moments after Representative Jerrold Nadler, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, banged a gavel to open the hearing, the Infowars host, Owen Shroyer, used Twitter to broadcast video of himself rising from his seat in the packed hearing room and shouting, Jerry Nadler and the Democrat Party are committing treason against this country!

Mr. Shroyer continued to stream video of himself railing against Democrats and defending President Trump as the Capitol Police quickly escorted him from the room.

Trump is innocent! Mr. Shroyer shouted.

Mr. Shroyers stunt during the widely televised hearing came despite efforts by major technology companies to wipe Infowars and most of its content from their platforms, as they struggle to contain the spread of misinformation online.

[From The New York Times Magazine: I worked for Alex Jones. I regret it.]

Last year, Apple, Facebook and YouTube, which is owned by Google, severely restricted the reach of Infowars and Mr. Jones after years in which they spread dark conspiracy theories about the Sept. 11 attacks, the Sandy Hook school shooting and the Boston Marathon bombing, among other tragedies.

Twitter also banned the accounts of Mr. Jones and Infowars last year, saying both had violated its policies, which prohibit direct threats of violence and some forms of hate speech but allow deception or misinformation.

Yet Mr. Shroyer remains active on Twitter, where he has more than 120,000 followers, and effectively used the site and its streaming video service, Periscope, to promote his interruption as Mr. Nadler began his opening statement.

When it banned Mr. Jones and Infowars in September 2018, Twitter said it would continue to evaluate reports about other accounts associated with him and his website and would take action if they violated its rules. On Monday, the company declined to comment specifically on Mr. Shroyers account.

In one video posted to his account on Monday, Mr. Shroyer says, So Im being arrested right now for disrupting Congress, as Capitol Police officers appear to handcuff him after he was removed from the room. Im a criminal for my First Amendment rights.

A spokeswoman for the Capitol Police, Eva M. Malecki, said one individual had been charged Monday with disruption of Congress, but she did not immediately confirm that it was Mr. Shroyer.

On his show, Mr. Jones has played video of Mr. Shroyer claiming that Neil Heslin, the father of one of the Sandy Hook victims, did not hold the body of his 6-year-old son, Jesse Lewis, in his arms after the shooting.

Hes claiming that he held his son and saw the bullet hole in his head, Mr. Shroyer said on the show. That is not possible.

Last year, Mr. Heslin was one of three parents who sued Mr. Jones for defamation, part of a series of legal actions against Mr. Jones, who has called the Sandy Hook shooting a hoax perpetrated by the government.

As a candidate in 2015, Mr. Trump, who has shown an affinity for conspiracy theories, appeared on Infowars for a nearly half-hour interview with Mr. Jones.

Your reputation is amazing, Mr. Trump told Mr. Jones. I will not let you down.

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Infowars Host Disrupts House Impeachment Hearing - The New York Times

U.S. Supreme Court

By Debra Cassens Weiss

December 9, 2019, 10:14 am CST

Image from Shutterstock.com.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to a Delaware constitutional provision requiring balance between Republicans and Democrats on the states top courts.

The court granted cert Friday and asked the parties to consider whether the plaintiff, retired lawyer James Adams, has standing to sue, SCOTUSblog reports. Adams says applying for a judgeship in the state would be futile because he is an independent who is neither Republican nor Democrat.

Adams won in the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at Philadelphia, which ruled that the restriction violated his First Amendment right to associate with the party of his choice.

The Delaware constitutional provision provides that, when there are an even number of judges on a court, no more than half the seats may be held by one political party. When there is an odd number of judges, no more than a bare majority of seats may be held by members one political party.

A related provision allows only judges from the two major political parties to serve on the state supreme court, superior courts and chancery courtsthe states three top courts.

Delawares governor selects judges from a list provided by a judicial nominating commission.

In his brief opposing certiorari, Adams says the Delaware system is unique. No other state excludes minority parties from appointment as judges, the brief says. No other state requires political balance on their courts.

The case is Carney v. Adams. The cert petition is here, and the SCOTUSblog case page is here.

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Supreme Court agrees to hear challenge to Delaware requirement for political balance on top courts - ABA Journal

The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a challenge to a Kentucky law that requires doctors to show and describe ultrasound images and play the sounds of the fetuss heartbeat to women seeking abortions.

The organizations challenging the law, which included a Kentucky abortion clinic and the American Civil Liberties Union, argued that it was a breach of the First Amendment because it forced patients to see and hear content they didnt want to.

The law, which was previously upheld by the US Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, was blocked while the Supreme Court considered whether to hear the case. The courts refusal to hear it is not a ruling and will not have consequences for similar laws around the country, but it allows the law to go into effect in Kentucky.

In defending the law, Kentucky argued that the regulation was part of the medical informed-consent process and that the law "does nothing more than require that women who are considering an abortion be provided with information that is truthful, non-misleading and relevant to their decision of whether to have an abortion."

The appeals court agreed, writing in its ruling that there was nothing suspect about the state requiring a doctor to provide truthful information, even if those disclosures relate to unborn life and have the effect of persuading the patient not to have an abortion."

