A.M. Links: White House Disputes Economic Reality, VW Labor Leader Throwing Tantrum, Traffic Police in Somalia Struggling

• 

  myhsu/flickr

  The chairman of the White House's Council of Economic Advisers disputed the CBO's estimate that a higher minimum wage would cause job loss, because, what, you expected him to be economically literate?

• The Department of Homeland Security is soliciting bids for a license-plate tracking system that would allow the feds to capture data collected by local law enforcement agencies that use license-plate readers. If it feels like you're the enemy…
• Two police groups in Minnesota are suing the NFL over its rule banning guns from stadiums. They argue off-duty cops have a "right" to carry firearms. They're no second class citizens after all.
• The teachers union in New York City is now pushing for "back pay" because it believes teachers deserved a raise a long time ago. What could anyone who comes up with that kind of logic actually teach?
• Volkswagen's labor leader threatened to block any further expansions by the company into the south after a factory in Tennessee voted against UAW representation. Worker rights are only for those willing to subsidize the paychecks of union leaders.
• Traffic police in Somalia are struggling to impose rules on Somali drivers, who are used to roads but not governments. Who will rule the roads?

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Comments

[Fist of Etiquette]

The Department of Homeland Security is soliciting bids for a license-plate tracking system that would allow the feds to capture data collected by local law enforcement agencies that use license-plate readers.

I am the Lord, your Central Database. You shall have no other databases before Me.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Hello.

Finland beating Russia in hockey.

Putin. Mad! Smash!

[Ted S.]

Go Latvia!

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Why you little...

/chokes neck.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Russkies are out of medal contention.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Bye-bye commies!

Putin is preparing his torture chamber as we speak.

In all seriousness, I hope Russian players stay in the KHL. They can get away with playing lazy hockey there while getting used to poor coaching decisions.

[Warty]

The Germans will see Russia's weakness from this display and invade. In hockey. Somehow.

[Ska]

On skates I'd imagine. But their rail skates won't be worth the trouble.

[Fist of Etiquette]

They would never be stupid enough to do so in winter.

[Wandering Texan]

They should be used to Finnish sharpshooters taking them down a peg or two.

[Floridian]

+1 winter war

[Fist of Etiquette]

Volkswagen's labor leader threatened to block any further expansions by the company into the south after a factory in Tennessee voted against UAW representation.

You know who else forced people to join groups?

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Ron Jeremy?

[Rich]

Galois?

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

The NLRA?

[Atanarjuat]

If you meant NLRB, then you deserve a standing ovation.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Ummmm......YES...

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

Your nom du web is truly horrifying. My hat is off to you sir.

[Citizen Nothing]

At least it's just your hat.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

I re-branded (KMA, too)....kept trying to come up with something that made me laugh every time I looked at it, and...well, you see where that went.

I almost picked "Pelosi Galore", which Dennis Miller brought forward from one of his listeners.

Either that, or "Pelosi's Box-lunch", but I couldn't quite deal with it on the long term.

[Cdr Lytton]

http://lunchboxwax.com/

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Oui!

[gaijin]

Vampires?

[Fluffy]

Actually, in this instance the running joke is entirely appropriate.

Punishing people who decline to participate in the "approved" social organizations is pretty much page 1 fascism.

We can't have people not joining the right groups. That would make them unmediated. Also, it messes up the pretty lines on the table of organization we have in our Master Plan.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Jenny Craig?

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

The Pod People?

[Red Rocks Rockin]

The comments by the labor leader show that cultural ignorance isn't limited to us Ugly 'Merikans.

If the labor leaders on the VW council were so hyped up to build a plant with union representation, why in the hell would they approve to build a plant in TENNESSEE, which is notable for luring car manufacturers down there for the express reason that it is a right-to-work state? Why not push for somewhere in the upper midwest, which is a labor union haven?

[Pelosi's Rabbit]

Andrew Loog Oldham?

[Fist of Etiquette]

Traffic police in Somalia are struggling to impose rules on Somali drivers, who are used to roads but not governments.

Have they tried imposing a tax or outright banning? That usually fixes all problems urban.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Well, isn't struggle inherent in this situation, because ROADZ!!1!

[Auric Demonocles]

How much do we have to drink if it's done as an offical AM Link?

[PD Scott]

A mimosa? Or is that only on Sunday?

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Bloody Mary

[Auric Demonocles]

I asked how much, not what!

[RBS]

One Bloody Mary.

[UnCivilServant]

Since when does Somalia have ROADZ for the traffic police to police?

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

There were roads left over from the pre-1992 government era.

[Libertymike]

Ah, those were the days, the days for which you pine, the "government era"!

[Suthenboy]

How can they have traffic if they dont have roads?

