U.S. Congressional Documents

Beatings, Battles, and Brawls: Congressional Violence in the Antebellum Era

American History, Political Science, Slavery in America and the World, U.S. Congressional Documents, U.S. Congressional Serial Set
March 4, 2021 Tara Kibler

When any slightly incendiary word is uttered in Congress, the media is quick to report it. Today, live coverage of congressional proceedings and social media-driven insta-news has made us all well aware of any tiffs, squabbles, or fallings-out in Washington. As a result, we’re also well aware that strong disagreement in the Capitol is, as to be expected, very common.

There was a time in American history, though, when disagreements became so heated that they turned physical, ranging from a singular blow to a vicious beating, and even to murder. In the pre-Civil War era, Congress saw at least 70 violent incidents between its members. Let’s just say that if C-SPAN had existed in the early 1800s…

A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Medicine Go Down: A Brief History of Compulsory Vaccination

COVID-19, Exploring HeinOnline, Government Documents, Law Journal Library, Legal Classics, Medicine, State Reports: A Historical Archive, Statutes at Large, U.S. Congressional Documents, U.S. Supreme Court
January 13, 2021 Stephanie Ruesch

Vaccination efforts against COVID-19 are underway across the world. In the United States, two vaccines have been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration for use, one developed by Moderna and one by Pfizer-BioNTech. Limitations on the amount of available doses have led the Centers for Disease Control to provide recommendations on who should be vaccinated first, but eventually the general public will be able to receive the vaccine. Its widespread availability will naturally lead to questions for both the public and for policy makers on whether vaccination against COVID-19 will be a requirement to board a plane, return to school, attend a concert…

The Elephant in the Room: Animal Welfare in the United States

Animal Law, Law Journal Library, Session Laws, Statutes at Large, The Environment, U.S. Congressional Documents
December 10, 2020 Tara Kibler

In 1948, the United Nations declared that freedom, justice, and peace rely on a respect for human rights. A few decades later, a global campaign surfaced, advocating that this respect be extended to other animals, as well. This fight for animal rights stems from the idea that, as sentient beings, animals are entitled to the consideration and protection that has been afforded to humans, particularly the right to avoid suffering.

Advocates for animal rights consider anything less than this basic protection to be speciesism, a prejudice as irrational as that of racism or sexism. Critics, however, argue that humans are fundamentally different from nonhuman animals—only humans have developed moral systems, possess self-awareness and purpose…

Poison on the Shelves: Federal Product Tampering Laws and the Chicago Tylenol Murders

Exploring HeinOnline, Federal Register, Food and Drug Law, Law Journal Library, Medicine, Statutes at Large, U.S. Congressional Documents
November 19, 2020 Stephanie Ruesch

The holidays are fast approaching. Whether you’re gathering in-person with family or carving individual ham steaks over Zoom, preparations still need to be made, bringing along the usual hassle, chaos, and stress that come from trying to accommodate everyone’s schedules, prepare a meal, and decide whether it’s okay to mute Uncle Jim when he starts talking politics. All this family togetherness can bring on a headache, and you may reach for your trusty bottle of Holiday Acetaminophen™ to provide some relief. This relief is only obtainable after you rip off the plastic wrapper around the bottle’s neck, battle open the child-proof cap, peel off the inner foil safety seal, peel off the little bits of the seal you didn’t get off the first time…

Tip of the Week: Researching the Career of a Senator

Exploring HeinOnline, Law Journal Library, Tip of the Week, Tips and Tricks, U.S. Congressional Documents, U.S. Congressional Serial Set
November 3, 2020 Tara Kibler

The ability to thoroughly investigate and analyze the activity of Congress and its members is crucial for historical research projects, understanding current events, and these days, especially, for becoming a more informed voter during election time.

Discover a few ways to research the life and career of a U.S. senator, in particular, with this tip of the week. We’d like to thank Staci Green, Head of Library Operations at Dickinson State University, for her recent question, which inspired this blog post!

