Reason Morning Links: Global HIV Cases Drop, Judicial Immunity for Corrupt Judges, Lou Loves the Latinos

• Pennsylvania judges who sent kids to juvenile detention centers in exchange for kickbacks will be immune from lawsuits for decisions made while on the bench.
• Lou Dobbs reaches out to Latinos, says he supports plan to legalize undocumented workers. Really.
• Washington Post closes last remaining U.S. bureaus outside of D.C.
• Number of new U.S. troops in Afghanistan now looking to be around 30,000.
• Some good news: Worldwide HIV infections in decline.

Comments

[Johnny Longtorso]

Some background for the Wegman report discussed below:

http://online.wsj.com/article/.....06460.html

The CRU emails show the activities of the small clique of researchers at the heart of AGW research. Here is an excerpt from Wegman's 2006 social network analysis of temperature reconstruction, annotated with links to the searchable archive of CRU emails:

http://limitedmodifiedhangout......stick.html

One of the interesting questions associated with the 'hockey stick controversy' are the relationships among the authors and consequently how confident one can be in the peer review process. In particular, if there is a tight relationship among the authors and there are not a large number of individuals engaged in a particular topic area, then one may suspect that the peer review process does not fully vet papers before they are published. Indeed, a common practice among associate editors for scholarly journals is to look in the list of references for a submitted paper to see who else is writing in a given area and thus who might legitimately be called on to provide knowledgeable peer review. Of course, if a given discipline area is small and the authors in the area are tightly coupled, then this process is likely to turn up very sympathetic referees. These referees may have coauthored other papers with a given author. They may believe they know that author's other writings well enough that errors can continue to propagate and indeed be reinforced?.

[Rich]

Thanks, JL.

In related news, Senator Inhofe is turning up teh heat.

[Johnny Longtorso]

BTW, Mann is at the heart of the AGW social network, with connections (co-authorship, etc) w/ just about everyone involved.

[Mike M.]

I can't wait for the eventual day when Hansen, Mann, and all the rest of the lying con artists are subpoenaed to appear before Congress to answer questions under oath.

[Rich]

Think it'll be before or after Barney Frank and Chris Dodd get their turns in the barrel?

[Rich]

judges who sent kids to juvenile detention centers in exchange for kickbacks will be immune from lawsuits

WTF?!

[JW]

Pennsylvania judges who sent kids to juvenile detention centers in exchange for kickbacks will be immune from lawsuits for decisions made while on the bench.

I wonder if they'll be immune to getting the crap kicked out of them by angry parents?

[Art-P.O.G.]

I'd have to subscribe or do some research of my own on the issue, but I wonder where judicial immunity is codified?

[P Brooks]

I used to think kneecapping judges was bad.

[Art-P.O.G.]

Yeah, it's hard to think of something more disheartening than a judge who is a corrupt POS.

[John]

That judge decision is the kind of shit that really does start a revolution. I understand the need for judicial immunity. But this case is the exception. The judge should have made a very narrow fact based decision that set little precident. Basically, he should have said "yes immunity is great and normally it applies but not for you assholes". That would have sent a message to the public that yes justice matters. Rule of law is important but so is justice. As it is, he has done tremendous damage to people's faith in the justice system. Terrible decision.

[Johnny Longtorso]

But misbehaving judges and scientists aren't Enron execs, so there's no Bill Lockyer in govt to offer to "personally escort [any of them] to an 8-by-10 cell that he could share with a tattooed dude who says, 'Hi, my name is Spike, honey.'"

[P Brooks]

Caputo wrote that he recognized the "egregious nature" of the allegations, but continuously stressed that was not the true issue.

"This is, however, about the rule of law," Caputo wrote. "It is about the rule of law in the face of popular opinion which would seek a finding directly contrary to the result the rule of law dictates."

"Rule of Law."

I do not think you are using that phrase correctly.

[Bas Mon]

Show me a judge that isnt corrupt and I will show you a figment of your imagination!