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Hold on....did this quote actually appear in a MSM publication?

Does that mean the whole meme of Somalia/no rads is a sham???

Motherf*ckers....

[Hyperion]

Yeah, obviously we've been lied to, again.

Now I have to scrap my long term plan of moving to Somalia, and find another libertarian paradise, without roads. Sigh...

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Screw my typing this morning...

[Raven Nation]

Haven't seen Somalia Road Corporation around in a while.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

He got the Mogadishu paving contract...

[Raven Nation]

Heh, heh, heh.

[Cdr Lytton]

Blacktop down!

[Raven Nation]

+1 'copter

[Somalian Road Corporation]

I don't always read Reason on a daily basis and there's little point in commenting on an older article unless there's something particularly egregious I feel the need to speak about.

[Pelosi's Rabbit]

Man, I was entirely too obscure when I chose my handle.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

I apologize. I've seen the handle before, but I promise I couldn't for the life of me remember what it was.

You were here first, and I was just re-branding. If you like, I can always go back.

[Tonio]

Remember that there are other political figures out there.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Well, there was alliteration involved, too.

Suggestions?

[Pelosi's Rabbit]

Nah it's cool. I like yours better. I may go back to Rights Minimalist Autocrat to mock one of our other trolls.

[Pelosi's Rabbit]

Or maybe Warren's Strap-on.

[Mock-star]

Feinstein's raging hard-on?

[Lord Humungus]

And now for sports:

Germans beat Brits to world naked sledging title

Contenders, clad only in underpants, a helmet, boots and gloves, contended for the fastest time, sliding down a custom-built 25-metre ramp of artificial snow on an inflated rubber ring.

Anika Langsfeld, 24, from Saxony-Anhalt became the women's world naked sledging champion, beating 20 competitors from various countries at the bizarre competition held near Magdeburg.

While the 13 degree C temperatures may not have been too punishing, the topless would-be-champions tried their luck in front of around 8,000 spectators on artificial snow.

NSFWish

[gaijin]

Judging by the images, Ima guess the female participants were compensated.

[Suthenboy]

"...clad only in underpants, a helmet, boots and gloves, ..."

I dont think they know what the word 'naked' means.

[Ska]

DOZENS of us. DOZENS!!!!!!

[neoteny]

The female nipples are pixellated out!

I guess Kraut children stop growing if they see women's nipples.

[Rhywun]

Kraut children were watching female nipples during the prime time shampoo commercials on TV - at least they did when I was one in the 80's.

[neoteny]

And now your age group pixellates out female nipples.

Obviously their sight caused severe issues.

[Rhywun]

Well, it DID turn me gay.

[sarcasmic]

Devo guitarist Bob Casale dies of 'sudden' heart failure just months after bandmate Alan Myers succumbed to cancer

Bob Casale, 61, died in New York on Monday from heart failure
Death follows that of Devo drummer Alan Myers, 58, who passed away in June from brain cancer
The US band, who hail from Ohio, became the sound of a generation in the 70s and 80s
Best known for bar anthem Whip It and their 'energy dome' hats

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wir.....ge-61.html
So much for the reunion.

[Rich]

Are they not men?

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

I mean, he had a job, and he wore a hat....so nobody could tell.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Damn.

So much for whipping it good.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

He tried to detect it, but it was too late

[gaijin]

Clearly, workin in the coal mines brings early death.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

And no satisfaction

[Killaz]

The best tribute I can think of --

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qlUFKFHNIU

It's not Devo, but it's better.

[Invisible Finger]

He's certainly through being cool now.

Well, maybe he's ice cold now.

[sarcasmic]

Arizona neighborhood terrorized by feral packs of abandoned CHIHUAHUAS

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....AHUAS.html
Is that what they're calling Mexicans these days?

[Steve G]

If you're terrorized by chihuahuas, just turn in your man card right now.

[UnCivilServant]

Aren't they just deformed rats?

[Citizen Nothing]

The piranhas of the desert.

[Fluffy]

I smell a Direct-to-DVD kids' movie!

[Citizen Nothing]

Chihuahuanado!

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

*applause*

[PBR Streetgang]

Hurricanine

[Steve G]

Thought experiment: what's the over/under and quantity of chihuahuas that would actually be life-threatening. Assuming their target is a able-bodied male with the ability to flee. Go.

[Citizen Nothing]

103.

[DontShootMe]

+2 Dalmations

[sarcasmic]

How many can you kick like a soccer ball before getting tired?

[Steve G]

That's probably the million dollar question. Then once fatigue sets in, how long until one succumbs to the blood loss of ankle bites....

[Rich]

Death by a thousand nips.

[110 Lean]

LACIST!!!!

[Pope Jimbo]

Science!

