Monday, June 30, 2008

Ugh.

This is absolutely disgusting.

On the other hand, how can we possibly expect a human father to act rationally towards his son in a situation like this? Shit like this happens often enough to be a fairly significant problem. The only answer, to me, is to reduce the number of people with this kind of power, and reduce the power individuals have. The only other possibilities are this kind of miscarriage of justice or expecting/coercing a parent (or child, or spouse, or friend, or...) to act inhumanly towards a person they love. Not cool.


[Via Radley "The Agitator" Balko]

Hindu-Christian Syncretism in India

Awesome.

Friday, June 27, 2008

Panopticon

I guess there's only so much ambient Bill-of-Rights-support to go around, as hot on the heels of the Supreme Court's dismissal of the D.C. gun ban in Heller, comes this little gem:
PHILADELPHIA - JUNE 26, 2008 (WPVI) -- 44-year old Andre Moore is being held at the 18th Police District by the very officers he apparently wanted to kill.

At least that's the message he allegedy sent out to the world in a disturbing, hate filled rant on YouTube.

...

Moore faces a number of charges, including aggravated assault.

(Emphasis mine.)

Seriously? As the article points out, it's highly unlikely that any of these charges will stick. That's not really the point, however; the burden of proof needs to be on the State when it comes to exercising force against its citizens.

[Hat Tip Hit & Run]

Thursday, June 26, 2008

FLASHBACK!

So I'm so bored at work I just google image searched my own name, and found this little gem:




For those of you keeping score at home: that's me in the very upper left, in the brown jacket, and Nick "Nicky Cizzle" Crane 2nd from the right in the 2nd row (3rd, if you're counting from the top), in the bluish sweater.

I was so fat, and he was so tiny.

Anyway, the pic was taken at Eartha in Yarmouth. I was part of some sort of vague NASA-related earth-monitoring something-or-other. I dont' know. It was middle school...

Monday, June 23, 2008

@Workblogging: What 4th Amendment? Edition

So now, apparently La Migra are borrowing tactics from their drug-bustin' bretheren and harassing innocent people at home. The only surprising thing is that there is a concerted legal effort to stop the practices.

The money quote from the article:
"As long as we have people willing to flaunt the law, then the possibility of an innocent person having to endure wrongful arrest will always be there," said Jean Towell, president of the Citizens for Immigration Reform Dallas.

The thing is, it's really just incidental that immigration is the issue at hand. You could replace "flaunt the law" with any one of your favorite illegal activities:
"As long as we have people willing to double park, then the possibility of an innocent person having to endure wrongful arrest will always be there."

It's a scary look into the mind of the law-and-order types who are pointing this country in a worrisome direction.



[Hat tip Radley "The Agitator" Balko]

Thursday, June 19, 2008

IMHO

So I read Julia Allison's tumblr (or whatever)—voluntarily, so I get what I deserve, I guess. So today:
“He just doesn’t bullshit. And he doesn’t suffer bullshitters. Which is so rare that people think he’s being a dick. But he’s not. He’s just being honest.” - me talking to Ronen about Marco


She quotes herself. That's it. (Actually, the self-quotage is the title, and the post itself is merely self-attribution and name-dropping.)

I knew she was a fameball (to use Gawker's delightful neologism), and I'm fine with that. This, however, strikes me as just tacky. Look to Socrates: the point is to be witty, or insightful, or provocative enough so that other people record your words posteritati. Quoting something you said earlier IRL on your own blog is the equivalent of telling the same story to everyone you know, all the time, forever.

Not a good look, Julia.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Perhaps...Too Clever?

This week, the The Onion did their American Voices feature on Ron Paul's dropping out of the presidential race. All three people featured have the last names of people who work for Reason Magazine, including Radley Balko, the guy I interned for at Cato.

("Hat tip" Reason Hit & Run and Radley's blog The Agitator)

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Dear The-Dream,



the only thing I hate more than your ascot is your hyphen.


Fondest wishes,
-Sam

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

This Really Pisses Me Off

According to this CNN article about it, the children of the FLDS compound members in Texas will be returned to them, but:
Under the judge's order, the Department of Family and Protective Services will still have the right to visit and interview the children.

These unannounced visits could entail medical, psychological and psychiatric examinations, and the parents must not intervene.


This is ridiculous. The very fact the kids are being returned speaks to the fact that prosecutors didn't really find anything wrong or harmful.

I actually posted a pretty long comment about this on 23/6 when they covered it. Basically, the government is prosecuting parents for their religious beliefs. Like I said on 23/6, this is a frightening precedent for parents with non-traditional religious beliefs, e.g. atheists.

("hat tip" Reason Hit & Run)

Is It Just Me...



...or does 50 look really gay in this video? Maybe I just have Hiding in Hip Hop on my mind, but certainly the highly-toned black men in high-fashion military-inspired garb—not to mention 50's jaunty little chapeau—aren't helping.

Random @Work Stuff

I. This profoundly bitter-yet-accurate Ken Layne article. It's why people need not to spend too long in D.C. He is right, though, is the worst part.
(Via Gawker)

II.
DARPA's ("Immanetizing the Eschelon Since 1973") new "robot pack mule:"

IT STUMBLES AND GETS UP! NOT OK.
(Via PopSci, ultimately via Daniel)