While the Supreme Courts rejection of the case is the last word on the challenge to Kentuckys law, the law can still be repealed by the states legislature, and abortion rights organizations are calling on legislators to take this action.

The physicians at Kentuckys last abortion clinic will be forced to subject every patient to their ultrasound images, a detailed description of those images, and the sounds of the fetal heart tones prior to an abortion, the ACLU wrote in a statement on the rejection, even if the patient objects or is covering their eyes and blocking their ears, and even if the physician believes that doing so will cause harm to the patient.

The Kentucky law is not the first of its kind. Texas, Louisiana, and Wisconsin already have similar laws in place, and ultrasound laws were previously struck down in Oklahoma and North Carolina. The courts rejection will not affect those laws, but it may give other states the confidence to pass similar laws without fear of their being blocked by the courts.

The rejection comes as Roe v. Wade faces multiple challenges in the lower courts and as the Supreme Court considers a law in Louisiana that requires abortion clinics and doctors to obtain admitting privileges from nearby hospitals.

The challenge to the Louisiana law will be the first abortion case argued before the Supreme Court since President Donald Trump appointed Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch, solidifying a conservative majority on the court. The courts decision could greatly impact abortion rights across the country.

However, Mondays rejection of the Kentucky law has no bearing on the Louisiana case, Alexa Kolbi-Molinas, senior staff attorney at the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project, insisted to BuzzFeed News.

No, it is absolutely not a premonition of what the justices will decide next year, Kolbi-Molinas told BuzzFeed News.

This was a First Amendment claim. It mandates speech for the doctors; its a totally different legal question. Completely unrelated, Kolbi-Molinas said.

The Supreme Court will hear the Louisiana abortion case on March 4, 2020.

Continued here:
The Supreme Court Allowed A Kentucky Law Requiring A Woman To Listen To A Fetuss Heartbeat In Order To Get An Abortion - BuzzFeed News

President Donald Trump said that French President Emmanuel Macrons recent comments about NATO were very insulting. USA TODAY

A conference celebrating the 70th anniversary of NATO was canceled after the U.S. ambassador to Denmark, Carla Sands, objected to a speaker who has made statements critical of President Donald Trump, the Danish think tank co-sponsoring the event announced Sunday.

Stanley Sloan, a former CIA analyst and author of "Defense of the West,"had planned to deliver an address on the challenges facing the transatlantic alliance, and the West in general, at the conference, which was scheduled to take place Tuesday at the U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen.

A day before Sloan left for Denmark, he said he was informed by the Danish Atlantic Council thatthe U.S. Embassy "vetoed my participation due to my critical evaluation of Trump's impact on transatlantic relations."

"Stunned and concerned about my country," Sloan said in a tweet.

The next day, the Danish Atlantic Council announced the conference had been canceled altogether.

U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Carla Sands arrives for the New Year reception for the diplomacy at Christiansborg Castle, Denmark, Jan. 3, 2019.(Photo: Philip Davali, AP)

"We have all the time known that Mr. Sloan has a critical approach towards President Donald Trump. That is no secret especially when following his Twitter and Facebook profile," the Danish Atlantic Council Secretary-General Lars Bangert Struwe said in a statement.

But Struwe said they "never doubted" that Sloan "would deliver an unpolitical and objective lecture," as he promised he would.

When Sands objected to Sloan's appearance, Struwe said the council decided to pull the plug on the event because "the process has become too problematic."

In a series of tweets, the U.S. Embassy said it "supports freedom of speech as enshrined in the First Amendment" and that it was "unfortunate" the Danish Atlantic Council decided to cancel the conference.

"This event would have provided speakers and attendees an important opportunity to exchange views on security cooperation and strengthening #NATO for the future," the U.S. Embassy said.

The American officials objected to Sloan's "proposed last-minute inclusion in the program," which "did not follow the same deliberative process of joint decision-making and agreement that we followed when recruiting all other speakers."

But Struwe disputed that explanation and told The Washington Post that the U.S. Embassy, which was paying for the event, had not given any input on the other speakers.

"I'm sorry that you objected to my inclusion in the conference," Sloan tweeted in reply to the embassy. "I am an experienced public diplomacy lecturer who always represents his country well."

"I have given presentations during Republican and Democratic administrations that criticized to one degree or another administration policy," he said. "I have always praised the State Department for its willingness to display our freedoms to foreign audiences. I hope we can return to that."

Sloan posted the text of theaddress he had planned to give online. In the speech, he commendsSands for her "expression of support for the values on which the alliance is based as well as its strategic importance for both Demark and the United States."

And he planned to say the "current crisis" facing NATO "did not start with Donald Trump, even though he certainly has brought it to a head."

Sands is an entrepreneur,former chiropractor and former actress who appeared in the soap opera "The Bold and the Beautiful." She was appointed ambassador to Denmark by Trump and was approved by the Senate in November 2017.

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NATO conference canceled after US ambassador Carla Sands blocks speaker critical of Trump - USA TODAY