In this carefully constructed thought experiment some really smart guys study the question of which would win, a Rottweiler or the same weight of Chihuahuas.

[robc]

I was gonna post that link.

Ah...the 90s,

[neoteny]

One thing you have to remember about chihuahuas (and all yap-dogs for that matter) is that they are mean. They are pissed at life in general for being so small, and need a destructive outlet for their pent-up rage.

This is why I love disinterested, factual scientific analysis.

[Protagoronus]

The Chihuahuas would probably attack each other as well, making it easier for the Rottweiler.

[Killaz]

If I get a machete, I could go through 952,006 before succumbing to exhaustion. With my alligator boot alone, around 20,000.

[RBS]

The solution to this was detailed in The Rolling Stones, once again Heinlein has the answer.

[Killaz]

A neighbor of mine has a mean little shit of a chihuahua who likes to come over to my yard and bark at me. His name is Punky even.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Sounds like a candidate for a drop-kick. Your average rugby player could probably get that thing 15-20 meters.

[Killaz]

He's getting old, and I'll miss the little fella when he's gone. He has a reliable schtick.

[sarcasmic]

'I didn't have time to get scared': CCTV captures the moment mother opens fire on home invaders with assault rifle

Woman opened fire after intruders kicked in the door of her Detroit home
Incident was caught on cameras installed following a similar break-in
The intruders ran off and police arrested three suspects shortly afterwards

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....rifle.html
Surprisingly the comments are not derp.

[Wandering Texan]

Antis tend to shy away from proof of the harm their polices do or would inflict on the innocent.

[wareagle]

much like they are defending the increase in the minimum wage.

[Atanarjuat]

For those who didn't click, she slammed a thug's arm in a door, causing him to drop his gun. Her 10-year-old boy picked up the gun and fired off a shot at them.

[sarcasmic]

That's a different story. They mashed up like three or four self defense stories into one.

[robc]

Impossible, no one ever uses a gun in self defense.

[Lord Humungus]

Pork Pie?

Pork pie ruins wedding day for couple after guests start a fight over buffet snack

A couple's wedding day crumbled in front of their eyes when three of their guests were arrested over a fight involving a pork pie.

Celebrations at the Harold Club in Bradford, West Yorks, were cut short on Saturday night when police were called to the venue after a reported disturbance linked to the snack.

Officers in the Dog Unit at West Yorkshire Police took to Twitter following the facade, revealing that they had been called to a 'large fight' at a wedding.

[Rich]

the Dog Unit

Natch.

[Jordan]

Comprised entirely of Yorkshire Terriers, I presume.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

+1

[sarcasmic]

Tourti?re has been a holiday tradition for as long as I can remember. That's what happens when your mother is Canadian.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

....mostly French-Canadian.

[BakedPenguin]

If you're lucky, you get a mother who makes it more than just at the holidays. That's some good eating - puts poutine to shame.

[sarcasmic]

With cranberry sauce on top... *drool*

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Cranberry sauce? That's a first. They serve it with gravy here.

I have to try that.

[Fist of Etiquette]

The chairman of the White House's Council of Economic Advisers disputed the CBO's estimate that a higher minimum wage would cause job loss...

I certainly hope the chairman of Obama's Council of Economic Advisors isn't a political hack. That would almost tarnish its credibility.

[Auric Demonocles]

Remember, discounting the CBO's "projection" that Obamacare would be deficit neutral is racist partisanship. But doubting their projection that raising the minimum wage will impact employment is valid.

[Steve G]

He just needs to add "non-partisan" to his duty title and it will make it so.

[Palin's Buttplug]

Obama Faces Liberal Revolt On Social Security Cuts

His budget plan is expected to be released in the next few weeks, but President Barack Obama hasn't yet revealed if it'll include the Social Security cuts that were in his budget last year.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/d.....urity-cuts

[WTF]

Don't lock eyes with 'em, don't do it. Puts 'em on edge. They might go into berzerker mode; come at you like a whirling dervish, all fists and elbows. You might be screaming "No, no, no" and all they hear is "Who wants cake?" Let me tell you something: They all do. They all want cake.

[Certified Public Asskicker]

But I think this time he is trying to tell us Obama wants to starve old people, push them over a cliff ala Paul Ryan.

[The Late P Brooks]

Volkswagen's labor leader threatened to block any further expansions by the company into the south after a factory in Tennessee voted against UAW representation. Worker rights are only for those willing to subsidize the paychecks of union leaders.

Engrish prz.

[Atanarjuat]

I heard the state government officials threatened to revoke the plant's special tax incentives if they unionized. Every once in a while, excessive, arbitrary political power works out for the best.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Please don't spread this leftist propaganda. Even if that's true, I don't see how it would have affected the workers' decision not to unionize.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

That's fine. I bet higher costs for the same quality of labor than your competitors will work out well for you.

