This Supreme Court term promises to be important for the First Amendment. Major decisions are expected soon on the rights of social media platforms and their users. But the free-speech fun has already begun.

In an otherwise unremarkable trademark case, a major debate about how to decide First Amendment issues broke out. On one side was Justice Clarence Thomas, joined fully by Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch, pushing the hard-line conservatives’ new “history and tradition” approach to interpreting laws. On the other was Justice Amy Coney Barrett, joined fully by Justice Elena Kagan and partly by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson, calling for a simple rule drawn from analogous free-speech precedent.

There are a number of important takeaways, but the most relevant right now is that neither originalism nor the more malleable “history and tradition” can help solve new problems in free-speech law.

The trademark case, Vidal v. Elster, was initiated by one Steve Elster, who tried to trademark the phrase “Trump too small.” The Patent and Trademark Office rejected the trademark because the Lanham Act says you can’t trademark the name of a living individual without his or her consent. In court, Elster argued that the living person rule should be held unconstitutional because applying it requires reading the trademark to ascertain if it contains the name of a living person. According to a formalistic rule first formulated by Thomas in a 2015 case, if a law requires you to look at the content of an utterance to apply the law, it presumptively violates free speech.

Applying Thomas’s absolutist free-speech rule to the living persons law would produce the absurd result that the living persons rule should be struck down: The only way you can tell if a trademark includes the name of a living person is by reading what the trademark says.

So Thomas broke out the conservatives’ favorite new constitutional toy, the idea that the Constitution should be interpreted according to “history and tradition.” This approach has been used by the conservative court in the last couple of years to reverse Roe v. Wade, vastly expand gun rights, and overturn 50-plus years of existing doctrine on the separation of church and state. Thomas based his majority opinion on the idea that trademark law has been around for a long time and no one has ever seriously thought the living persons rule violated the First Amendment.

On the surface this may sound like a reasonable approach. The problem is that, if you really take history and tradition back to 1791 and earlier in the free-speech context, you would have to trash nearly the entirety of free-speech doctrine, which was created by judges in the 20th and 21st centuries.

The First Amendment as ratified and understood in 1791 didn’t receive any meaningful doctrinal development by the Supreme Court until 1919, when Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes initiated modern free-speech doctrine. At the time, Holmes himself acknowledged that it wasn’t clear if the framers had intended the First Amendment to do anything more than prohibit pre-emptive censorship. In other words, when it comes to free speech, originalism is useless. History and tradition is little better.

Barrett understands all this very clearly. She wrote a concurrence explaining that Thomas’s historical analysis was unconvincing and that history and tradition would be a bad way to decide free-speech cases. Instead, she proposed a simple, clear rule: There is nothing wrong with content-based trademark rules as long as they are reasonably related to the two purposes of trademark law, protecting the trademark owner and enabling consumers to tell products from each other.

To be sure, Barrett’s opinion isn’t some foray into liberalism. It’s just a demonstration of doctrinal intelligence and honesty in the face of the mumbo-jumbo of history and tradition. Indeed, as is frequently the case for Barrett, the guiding spirit behind her position is that of the late Justice Antonin Scalia, for whom she clerked. Barrett explained neatly that Thomas had failed to “adopt a generally applicable principle” in his opinion — the cardinal sin for Scalia, who believed that, as he once put it, the rule of law should be a law of rules.

The upshot is that Barrett is registering skepticism about history and tradition in general — and offering a particularly appropriate and devastating riposte to its use in free-speech cases.

Whatever the court decides about social media, it would do better to apply First Amendment doctrine in the light of the purposes of free expression, not based on vague history and tradition that long preceded social media’s invention.

Noah Feldman is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. A professor of law at Harvard University, he is author, most recently, of “To Be a Jew Today: A New Guide to God, Israel, and the Jewish People.”

Related Articles

David French: Clarence Thomas and John Roberts are at a fork in the road

Jamelle Bouie: The lazy authoritarianism of Donald Trump

Commentary: As AI is embraced, what happens to the artists whose work was stolen to build it?

Joe Grogan: Access to new Alzheimer’s treatments bogged down by Medicare policy

Andreas Kluth: U.S. exceptionalism is dead no matter who wins the election

I’ve gotten a bunch of emails from readers lately asking why New York Times Cooking chicken recipes don’t often call for boneless, skinless breasts. “Why is it always chicken thighs? I don’t know anyone, except my sister, who prefers dark meat,” someone wrote, in a truly excellent email with a subject line that simply said “Again?”

We do tend to prefer chicken thighs here at NYT Cooking HQ, and we’ve been pushing our agenda in recipe after recipe. Boneless thighs are fattier, which makes them far juicier, more tender and more flavorful than breasts, and more difficult to overcook.

