Federal Friday is a regularly updated page with information about different federal and state resources. Check it out every Friday to learn more about where to find data, media, reports and other content.
Not sure what a ruling means? SCOTUSblog is devoted to covering the U.S. Supreme Court comprehensively, without bias and according to the highest journalistic and legal ethical standards. The blog is provided as a public service.
During this term the US Supreme Court issued 58 opinions. You can read them all online.
Opinions of the US Supreme Court
"The opinions collected here are those issued during October Term 2023 (October 2, 2023, through October 6, 2024). Opinions are posted on the website upon release in slip opinion format. Slip opinions remain posted until replaced with opinions edited to reflect the usual publication style of the United States Reports, including final pagination that will carry forward unchanged in the corresponding preliminary prints and the bound volumes of the United States Reports."
23-939 Trump v. United States
23-175 City of Grants Pass v. Johnson
23A349 Ohio v. Environmental Protection Agency
23-124 Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P.
22-859 SEC v. Jarkesy
23-719 Trump v. Anderson
Want to know more about Trump v Anderson? Listen to the Civil Discourse episode:In the News: SCOTUS, Donald Trump and the Colorado Ballot
Aughie explains the recent SCOTUS ruling in the case of Trump v. Anderson. In this 9-0 decision, the SCOTUS decided that Donald Trump could not be struck from the Colorado ballot based on the Insurrection Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
Or try
Is Book Banning Constitutional?
Aughie and Nia discuss how books arrive on school shelves, and whether there is a Constitutional right to ban books by School Boards. Spoiler: The U.S. Supreme Court controlling case had a 4-1-4 ruling, hardly settled law.
New Mexico Supreme Court opinions can be found at New Mexico Compilation Commission website, which is the official legal publisher for the Supreme Court, by clicking here.
Here are some recent cases:
Aztec Mun. Schs. v. Cardenas - 2024-NMSC-015
"We are called upon to review the constitutionality of provisions in the Workers’ Compensation Act (the Act) which treat workers with mental impairments differently than workers with physical impairments."
Padilla v. Torres - 2024-NMSC-007
"In this opinion, we consider whether the Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court is required to create a record of all civil proceedings for which the court serves as a court of record."
One of the earliest US Supreme Court Cases was West v. Barnes, argued on Aug. 2, 1791 and decided on Aug. 3, 1791.
One of the first New Mexico Supreme Court Cases was
Territory v. Ortiz - 1852-NMSC-002 - 1 N.M. 5 - 01/01/1852
"Messervy & Webb, have been and still are dealing and vending goods as merchants in the county of Santa Fe, in said territory, without a license so to deal and vend goods as merchants as aforesaid, as required by law, and although they have been called on by R. M. Stephens, the sheriff in and for said county, to take out such license, they have hitherto wholly neglected and refused, and still do neglect and refuse, to take out such license..."
It's not too late to start planting or too early to be thinking about next year's garden. There are resources to help find plants suited for your climate, and ideas for children, casual planters, and master gardeners.
“You can plant a home garden in your yard or in a small space like a windowsill or balcony. If you participate in SNAP, your SNAP dollars can be used to buy seeds for gardens. VegU can show how to grow, buy and cook fresh fruits and vegetables.”
National Agriculture Library
“Plant what your family enjoys cooking and eating! Learn about vegetable gardening through NAL collection items and selected external links to information.”
Soak Up the Rain: Rain Gardens
"A rain garden is a depressed area in the landscape that collects rain water from a roof, driveway or street and allows it to soak into the ground. Planted with grasses and flowering perennials, rain gardens can be a cost effective and beautiful way to reduce runoff from your property. Rain gardens can also help filter out pollutants in runoff and provide food and shelter for butterflies, song birds and other wildlife."
Read the Label First Protect Your Garden
“This brochure will help you understand how to protect your family and the environment when using pesticides on your lawn and garden.”
Bee a Good Neighbor Remember Pollinators When Preparing Your Spring Garden
“This document contains instructions on protecting pollinators in your garden.”
New Mexico Cooperative Extension Service (NMSU)
Each state has a Cooperative Extension Service that studies agriculture and that state’s unique climates. They can provide advice, suggest plants, and help you determine why that one plant looks funny. They even have an app, Southwest Plant Selector, to help you select plants!
“A collection of NMSU's Extension and research resources to help you learn how to use your resources to create the ideal garden or landscape environment perfectly suited to your lifestyle.”
“Weekly column, written by Marisa Thompson, Extension horticulture specialist, that addresses garden and landscape questions.”
“Services include analysis of plant material for plant pathogens and environmental stresses as well as suggesting appropriate control measures when available.”
“Master Gardeners assist their local Cooperative Extension Service office in providing accurate, research-based gardening information to county residents.”
Check out their instructional videos on YouTube
Growing Healthy Kids: Garden-Enhanced Nutrition Curriculum
“Growing Healthy Kids (GHK) is a garden-themed, direct education curriculum aimed to integrate nutrition education with gardening to promote healthy eating and healthy choices among children, best aligned for students in 2nd and 3rd grade.”
Gardening with Kids: You Can Grow It!
“Getting kids to eat more fruits and veggies can be challenging, but research shows that when kids help grow fruits and vegetables, they are more likely to eat more produce and try different kinds, too. Not only that, but gardening also provides a host of learning experiences that are good for little growing minds and bodies.”
“You can grow a surprise garden from the seeds you pick up on your sneakers on a muddy walk!”
Bertie the Busy Bee Coloring Book
"IN TIMES OF WAR the country’s food supply for civilians may be smaller even though total production is greatly increased. The burdens of World War II are already creating serious food-production, distribution, and preservation problems. Labor and machinery shortages interfere with production; overloaded railroads and restricted motor transport interfere with distribution; and inadequate supplies of labor, steel, and tin demand that civilians depend less on foods canned in tin.”