[Andrew S.]

Why not? I mean, look at history. Obviously they'll have to raise prices, and then quality will get lower. They'll have astounding debts to long-retired, overpaid workers. But then all they have to do is wait to declare bankruptcy, get bailed out by the government, and all will be well again!

[Night Elf Mohawk]

That might be a good plan for GM. Probably not so much for VW, at least not from the US government. If Germany wants to bail them out, that's up to them.

[RightofCenter]

My first time witnessing the phenomenon known as FoE. I was here hitting F5 like it was a wootoff (it is, btw), when suddenly the AM links appeared complete with comment #1. That's some fast typing!

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

FOE is the only one who reads the 24/7 newsfeed.

[Auric Demonocles]

I often entirely forget that it exists.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

That is probably for the best.

[Auric Demonocles]

There's probably 0/7 alt-text over there.

[Mike M.]

It's fixed, kind of like the NBA.

[gaijin]

Fixed of Etiquette

[Fist of Etiquette]

Imagine the quality of comment you would get if I didn't just type the first thing that pops into my head.

[Lord Humungus]

Teenagers Spurn Working as School in U.S. Takes Priority

Akil Alvin, 19 and from Detroit, is struggling to land a job as he competes with older, more skilled applicants. Alex Lothspeich, 17 and from Charlotte, North Carolina, is choosing not to enter the workforce to focus on high school.

Both illustrate changes sweeping the teen labor force. Young Americans such as Alvin who want to work can't find jobs as unemployment among 16-to-19-year-olds stands at more than three times the rate for all workers. At the same time, more teens are taking Lothspeich's tack, forsaking paid positions to concentrate on getting into college.

I was threatened with the pain of death to get a job. When I was 15 I washed dishes. At 16 I was doing computer programming at a small insurance company. At age 17, warehouse work.

[Rich]

to focus on high school.

With all due respect, if kids focused on *elementary* school ....

[UnCivilServant]

I didn't need focus in high school, I was ahead of the class because the policy was to teach to the lowest common denominator (rather than teaching what stuff like that meant). We need filtering by aptitude to separate the comptent from the incompetent if we want any sort of improvement in attainment.

[Auric Demonocles]

I pretty much just sat around and goofed off for 6+ years because of this.

[RBS]

This pretty much sums up my public school experience (I went off to boarding school after my freshman year). I remember my last day pretty vividly though. I got into an argument with my history "teacher", accused her of being intellectually lazy and called a majority of my classmates morons. I had also been watching a lot of Al Pacino movies at the time...

[WTF]

Was the whole class out of order?

[Auric Demonocles]

I did the opposite, in that I was in a private school until partway through 6th grade. After that I was pretty much just killing time till college.

[Auric Demonocles]

To elaborate, I transferred to public school because the Catholic school I was attending was going way downhill with a new administration. The final straw was when they tried to suspend me for 2 weeks due to a zero tolerance policy on fighting (while not doing anything to the kid who put a trashcan on my head from behind to start the fight, he also ended up threatening a girl with a knife about a month later).

[Auric Demonocles]

I had no encouragement to get a job, but I did it anyway because it:

1) Gave me money

2) Gave me an excuse not to work on our farm

[Andrew S.]

This reminds me. Summer of 1992, when I was 15, I worked for a small computer company, mostly doing data entry, occasionally helping with their other business, which was refurbishing and fixing old printers. Left the job once school was about to start. Then Hurricane Andrew hit. I never got my last paycheck!

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

It will wash ashore somewhere near Bahia, Brazil in three years.

[mad libertarian guy]

Left the job once school was about to start. Then Hurricane Andrew hit.

What high school? Andrew was my 16th bday, and it sucked balls. My high school was a dump for the trash that Andrew caused.

[waffles]

I got a job at 16,17,18 onwards because it was the only way I could afford to keep my car on the road. Isn't the 16 year old driving age just about the best work incentive there is?

[Lord Humungus]

yep - I had to keep my rusty gas guzzling '68 Firebird going.

[Brett L]

Exactly. My dad didn't give a shit if I worked or not. He also didn't care whether I drove or dated either.

[Lady Bertrum]

My 15 year old son has a job. He's a lifeguard. We encouraged him. Having some type of work experience is almost (not always) valuable.

[mad libertarian guy]

My 6 year old has a job too (though not in the "I applied and was accepted for a job opening at some company" sense). He lets the chickens out and collects eggs on a daily basis for $5 a week. He uses it for his video game habit.

[Invisible Finger]

I was threatened with the pain of death to get a job. When I was 15 I washed dishes. At 16 I was doing computer programming at a small insurance company. At age 17, warehouse work.