But chicken breasts have their selling points, and their fans. Use them right and they can feel generous and satisfying, even succulent. Their mildness can be an asset: Think of white meat as a plush mattress you can blanket with interesting flavors and textures.

So this week I’m paying tribute to the boneless, skinless chicken breast, with five recipes that use the cut to excellent effect.

1. Honey Garlic Chicken

These sweet and salty honey-garlic chicken breasts are perfect for when you want big flavor, but you’re short on time. To ensure golden-brown chicken breasts that stay plump and moist, start with a hot pan and pat the chicken dry to avoid adding extra moisture, then allow the chicken to sear properly. Once your chicken has taken on color, set it aside and create a simple pan sauce of honey, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and butter. When the sauce is glossy, return the chicken to the pan and turn it until coated in the satiny honey-garlic sauce. Serve with roasted potatoes, rice or bread to soak it all up.

By Yasmin Fahr

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

2 chicken breasts, halved lengthwise, or 4 chicken cutlets (about 1 pound)
Salt and black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons apple cider, rice wine or white wine vinegar
3 to 4 large garlic cloves, minced or grated
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Pat the chicken dry. Season all over with salt and pepper.
Heat the oil in a large (12-inch) skillet over medium-high for 1 to 2 minutes until hot and shimmering. Add the chicken and cook without moving until it’s golden brown on the bottom, about 5 minutes.
Use tongs to flip the chicken and cook until just cooked through, about 4 minutes.
While the chicken cooks on the second side, mix together 3 tablespoons of water, the honey and soy sauce in a measuring cup.
Transfer the cooked chicken to a plate and set aside.
Pour in the soy sauce mixture and let cook until the liquid reduces, about 1 minute. Add the vinegar, garlic and butter, stirring to melt and incorporate until thick and glossy, about 2 minutes more.
Return the chicken to the pan, leaving behind any accumulated juices on the plate, and turn to coat in the sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add the accumulated juices, then serve immediately, garnishing with the parsley, if desired.

2. Chicken and Rice With Scallion-Ginger Sauce

Chicken and rice with scallion-ginger sauce. Reminiscent of Hainanese chicken rice, this streamlined dish from Sue Li delivers tender breast meat and a pleasingly prickly sauce made with lots of ginger, scallion and jalapeño. Food styled by Barrett Washburne. (Andrew Purcell/The New York Times)

Chicken and rice is a favorite combination around the world. This version, an Asian-inspired one-pot meal, coaxes a lot of flavor out of a limited ingredient list. Rinsing rice until the water runs clear helps remove extra starch on the outside of the grains and will make rice less gummy when cooked. The most essential step when cooking rice on the stovetop is to resist the urge to peek under the lid; the telltale sign that the rice is done is when the steam rising from under the lid has subsided. (In the early stages of cooking rice, there may be visible steam escaping the saucepan, but as the moisture is absorbed by the rice, you may notice less steam.)

By Sue Li

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 45 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups sushi rice (or other short-grain white rice)
2 cups chicken broth
1 (3-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated (about 3 tablespoons)
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds)
Kosher salt and pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
1 jalapeño, halved, seeded, then thinly sliced
2 teaspoons toasted white sesame seeds
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar

DIRECTIONS

Place rice in a fine-mesh sieve and rinse under cold water, shaking gently, until the water runs clear. In a medium saucepan, combine rice, broth and 1 tablespoon grated ginger. Season chicken all over with salt and pepper and place on top of rice mixture. Cover and bring mixture to a boil over high. Once mixture comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until rice is plump, broth is absorbed and chicken is cooked through, 20 to 22 minutes. Turn off heat and let rest, covered, 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the vegetable oil, scallions, vinegar, jalapeño, sesame seeds, sesame oil, sugar and remaining ginger; season with salt and pepper.
Remove chicken from saucepan and slice 1/2-inch thick crosswise. Fluff rice with a fork and divide among bowls. Top with chicken and scallion-ginger sauce.

3. Chicken Piccata

Chicken piccata. Lemony, buttery and deeply loved, this is Italian American restaurant food you can handily make at home. Food styled by Simon Andrews. (David Malosh/The New York Times)

Chicken piccata is an Italian-American staple beloved for its piquant flavors cradled in a silky, butter-rich pan sauce. It also doesn’t hurt that it cooks up very quickly. This version is mostly traditional except that it uses lemon two ways, calling for lemon slices to be caramelized (to soften their tang) and for a hit of fresh juice at the end (to brighten the whole dish). This ensures a sauce that’s neither too rich, nor too puckery. Serve with a starch — pasta, polenta, rice or white beans — for sopping up the sauce, and a green vegetable, such as a kale salad, broccoli or green beans.