Start with the Basics

Before diving into the nitty gritty of database research, you’ll want to check and see if any relevant titles have already been compiled…

Where the Wild Things Are: Hunting Regulations

Exploring HeinOnline, Government Documents, Law Journal Library, Legal Classics, Statutes at Large, U.S. Congressional Documents, U.S. Congressional Serial Set, U.S. Presidential Library
October 16, 2020 Stephanie Ruesch

Fall’s arrival brings a chill to the air, changing colors to the leaves, and pumpkin spice flavoring to more products than necessary. But for many people, fall’s arrival also brings on an acute case of buck fever, alleviated only by long hours in a tree stand, or for others the urge to sit near the water in a duck blind with a bird call in hand, waiting for a fast-flying fowl. For these outdoorsmen and women, the change in weather means the start of the much-anticipated fall hunting season.

Hunting in America is primarily regulated at the state level, with additional regulations coming from federal laws that protect endangered species and migratory birds…

The Greatest Shows on Earth: County Fairs, Carnivals, and Circuses

Business and Legal Aspects of Sports and Entertainment, Exploring HeinOnline, Fastcase, Law Journal Library, U.S. Congressional Documents, U.S. Federal Agency Library
August 13, 2020 Stephanie Ruesch

Ah, August. Here at HeinOnline headquarters, located in Great Lake-side Erie County, NY, we’re soaking up summer before the leaves start changing and the snow starts falling (and falling, and falling, and falling…). Discerning residents of Erie County know August is the superior summer month, for every year it brings the ultimate, unbeatable, uncontested best twelve days of summer: the Erie County Fair.

But COVID-19 has postponed this venerable celebration of agriculture and fried food until 2021, and this Hein blogger is feeling wistful about all the county fairs, carnivals, and circuses that have been sidelined until a summer when we are able to cease social distancing…

From the Courtroom to the Streets: A Timeline of the Civil Rights and Black Lives Matter Movements

Current Events, Exploring HeinOnline, Fastcase, Human Rights, U.S. Congressional Documents, U.S. Presidential Library, U.S. Supreme Court
July 20, 2020 Lauren Mattiuzzo

The recent arrest and death of George Floyd has sparked protesters against police brutality to flood the streets demanding change. With more than 450 protests occurring in towns and cities of the United States and across three continents, some are calling this the biggest civil rights movement yet. Join us as we explore past civil rights movements in U.S. history, and what changes have occurred as a result.

Timeline of Events

The official civil rights movement began in the late 1940s as a push to gain legal equality and the enforcement of civil rights for African Americans…

Interested in Space Law? Let HeinOnline Take You Out of This World

Foreign & International Relations Database, Kluwer Law International Journal Library, Law Journal Library, McGill Institute of Air and Space Law Publications, Statutes at Large, U.S. Congressional Documents, United Nations, World Treaty Library
July 15, 2020 Tara Kibler

At the end of May, the United States launched astronauts into space for the first time since 2011. What’s more, for the first time ever, these American astronauts launched in a spacecraft that was commercially built and operated.

The feat marks the next chapter in human spaceflight history, and gives renewed vigor to the relatively young (but already-growing) commercial spaceflight industry. But even the laws regarding world nations in space are at times unclear and hotly debated, raising the question: how will we regulate this greater involvement in outer space from private corporations?

Strap in as we launch this post into an exploration of space law. We’ll use these databases…

I Saw A Tiger … in My Neighbor’s Backyard

Animal Law, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Culture & Law, Exploring HeinOnline, Fastcase, Federal Register, Popular Culture, Treaties and Agreements Library, U.S. Congressional Documents
June 12, 2020 Stephanie Ruesch

In the early days of quarantine, nearly a hundred years ago, all the way back at the end of March, one thing united us all. No, not the sewing struggle to make our own masks or collective worrying over when we would ever see a roll of Charmin in the wild again. It was Tiger King. The true crime-character study-have-to-see-it-to-believe-it docuseries had more than 34 million views in the U.S. within its first 10 days on Netflix, and was an inescapable recommendation, topic of discussion, and fodder for many quality memes.

In case you somehow missed out, a brief synopsis: Tiger King chronicles the years-long feud between Oklahoma private zoo owner Joe Exotic (real name: Joseph Maldonado-Passage…

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