Legal Scholarship Repository (University of Tennessee College of Law)
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Mississippi v. Tennessee
No full textThe Supreme Court\u27s decision in Mississippi v. Tennessee quietly marked a potential turning point for the once antiquated doctrine of equitable apportionment. This doctrine provides a framework for resolving disputes over the allocation of resources, usually water, that cross state boundaries, and has done so since the early 20th century. In this article, we will delve into the history of equitable apportionment, examining its evolution from 1907 to the present day. We explore the key cases that have slowly broadened the doctrine, with a particular focus on Mississippi v. Tennessee and its implications for the future of equitable apportionment. Through this analysis, we seek to provide a comprehensive understanding of the legal landscape surrounding this issue, as well as how it could become increasingly important in the next century.
The history of equitable apportionment is characterized by a steady expansion of the doctrine to resolve contemporary problems more appropriately. While the doctrine may seem antiquated, equitable apportionment could prove central to resolving the resource disputes of the future. Due to increasing population and the damaging effects of climate change, future interstate water disputes are almost a certainty. The Court took the opportunity in Mississippi v. Tennessee to reaffirm equitable apportionment and the underlying policy, while also opening the door to resolving these disputes outside of the Supreme Court
Time is a Flat Circle: Lessons from Past and Present Conspiracy Theories
No full textThis essay analyzes how conspiracy theories were viewed in the 1990s, particularly in the context of the then-existing debate over racial differences in perception, and how they are dealt with today, where prevalent conspiracy theory adherents are White and conservative (QAnon, Pizzagate, and widespread voter fraud) in the 2020 election). In the 1990s, conflict over conspiracy theories was part of a larger culture war involving critical race theory, conspiracy thinking, truth, reason, and post-modern theory. These cultural flashpoints are obviously still with us today. But now, high-profile persons holding false, unreasonable beliefs often hail from the right and are assailed by those on the left. This pattern is visible in congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who has supported tenets of the QAnon conspiracy theory1 as well as House Republicans who have expressed skepticism and hostility for Covid-19 vaccine efforts.2This essay begins by looking at two prominent sources from the 1990s––Regina Austin’s Beyond Black Demons & White Devils: Anti-Black Conspiracy Theorizing and the Black Public Sphere3 and Jeffrey Rosen’s The Bloods and the Crits: O.J. Simpson, Critical Race Theory, the Law, and the Triumph of Color in America, which engages in part with Austin’s ideas about conspiracy theories.4 It then contextualizes these two pieces within the raging conflict over Critical Race Theory that was occurring in law schools at the time.Next, the essay discusses trends that have emerged since the 1990s that shed light on the topic. How have things changed and how have they just remained the same? Critical Race Theory remains a tremendous flash point, but the dynamics are different now. There is a greater consensus (as first articulated by critical race theorists) that people do arrive at perceptions differently, based on differing social realities, especially race. On the other hand, there is still strong opposition to the view that race and racism continue to plague U.S. society, which has resulted in recent legislation that restricts the teaching of Critical Race Theory in public education settings.The paper’s next sections discuss post-modernism, critical race theory, and the emergence of conservative post-modernism. How has post-modern and neoliberal culture, refracted into social media forms, revamped how we engaged with “the truth.” After our forty-fifth President won and held office, we live in a world where a post-modern aphorism “truth is not truth” emanates from public figures on the right.5Because this study raises two important foundational items––conspiracy theories and post-modern modes of thought––this essay delineates an intellectual history that includes post-modernism, neoliberalism, the rise of “conservative post-modernism,” and relevant social-science literature on conspiracy theories. In conclusion, the essay identifies common threads and lessons from the intellectual history. Ultimately, there is some overlap in these folk thought forms, whether they come from the right or the left. If we look at the underlying subtext within conspiracy theories, there are bridges that can be built, particularly in rethinking how we level scapegoating and shame as a form of social control, how people might legitimately feel marginalized, and how unchecked elitism sows seeds of resentment and mistrust