By Ali Slagle

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds), halved horizontally (see tip)
Kosher salt and black pepper
All-purpose flour, for dredging
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed
1 shallot, peeled and sliced lengthwise
1 lemon, halved (half thinly sliced and seeds removed; half juiced, about 2 tablespoons)
3/4 cup chicken stock
4 teaspoons drained capers
Coarsely chopped fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge the chicken in flour and shake off any excess.
In a large skillet, heat 3 tablespoons butter and the olive oil over medium-high heat until the butter has melted. Working in batches to avoid crowding the pan, add the chicken and sauté until golden brown and cooked through, about 3 minutes per side.
Remove the chicken, place on a plate and repeat with the remaining pieces, adding more olive oil if needed.
Once the chicken is cooked, add the shallot and lemon slices to the pan and sauté, stirring occasionally, until lightly caramelized and fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the stock and simmer until reduced by half, about 3 minutes.
Reduce the heat to low, then stir in the remaining 3 tablespoons butter, capers and lemon juice, to taste. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve the chicken with the sauce poured over the top. Garnish with parsley if desired.

TIP: Freezing the chicken breasts for 15 minutes will make slicing them through the middle easier.

4. Ritzy Cheddar Chicken Breasts

Ritzy cheddar chicken breasts. Eric Kim’s recipe combines grated Cheddar cheese, crushed Ritz crackers and a base of sour cream and Dijon mustard to make a chicken dinner that kids go wild for. Food styled by Rebecca Jurkevich. (Armando Rafael/The New York Times)

They’re as good as they sound: cheesy chicken cutlets coated with buttery Ritz crackers. Skipping the usual flour-egg-bread crumb dredge, this recipe relies instead on a flavorful base layer of tangy sour cream, which has lactic acid that tenderizes boneless, skinless chicken breasts beautifully. When it comes to breaded white meat, thin cutlets are ideal, which you can buy from the store or achieve by slicing thick breasts in half horizontally (no pounding necessary). They cook more evenly this way, staying tender throughout as they’re quickly baked in a hot oven. Serve with something fresh — a big green salad, perhaps — to balance the wonderful richness of this nostalgic number.

By Eric Kim

Yield: 4 servings

Total time: 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for greasing wire rack
1/4 cup sour cream
1 large egg white
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Kosher salt (Diamond Crystal)
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds total)
1 sleeve Ritz crackers (about 100 grams)
2 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese, coarsely grated (about 1 cup)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

DIRECTIONS

Position rack in the bottom third of the oven and heat oven to 450 degrees. Place an ovenproof wire rack over a sheet pan. Dab a folded-up paper towel with olive oil and rub it over the wire rack to grease it.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the sour cream, egg white and Dijon mustard until smooth. Season with salt. Lay the chicken flat on a cutting board and carve each breast in half horizontally so you end up with four thin cutlets. Add the chicken to the sour cream mixture, and using your hands, smear the sour cream all over the chicken.
In a large bowl, crush the Ritz crackers into coarse pieces with your fingers. Some crackers will turn to rubble while others turn to dust. Add the cheese, garlic powder, onion powder and olive oil. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and toss until evenly distributed. Holding one of the chicken cutlets by its thinner end, add to the bowl with the crumbs, and using your hands, pack the crumbs onto the chicken, pressing them in to create a thick coating. Transfer the breaded chicken to the rack in the sheet pan. Repeat with the remaining three cutlets.
Bake the cutlets until the outsides are crispy and the insides are no longer pink, 10 to 15 minutes. Let the chicken cool slightly so the coating can set, about 5 minutes, before transferring to plates and serving.

5. Hara Masala Murgh (Green Masala Chicken)

Hara masala murgh (green masala chicken). Zainab Shah’s shortcut version of this South Asian staple gets its green hue from three cups of herbs (a combination of cilantro and mint). Food styled by Simon Andrews. (David Malosh/The New York Times)

As is the case with every South Asian dish, variations of hara masala murgh abound. In the south of India, fresh desiccated coconut is used in place of yogurt, which is a common ingredient in the northern parts of Pakistan and India. The stalwarts of the dish across regions are copious amounts of fresh cilantro and mint — hence its name hara masala, which means green masala. In Lahore, it is commonly found on restaurant menus, and its peppery herbaceousness is a welcome reprieve from the tomato-onion gravies typical in Punjabi cooking. This version uses thinly sliced chicken breast. It also skips over the tedium of grinding almonds in favor of using almond butter. These two shortcuts mean a quicker cooking time and a creamy texture.

