You read that right. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Vaughn Walker has dismissed (.pdf) a lawsuit in San Francisco’s federal courthouse against the U.S. government, stating in his ruling that the plaintiffs’ complaint that they were illegally monitored under the Bush Administration’s warrantless wiretap program is shared by too many other American citizens.
At issue is the question of these folks’ standing to pursue a claim against the government in federal court — in other words, whether they represent a party or class of people who can legitimately sue. Vaughn ruled that they cannot, citing this line from the 2005 federal Seegers v Gonzales case: “[I]njuries that are shared and generalized — such as the right to have the government act in accordance with the law — are not sufficient to support standing.”
Un-fucking-believable.
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U.S. Supreme Court to be traded on NYSE
http://blog.baytimedetective.com/?p=8541
WASHINGTON — Friday morning’s surprise 5-4 decision means that all nine seats on the United States Supreme Court will be publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange — once its IPO offering is completed. (satire)