QUESTIONS FOR THE CLASS: ‘Fred Barnes, Karl Rove, Who Cares? . . . Call Them Racists’. Is this quote from Spencer Ackerman evidence of actual malice? Could it be invoked in a future libel case against Ackerman or his employer to show a habit of recklessness? Would you hire someone who had made statements like that as a journalist? If you did so, would that be evidence of reckless disregard?
Archive for 2010
July 20, 2010
ROADSIDE emergency kits.
DINING IN L.A., CIRCA 1962.
IS ANGELINA JOLIE a convincing spy?
REVIEWING THE REVIEWERS: A roundup of book reviews from all over.
41 YEARS AGO TODAY: Moon Landing video.
BLOGGERS LEARN THEIR MANNERS from newspapers? “So, where do the bloggers who spew venom on the Internet learn their manners? On the editorial pages of their newspapers. Because it’s fun to call your opponents names. Newspaper people learned that hundreds of years ago when they were the only ones allowed to do that. Today’s blogosphere is a mirror of the abuse that the newsboys and girls have been dishing out. Look in the mirror news people, because these people are you.”
OVERPAID PUBLIC SERVANTS: California Official’s $800,000 Salary in City of 38,000 Triggers Protests.
Hundreds of residents of one of the poorest municipalities in Los Angeles County shouted in protest last night as tensions rose over a report that the city’s manager earns an annual salary of almost $800,000.
An overflow crowd packed a City Council meeting in Bell, a mostly Hispanic city of 38,000 about 10 miles (16 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles, to call for the resignation of Mayor Oscar Hernandez and other city officials. Residents left standing outside the chamber banged on the doors and shouted “fuera,” or “get out” in Spanish.
This is part of America’s growing class war between the private-sector have-nots and the public-sector fatcats. The have-not taxpayers seem unhappy, and we’re likely to see more of this sort of thing. Quick — call someone a racist to distract them!
A MILLION-PICTURE Sky Survey.
HOW APPLE collects GPS information from iPhones.
ANN ALTHOUSE ON THE BELLESILES STORY: “When do we believe the teacher who blames the student? Ask Elena Kagan.”
THE WAGES OF VACCINE HYSTERIA: Whooping cough outbreak continues unabated.
Some background here.
HOMEOWNERS’ ASSOCIATIONS: The New Foreclosure. “People don’t understand that by failing to pay the association dues they can lose their home and be put in the street.”
HOW MANY MORE STEPS BEFORE IT BECOMES A CVT? It Will Never End: Mercedes-Benz reportedly working on nine-speed automatic.
MY POPULAR MECHANICS COLUMN THIS MONTH is on the War Against Photography.
Too many officials think taking photos is a crime. Here’s why they’re wrong. . . . Today, most people walk around with a camera of some sort in their possession. Point-and-shoots, DSLRs and tiny video cams–not to mention cellphones–have become ubiquitous. And yet it seems that in many public locations, security officials are touchier than ever about letting people actually use those cameras. Our guardians of public safety often have the idea that shooting pictures in public places might be a precursor to some sort of terrorism. It’s an understandable concern, but misguided. I believe there is a good case to be made that having lots of cameras in the hands of citizens makes us more, rather than less, safe.
Need I say, read the whole thing?
UPDATE: Reader Lance Christensen emails: “First they came for our guns, but the liberals said nothing, because they don’t have any guns. Then they came for our cameras…”
COYOTES in the state of nature.
I had some related thoughts, here.
WASHINGTON EXAMINER: Shirley Sherrod’s Disappearing Act: Not So Fast! “Ms. Sherrod’s previous background, the circumstances surrounding her hiring, and the USDA’s agenda may all play a part in explaining her sudden departure from the agency. These matters have not received much scrutiny to this point. . . . Did Shirley Sherrod resign so quickly because the circumstances of her hiring and the lawsuit settlement with her organization that preceded it might expose some unpleasant truths about her possible and possibly sanctioned conflicts of interest?”
NO GUNS FOR YOU: You’ve slammed doors very hard!
IDEOLOGICAL DIVERSITY and law school hiring.
WOMAN DRIVES CAR 100 FEET INTO SCHOOL BUILDING.
JULY 20, 1969: One Small Step . . . One Giant Leap.