That's why some of the quotes in the article are so telling. One mother tells her kids grades are more important than working, and a Georgetown professor says you can't learn anything at a low-paying job.

[SusanM]

and a Georgetown professor says you can't learn anything at a low-paying job.

I'm sure that people who dropped out of school and ended up 10-20 years later in lucrative positions in retail management would tend to disagree.

[Longtorso, Johnny]

The New Contras: Understanding The Left's Grip On Media
...In fact, attempts to do just that permeate the entire paper and its recommendations. West and Stone even chide the practice of pairing conservatives and liberals on TV to comment on issues, which they say results in "polarization of discourse and 'false equivalence' in reporting." Getting both views means there is a lack of "nuanced analysis," which "confuses viewers," they write. As with all liberal grousing, there is also throughout the paper the suspicion that the average American is not capable of filtering the news by himself. Another passage reads, "the average reader's ability to critically judge this new presentation of digital data is still developing and is lagging behind the ubiquity of interactives and infographics on the web."

So journalists should lead the average American reader out of his torpor by linking to thoughtful commentary that give the context the reader needs, just like in the old days. And who might be good examples of such much-needed context-givers? West and Stone observe that "Platforms such as the Washington Post's Wonkblog and Andrew Sullivan's "The Dish" provide daily developments in policy news for those seeking to understand the intricacies of complex issues." And, no it doesn't end there. They also recommend Democracy Now!, ....

[Ted S.]

West and Stone even chide the practice of pairing conservatives and liberals on TV to comment on issues, which they say results in "polarization of discourse and 'false equivalence' in reporting."

It leads to TEAM BE RULED crowding out, say, libertarian views.

[Red Rocks Rockin]

Getting both views means there is a lack of "nuanced analysis," which "confuses viewers," they write.

That's not why cable news is so stupid--it's because the fatheads they bring on to yap seem to equate political discussion with a game of the dozens.

[Lord Humungus]

Capital One says it can show up at cardholders' homes, workplaces

Credit card issuer Capital One isn't shy about getting into customers' faces. The company recently sent a contract update to cardholders that makes clear it can drop by any time it pleases.

The update specifies that "we may contact you in any manner we choose" and that such contacts can include calls, emails, texts, faxes or a "personal visit."

As if that weren't creepy enough, Cap One says these visits can be "at your home and at your place of employment."

[gaijin]

They are just setting the ground work for their new reality show "Debt Busters: Collectin' Credit" sponsored by Capital One.

[Matrix]

Shaky cams FTW!

[Ted S.]

Ooh, I can be personally assaulted by Alec Baldwin!

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

Capital One can kiss my ass. I got a credit card from them years ago with a zero percent for six months offer. They sent me a card with a $1K limit.

[Matrix]

Yeah, I had one credit card company give me like $3000 limit. And then Barclay gave me like $150. I was like... WTF?!

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Yeah, because I'm gonna buy a Cap One card.

Shit.

If people don't cut up their cards upon this revelation then their asking for trouble.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

they're.

[Elspeth Flashman]

I'm sure they'll be OK with borrowers negotiating that part of the contract.

[Mickey Rat]

""Even the Internal Revenue Service cannot visit you at home without an arrest warrant," Rofman observed.

Indeed, you'd think the 4th Amendment of the Constitution, which guards against unreasonable searches and seizures, would make this sort of thing verboten.

Apparently not."

Please save us from the sort of people who think the 4th Amendment is anything but a limitation on government authority. Besides, I don't believe this means Cap One has the authority to enter your home uninvited, just knock on the door.

[SusanM]

Well, it's not the government but a voluntary contract. Can't they do what they want?

[John]

I don't have one of their cards, but if I did, I wouldn't anymore after getting that letter. Who thought that was a good idea?

[Night Elf Mohawk]

I think I'm going to apply for one. I'd love for a Cap One rep to show up at my door.

[Killaz]

One collection agency had the rather sleazy policy of calling the neighbors of their delinquent cardholders back in the 90s. I got such a call concerning one of mine. I asked, "I notice you did not state at the start that 'this call may be recorded.'" He candidly told me that they did not do that as collection agents felt hampered by it. All that mattered was results. I laughed at this in his face, realizing the kind of people card companies will contract with, and I told him, "Put your supervisor on the line, I need to ask him why its okay for you to call me a nigger." That caught him off guard. I ended with "We're done here, Dwayne, and don't you every call me again."

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

I used to work next door to an agency that bought bad debt and tried to collect on it. That had to be the biggest group of malcontents I've ever seen outside of a soccer stadium. All day, every day on the phone trying to harass money out of deadbeats. They would fight in the parking lot to blow off steam.