Yard of Cats. Augusta, Maine, 1895. (Prints & Photographs Division, Library of Congress)
No “Kitten” Around: Cats in the Library of Congress Collection
“Cats have been domesticated for thousands of years (read all about it in this Library resource!), but the reach of the internet has allowed for more people than ever to share their love of furry felines. I personally have an endless list of favorite cat memes, videos, and photos online; do you?” (Image: Kittens crawling on Representative Peter Kostmayer in his congressional office)
Bobcat - Fish and Wildlife
The Backstory: On a stroll while at Sebastian Inlet State Park, John Bailey noticed what he thought was a dog staring into the water. Upon closer inspection he realized it was a bobcat, transfixed on a shark feeding on some smaller fish. All of a sudden, the bobcat leapt into the water atop the...
Mountain Lion (Puma concolor) National Park Service
- Mountain lions are known by many names throughout their range. mountain lion, puma, panther, wildcat, catamount, painter, cougar, and many more.
- Mountain lions live in a wide variety of areas, historically ranging from coast to coast and from Northern Canada to South America. Now they’ve been largely extirpated from the eastern half of the continent, but still range from northern Canada to South America and from the Pacific Coast to the Midwest is some places and a remnant population in south Florida.
- Lions are the second biggest cat in the Western hemisphere after the jaguar.
A den of kittens was discovered in the Simi Hills. P-77 gave birth to P-113, P-114 and P-115.
National Park Service
Canada Lynx (Lynx canadensis)
"The lynx is a medium-sized cat with long legs, large, well-furred paws, long tufts on the ears, and a short, black-tipped tail. The winter pelage of the lynx is dense and has a grizzled appearance with grayish-brown mixed with buff or pale brown fur on the back, and grayish-white or buff-white..." Image from the US Fish and Wildlife ServiceYou can find more information with Search for Species
Smithsonian
The Smithsonian collections includes Egyptian cat mummies, carvings, paintings and photographs of feline friends like these Kittens Playing with a Camera.
The Smithsonian National Zoological Park has great images of animals like the Clouded Leopard. They also have classroom resources. If you are lucky you might spot a kitten while playing Animal Cam Bingo where students can "check in with lions, elephants and naked mole-rats on the Zoo's live animal webcams. Downloadable bingo cards help kids learn about animal behavior and habitats."
Another cat-relate educational resources is Pre-Math with Cheetahs, "a collection of fun and easy activities supporting early math concepts like colors, shapes, and patterns!"
"The National Archives celebrates America's favorite pastime! Baseball has played a major role throughout American history. Explore records in the National Archives Catalog related to everything from racial integration in baseball and the Negro leagues to World Series races, Presidential first pitches, and patents that have improved the game."
Library of Congress- Conducting Baseball Research
“For the beginning baseball researcher, there are several excellent starting points for becoming acquainted with research strategies, resources, and publications in the field of baseball. These starting points are listed below. Explore the sub-pages of this section to learn more about how to start researching baseball history at the Library. The pages include an overview of visiting the Library for research purposes; a breakdown of baseball-related materials held in specific Library divisions, reading rooms, and research centers; how to search the Library's online catalog for baseball-related materials; and a list of important subscription databases available at the Library for baseball research.”
Baseball, the Color Line, and Jackie Robinson
Baseball Cards, 1887-1914, Card Sets in Chronological Order
Toni Stone: First Woman to Play Big-League Baseball.
Baseball has been played in many interesting places including Alcatraz (Baseball on the Rock) and North Carolina prison camps during the American Civil War (Civil War Prisoners at Play). The sport is so important that federal bills are regularly passed to “waives various embargo and immigration restrictions in order to allow Cuban nationals to enter the United States to play organized professional baseball.” (H.R.213 — 116th Congress (2019-2020)
Where ever you play ball, play it safe!
Nine innings of brain safety in baseball : heads up baseball for coaches and parents.
Baseball Across a Changing Nation - Teacher's Guide
"Baseball has been part of the culture of the United States since the earliest days of the nation, and the ways in which the game has changed through the centuries provide opportunities to explore changes in U.S. society."
FOR LOVE OF THE GAME: Baseball's Impact on the Navy
"When the game of baseball was introduced into the Navy in the late 1800s, it was considered "rational recreation" - a way to keep sailors out of trouble, active and happy. What it became over the following decades was a phenomenon that U.S. sailors - many of whom were major league pros - helped spread around the world."
U.S. Postal Services has honored many baseball players, but the first baseball stamp issued was for the centennial of the sport.
1939 First baseball themed stamp
1982 (and 1999, 2000) Jackie Robinson
2002 Joe DiMaggio, Larry Doby, Willie Stargell and Ted Williams
2021 Yogi Berra
2024 Hank Aaron
Even the National Weather Service uses some baseball terms- have you ever seen hail the size of baseballs? If you are unsure there is a chart to help you measure.
This is Lex (Latin for law) who gives a guided tour of the Supreme Court building in DC. Learn about architecture with Lex in the Supreme Court of the United States Kids’ Activity Booklet
New Mexico Poet Laureate, Lauren Camp, and Michelle Laflamme-Childs, Executive Director of New Mexico Arts, are traveling to cities, towns, and villages across New Mexico to host poetry reading and writing workshops.
Do you want to host such an event in your community? Libraries and other community spaces make a perfect venue.
If so, contact:
Michelle Laflamme-Childs
New Mexico Arts Executive Director
michelle.laflamme@dca.nm.gov
(505) 699-8243
Or fill out the Invite the Poet Laureate form here
You can learn more about our Poet Laureate and discover resources about New Mexico poets and poetry from the New Mexico State Library Poetry Center.