By Zainab Shah

Yield: 2 to 4 servings

Total time: 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS

3 tablespoons ghee or neutral oil
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
12 whole black peppercorns
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 pound chicken breasts, thinly sliced (about 1/4-inch thick)
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger or ginger paste
1 teaspoon freshly grated garlic or garlic paste
1/2 teaspoon kashmiri red chile powder or other red chile powder
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 1/2 cups finely chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems
1 1/2 cups finely chopped fresh mint leaves
4 Thai green chiles, chopped
1/4 cup full-fat Greek yogurt or coconut milk
2 tablespoons almond butter or other nut butter, stirred to combine
2 to 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from about 1/2 lemon)
1/2 teaspoon garam masala (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Heat ghee or oil in a medium pot or wok for about 30 seconds over medium. Add the onion, peppercorns and cumin seeds. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion becomes translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken, ginger and garlic, and cook on medium-high, stirring frequently until the chicken is no longer pink or fleshy and the onions have softened, about 7 to 10 minutes.
Lower the heat to medium and stir in the chile powder and salt. Continue cooking for about 30 seconds. Add 1 cup cilantro, 1 cup mint and the Thai green chiles, and stir until all the ingredients are incorporated.
Stir in the yogurt and almond butter. Turn off the heat and stir in the remaining 1/2 cup cilantro and 1/2 cup mint. Sprinkle with lemon juice and garam masala, if you like.

Related Articles

The coolest iced tea trends that will impress you with every sip

Rinsing raw chicken? 7 food debates guaranteed to start an argument

Retro drinks are making a cool comeback this summer

St. Paul: Little Mekong Night Market returns to University Avenue after four-year hiatus

Quick Fix: Summer Berry Salad

PHOENIX — It took two batters for the Twins to fall behind on Tuesday. It took the next six innings for them to claw their way back into a tied game.

But their late push fell just short on Tuesday after the Arizona Diamondbacks surged ahead with a two-out rally in the seventh inning on their way to a 5-4 win over the Twins at Chase Field.

After the Twins pushed for three runs in the top of the seventh inning, reliever Jorge Alcala ran into trouble with a pair of outs in the seventh, walking a batter.Two more hits, including a Ketel Marte infield single, produced the deciding run in the Twins’ loss.

That after the Twins had rallied earlier in the inning with Ryan Jeffers’ first home run since May 30, his team-leading 13th of the season.

In recent days, Jeffers, who now has a six-game hitting streak, had talked about feeling good and locked in at the plate. On Tuesday, he sure got the results to show for it. His blast — a towering three-run shot that just cleared the left-field wall — knocked Diamondbacks starter Brandon Pfaadt out of the game and gave the Twins some new life.

It completed a comeback that started when Byron Buxton, who is heating up himself, got the Twins on the board in the fifth inning. At that time, the Twins had been trailing by four runs as the Diamondbacks ambushed starter Joe Ryan early.

Leadoff hitter Corbin Carroll singled off of Ryan, and Marte then launched a fastball out to right field, putting Arizona up early. The Diamondbacks tacked on another two runs an inning later, putting the Twins in a four-run hole.

But Ryan, who has been the Twins’ most consistent starter this season, recovered after that, retiring 15 of 16 batters to conclude his outing.

The Lake Vermilion-Soudan Underground Mine State Park in northern Minnesota has closed tours to their underground mine due to flooding.

Last week, the mine was hit with 7.6 inches of water in less than 24 hours. The ground near the mine was already saturated due to the constant rainfall that had persisted for days before.

The mine has pumps to remove water called a dewatering system, but on June 18 it was struck by lightning, cutting power to the park and stopping the pumps.

A custom pump was installed Tuesday to remove water and another is on its way to be installed next week.

Potential damage to the mine has yet to be assessed. As of now, park managers are hoping to have underground tours open again July 23.

“The expectation at this point is that even once there are fully operating pumps on all the levels that it will take between two and three weeks to get all of the water pumped out,” said Sara Berhow with the Minnesota Department of Natural. “After all the water is pumped out, then of course they’ll need to be some assessments to see if any repairs are needed to make sure that everything and all the areas where tour participants would go is safe.”

Three levels of the mine have experienced flooding: level 12, 22 and 27. Level 12 is cleared of water as of Monday. Level 22 has two fully operating pumps. They are in the process of installing new pumps in level 27, which is submerged up to about two feet from the ceiling of that level. The pumps on that floor are not functioning due to being too submerged underwater.

The mine was reopened to underground tours earlier this year after closing tours due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a $9.3 million reconstruction project.

“The staff at the park was so excited to have tours back,” Berhow said. “They’re disappointed that there has been a halt in that temporarily and they’re working hard to get tours back and get people back as soon as it’s safe to get people back in the mine.”

Tours of the mine above ground are still available and are free and do not require a reservation.

Related Articles

Gov. Tim Walz, U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar survey southern Minnesota flood damage from air

Minnesota couple stranded in Brazil with premature baby finally makes it home. ‘My heart just exploded,’ mom says.

More rain possible in deluged Midwest as flooding kills 2, causes water to surge around dam

A seeming fatal crash in southeastern Minnesota is now investigated as a homicide in Minneapolis

Jodi Huisentruit case: New billboard, Iowa gathering mark 29 years since disappearance