[Raven Nation]

I did data entry for a finance company whose business model was to provide auto financing to people who couldn't get it from anyone else. In order for this model to "work" the company figured the best approach was to finance auto loans at rates around 20%. Needless to say, it lasted about five years before going out of business.

Best story I ever heard from one of the collectors was that a guy had called to say he wouldn't be able to pay off his loan. So, he was going to drop the vehicle off at the dealership on his way to jail.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Truly, some of the best stories I've ever read/been told are debt collector call stories.

If there are others out here in H'n'R land, let's see them.

[Elspeth Flashman]

The life of a Repoman is always intense.

[Brett L]

Ooh. I'm sure there will be people lining up to do this job. Somebody's gonna get shot over $250 and it will cost Cap One a million bucks.

[gaijin]

off-duty cops have a "right" to carry firearms.

Cause they are never truly 'off duty' man.

[Ken Shultz]

They should get "back pay"!

[Rich]

IIRC, some DHS weenie in effect told the citizenry that we are *all* on duty.

[Ted S.]

According to the Peelian principles, we're all the police; we just pay some people to do the day-to-day policing work.

Of course, police in the US abandoned Robert Peel a long time ago.

[UnCivilServant]

Then why am I not getting paid?

[gaijin]

hey man, Eternal Vigilance is the Price of Liberty! They are the true libertarians!

[Longtorso, Johnny]

Labour supporters admit it: taxes are to punish the rich, not to raise revenue
...Ponder the graph above. Sixty-nine per cent of Labour supporters would want a top rate tax of 50 per cent even if it brought in no money.

I'm sure they'd dispute the premise. I'm sure they'd insist that it did bring money in. And, on one level, they'd believe it; it's human nature to start with the result we want and then rationalise it to ourselves with what look like hard data. I think their rationalisation would be false, obviously ? once the behavioural consequences of the tax are factored in, it becomes a net drain on revenue ? but I might be subject to my own confirmation bias in the other direction.

Anyway, this isn't a blog about the statistics ? I've already posted one of those. No, this is a blog about the mind-set of people who see taxation, not as an unpleasant necessity, but as a way to punish others.

Envy is an ugly and debilitating condition, but it seems to have an evolutionary-biological basis. The dosage varies enormously from individual to individual, but even toddlers often display a sense that, if they can't have something, no one else should either. ...

[gaijin]

I'll take them seriously when they learn how to spell Labor. and Color.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

And "Center"

[waffles]

and flavour!

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

+1 aluminum

[Matrix]

It is difficult to take people seriously when they spell words with superfluous U's.

[UnCivilServant]

They were added to sound more French. Daniel Webster removed them from Us English to sound less stupid.

[robc]

I will take Longtorso seriously when he learns how to quote.

If it aint in italics or quotes, then I assume that Johnny wrote it.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

Two police groups in Minnesota are suing the NFL over its rule banning guns from stadiums. They argue off-duty cops have a "right" to carry firearms. They're no second class citizens after all.

Want to ban guns? Don't take public money for your stadium.

[Auric Demonocles]

I'm as pro Second Amendment as they come (and also pro NFL), but it doesn't give you a right to carry onto private property (yes robc, that even includes private parking lots). Also I think allowing cops but no one else to bring guns in would be the worst possible choice.

[UnCivilServant]

How about anyone but cops can be armed?

[Auric Demonocles]

Same problem. While I like this double standard better, it's still a double standard.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Don't forget that many if not most NFL stadiums are publicly owned.

[Auric Demonocles]

I'm pretty sure almost none are publicly owned. Though many were financed partially with public money.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

I don't know the exact numbers, but off the top of my head there's Soldier Field, the Meadowlands, Oakland Coliseum which are all publicly owned. As was the Metrodome.

[Auric Demonocles]

The New Meadowlands (now MetLife Stadium) was actually paid for entirely with private money, though I'm not sure about the land.

[MiloMinderbinder]

While the Jets and Giants paid to build MetLife Stadium, it is owned and operated by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority.

Most NFL stadiums are owned and/or located in public lands as a way for the teams to avoid paying property taxes.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Chicago Park District owns Soldier Field, IIRC.

[Night Elf Mohawk]

Once you take public money, you're not private anymore, according to the government. If the stadium is privately financed and owned the owner should be able to exclude guns, ugly ties, or whatever. If you want that ability, pay for the stadium with your own money.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

"public accomodashun!!!!11!!!"

/derp

[Mickey Rat]

How many people's rights are you casually throwing away there? Particular, in areas where taking public money is requirement for doing business?

[Night Elf Mohawk]

None. I didn't make the rule. If taking government money means the entity is now public, as the government likes to argue, then the 2d Amendment should also apply since the entity is now public.

