Most recently, on August 20, 2013, a reporter from “Svoboda Slova” (Freedom of Speech) Newspaper was beaten to unconsciousness with a metal rod by unknown assailants.

In June, NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed classified information detailing the US’s top-secret surveillance programs. While it would be ideal for such programs to be open for public debate, the legal structure surround the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) and its rulings practically prevent this. The classified nature of the court’s rulings means that exposing them to the public for debate is inherently in violation of the rulings themselves.

John Boehner, to whom this letter is addressed, along with several other Republican members of the House of Representatives, paid an exorbitant amount of money–1.5 million, to be exact–to defend DOMA in the Supreme Court.

It is this small clause in the Fifth Amendment that formed the basis for the Supreme Court’s decision to rule that the Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional.

Here, Holder is referring to the Supreme Court ruling on the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)–the “subsequent developments” necessary to release the Executive Branch of the obligation to enforce laws that did recognize or confer equal benefits upon same-sex couples.

Cole’s “9 Questions You Were Too Embarrassed to Ask” format is based off of this Washington Post article on Syria.