BM
http://www.complete-privacy.se.tc

[pistoffnick]

The Singularity has arrived! A bot that philosophizes!

All hail our new overlords (same as the old overlords)

[Johnny Longtorso]

The University of East Anglia is the Enron of science.

[Mike M.]

Competitive Enterprise Institute files notice of intent to sue NASA Goddard Institute of Space Studies for fraud.

Awesome. Soon, everything will be completely open to legal discovery, and these SOBs will be exposed as the lying frauds that they are.

[bendover]

I really can't wait until the 50 state Attorneys General start smelling blood in the water.

[ktc2]

From the immunity article: "'This is, however, about the rule of law," Caputo wrote. 'It is about the rule of law in the face of popular opinion which would seek a finding directly contrary to the result the rule of law dictates.'"

Only politicians and their close friends are entitled to outcomes contrary to the written rule of law, now get back to work and stop complaining serfs before the IRS gets your names!

[rst]

It's a shame that the judge lacks the keenness of vision to see that he is siding not with the rule of law, but that of man. The rule of law could not reasonably protect an agent who "goes off the reservation" so to speak, because a judge, police officer, or prosecutor acting from corruption is in effect a criminal masquerading as a judge, police officer, or prosecutor.

The rule of man I think by contrast sees a utilitarian purpose in protecting judges and prosecutors qua *people*, rather than offices.

I dunno. It stinks to high heaven, but if there's any justice in the world, those "judges" will get ten times the prison abuse their victims got.

[J sub D]

Pennsylvania judges who sent kids to juvenile detention centers in exchange for kickbacks will be immune from lawsuits for decisions made while on the bench.

Somebody tell me again how we are a classless society. Anybody?

[J sub D]

Number of new U.S. troops in Afghanistan now looking to be around 30,000.

Nixon started reducing troops in an unwinnable war his first month in office. And he was a fuckwad,

[alan]

I literally spilt my coffee when I read this letter to the editor in the local fishwrap today:

http://www.news-record.com/con.....california

Years of cutting taxes have hobbled California
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
(Updated 8:10 am)

California is a microcosm of what 30 years of relentless tax-cutting brings. Thirty years ago it had the nation's No. 1 public school system. Now, it is near No. 48.

Its public college system was top-tier. Thousands of innovative, high-paying jobs in aerospace, computers and engineering were created there because they knew how to invest in their people. Now they're cutting classes and staff and raising tuition for in-state students.

How many potential engineers, scientists and innovators will not be educated because of the short-sightedness of those who don't understand that the "free market" isn't free? Human capital is not just a wasted expense.

We blame "government interference" for our plight. But regulations and programs to help the poor and working classes better their lot are not the problem.

Government has become the handmaiden of the business lobbies. Look at business practices of the last 30 years of deregulation and profit optimization ? jobs off-shored, hidden fees and costs with every transaction.

If only those pesky political prisoners did not pine for freedom while breaking rocks in the Gulag, the Soviet system, that friend of the worker everywhere, would have brought prosperity to all.

There is a reply section, it would be on the order of magnitudes awesome if the kind editors of Reason who have dealt with this bullshit alluding to Proposition 13 before gave a good old fashioned Godsmack to this lady.

[Art-P.O.G.]

Interesting. This woman seems to have been living in some sort of alternate reality.

[alan]

Her first name is Sandi. I have yet to meet a Sandi who wasn't cute. Probably easy, probably a hippie, and definitely dumb. I should keep my eye out for this one when I'm at the clubs.

[Rich]

Clearly not "our" Sandi.

[alan]

She may need a little potty training. You gotta give a little to get a little.

[alan]

Unfortunately you have to register to comment there. I have a low tolerance for spam.

[Michael Ejercito]

Corrupt judges do not have bullet immunity.

[rst]

That is true, unfortunately, they also have on their side the handy legal premise that to kill one is somehow orders of magnitude worse than killing a hooker.

Mmm...taste that "rule of law".