[Auric Demonocles]

The government also likes to argue that growing wheat in your backyard or not buying health insurance (which is impossible to buy across state lines) is interstate commerce. They're both still not.

[Apatheist ?_??]

Can they sell tickets (a contract) to view their privately owned entertainment product that are conditional on not bringing a firearm?

If not, why don't I have a "right" to enter the stadium without buying a ticket. It is publicly owned after all.

[Fluffy]

Since I also have a 1st amendment right to freedom of religion, does that mean I can stroll down to the middle of the field and conduct a church service during the 1st quarter?

[robc]

If its on my body, its on my property, not yours. Or do I not own myself?

[Auric Demonocles]

Suuuure, your body is never on someone else's propety.

[robc]

But the gun isnt, its on MY property.

And the owner can ask me to leave.

With the NFL situation, its even easier. They require searches at the gates, so asking the off-duty cops and/or me to leave is no problem.

[Auric Demonocles]

The gun is on their property. Just like if you drive your car into your neighbor's living room, it's on their property, regardless of whether you are still inside the car or not.

With the NFL situation, its even easier. They require searches at the gates, so asking the off-duty cops and/or me to leave is no problem.

Yet you've made it clear that you will just sneak it in and that doing so "wouldn't" count as trespassing, despite the fact that you were already told you didn't have permission to enter like that.

[Fluffy]

Yet you've made it clear that you will just sneak it in and that doing so "wouldn't" count as trespassing, despite the fact that you were already told you didn't have permission to enter like that.

Right.

ROBC has an incredible bias in favor of speech.

If I walk up to him on my property and SAY OUT LOUD, "Hey buddy, I don't let guns on my property, you have to leave," that's OK with him.

But apparently if I hand you a piece of paper saying you can't enter with a gun, that's NOT OK with him.

Why does ROBC hate the mute?

[robc]

If the piece of paper asks me to leave, I will leave.

Oral or written, either way is fine. Preferably both, in case Im deaf or illiterate.

Its the sign saying "dont enter if you have a gun" that Im ignoring as invalid.

[Fluffy]

And the owner can ask me to leave.

With the NFL situation, its even easier. They require searches at the gates, so asking the off-duty cops and/or me to leave is no problem.

What's being discussed here is a law telling the owner he CAN'T ask the off-duty cops to leave.

[robc]

What's being discussed here is a law telling the owner he CAN'T ask the off-duty cops to leave.

I know, and that is silly.

But I was called out by name for something else so was discussing that.

[Lord Humungus]

Liberalism Transformed
How a movement battling capitalist excess became today's elitist lifestyle liberalism

From a movement mounting a leftist critique of capitalist excess and sensitive to the plight of economic have-nots, liberalism has largely become a series of mannered cultural positions on behalf of capitalism's winners, especially those in academic or government jobs or with close ties to the state. Since the 1980s, the Democratic party has become more the party of a lifestyle liberalism than the party of the working class that it was in its heyday, roughly the period from the 1920s through the late 1970s.

This new liberalism is the preserve of wealthy elites who oppose the economic and social values of the middle class. The small-government politics such values imply affront their sense of expertise and self-esteem. They therefore combine trust in a ruthless meritocracy ? helpfully, one that places themselves at the top ? with faith in big government.

[lap83]

Interesting article, but I think it's a popular myth that liberalism was ever committed to working class values. The Democrat party has always been about special interests, elitist ideas, and nice-sounding rhetoric. They've just been letting the mask slip as of late.

[mad libertarian guy]

liberalism has largely become a series of mannered cultural positions on behalf of capitalism's winners, especially those in academic or government jobs or with close ties to the state.

I'm not sure this author has any idea what he's talking about when he's saying that those in "academic or government jobs or with close ties to the state" are "capitalism's winners." The rest of the article is moot when he can't even get that those in academic and government jobs have nothing to do with capitalism, much less declare them winners because of capitalism.

[Invisible Finger]

Not only that, but the basic transformation of the Democratic Party has been dumping southerners in favor of trade union members. But behind that transformation is the same ideology: favoring those already favored and keeping poor people dependent on the State.

[Ken Shultz]

"Volkswagen's labor leader threatened to block any further expansions by the company into the south after a factory in Tennessee voted against UAW representation."

Rule #1: The people want what we want.

Rule #2: If the people reject what we want, punish them and refer to Rule #1.

This is the Progressive Way.

[Steve G]

thugs gotta thug

[Longtorso, Johnny]

The Failure of Obama's Aristocracy of Merit
...Barack Obama, in contrast, has built a top-and-bottom coalition ? academics and gentry liberals, blacks and Hispanics, with funding and organizational backing from taxpayer-funded public-sector unions. In 2008, Obama carried those with incomes under $50,000 and over $200,000, and lost those in between.

