On November 6, 2013, the US Supreme Court heard arguments on the constitutionality of legislative prayer. The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in Town of Greece v. Galloway that an opening prayer in a town...
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Federal courts have deliberated a surfeit of cases implicating the Establishment Clause and recent contests have focused on both the relationships between private groups exercising religious customs and government action and possible endorsement. As evinced by this snapshot of recent...
Europe, the source of many immigrants to the American colonies, is defined by a history of interaction between the church and the state. In 1095, European noblemen responded to the pleas of the Catholic Pope Urban II and embarked on...
The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment bars the US government from making any law regarding the establishment of religion. Traditionally, the Establishment Clause has been seen as forbidding the government from establishing a national religion as well as prohibiting...
Marijuana is illegal in the US under a variety of federal statutes that criminalize the production, distribution and possession of the substance for any purpose. Regardless, laws in 23 states, the District of Columbia and Guam permit for some legal...
The US War on Drugs started in earnest during the 1970's. The US Congress passed the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act in 1970, following the spread of recreational drug use during the 1960's and of drug addictions of...
The historical roots of cannabis vary widely and run parallel to the development of the Silk Road. Accordingly, the plant was first used by the Chinese empires, followed by the Persian empire, and then introduced to western Europe around the...
Marijuana is labeled a Schedule I drug by the federal government under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Its production, distribution, possession and use are thus criminally prohibited. The drug's negative treatment from the federal government stems from the Prohibition...
The modern implications of redistricting methods are heavily debated. The current system in many states of having single-party controlled legislatures create the districts has led to strong criticism. Many observers cite this as one of the primary reasons for the...
The House of Representatives consists of 435 members who represent proportional electoral districts of about 700,000 constituents each. Most state legislatures set those district boundaries. Notably, redistricting does not affect US Senate elections, which are statewide. Partisan state legislatures continue...