The Obama Democrats passed a stimulus package tilted toward public-sector unions and financial regulation propping up the big banks. Those at the top got paid off.

Less has gone to those at the bottom. Those in the middle have seen their health insurance canceled by Obamacare and sit waiting for HealthCare.gov to function.

Suddenly, this "aristocracy based on talent and sensibility," in Siegel's words, seems to be discrediting its own policies ? and its conceit that it is uniquely fit to govern.

[John]

It is not just that. At least the British Aristocracy ran an efficient government. The French at least gave us Versailles and David and Diederot. These people are just fucking morons.

[mad libertarian guy]

But we have Piss Christ and millions of students who can't pay off their school loans because they have economically useless degrees. That's real progress.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

"It is under a regime of socialized medicine where government covers a large portion of the costs of health case that the pharmaceutical industry has earned more income, which it has been able to use to expand its influence. That influence has grown to a level where it would be very difficult for any market-friendly elected official to attempt to dismantle the regime of socialized medicine. During an earlier time when medical care was either private or run by charities, companies that produced medicines represented the tail while the paying private customers represented the dog. Back then the dog wagged the tail."

http://www.quebecoislibre.org/14/140215-7.html

[Ted S.]

On the bright side, no longer do Canadians have to go into exile to get timely medical care.

[Lord Humungus]

Venezuela opposition leader surrenders, protesters flood streets

Venezuelan security forces arrested opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez on Tuesday on charges of fomenting unrest that has killed at least four people, bringing tens of thousands of his angry supporters onto the streets of Caracas.

Crowds of white-clad protesters tried to block the vehicle carrying the 42-year-old Harvard-educated economist after he made a defiant speech, said an emotional farewell to his family, and gave himself up to soldiers.

Opposition leaders hope Lopez's arrest will galvanize street demonstrations against President Nicolas Maduro, though there is no immediate sign the protests will topple the socialist leader.

[Rich]

NSA official charged with first-degree murder in beating death of 3-year-old son

See?! They *are* our friends and neighbors!

[Longtorso, Johnny]

Why Card Check Matters, Chattanooga Edition
...In the employees' affidavits obtained by National Review Online, the employees said that the UAW "solicited, enticed, and/or demanded VW employees' signatures by unlawful means including misrepresentations, coercion, threats, and promises." In one instance, union officials allegedly offered free tickets to a nearby amusement park to one employee and his entire family if he signed the card....

...But the workers' protests that they'd been intimidated forced VW to grant them the protection of a secret ballot. "I think that if those eight employees hadn't filed charges, the card check might have worked," Mix says. "To this day, nobody has seen the 'majority' of cards the UAW claimed to have."

When the vote finally came, workers rejected the UAW's attempt to unionize by 53?47 margin, 712 votes to 626.

[John]

They didn't want it so bad because it made things fair. And Obama leaned on VW to get them to give the union every advantage. And they still lost. The unions have pretty much destroyed their brand. I grew up with several kids whose parents were UAW workers. All of them hated the union and looked at it as nothing but protection for deadbeats and less of a pay check.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Maybe VW should get out of those Right To Work hellholes in the South, and open up a plant in a more worker friendly state, like Michigan.

Oh, wait....

[John]

You said it brother. You would think they would want better workers than a bunch of ignorant racist tea baggers from South Carolina.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Isn't VW mostly of shit quality now, anyway?

I mean, if that's true, and ze Germans are so put off by how the vote went down, isn't that a net win overall?

[Red Rocks Rockin]

From what I've read, their interiors have definitely gone downhill the last few years. They can still be pretty reliable, but they're touchy about maintenance--they don't handle benign neglect as well as the average Honda, Toyota, or even a typical Big 3-mobile.

Ultimately, VWs (and German cars in general) seem to be mostly for car enthusiasts who are passionate about their vehicles and will have an emotional investment in keeping on top of every little knock and rattle. The average car buyer isn't going to be that dedicated--their primary concern is, "How long can I drive this car before the engine blows up on me or I drop the transmission?"

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Interesting.

What I've heard (in passing) is that their quality has degraded, especially when compared to cost. I don't really have any opinion either way, but I doubt I'd ever buy one.

[Lord Humungus]

Weapons, ammunition stolen from Ukrainian Security Service department in Ivano-Frankivsk

Volodymyr Porodko, deputy head of the Ukrainian Security Service, said weapons and ammunition have been stolen from the Ukrainian Security Service department in Ivano-Frankivsk.

"A total of 268 service pistols, two rifles, three assault rifles, 92 grenades, and some 15,000 cartridges were seized in the Ukrainian Security Service department in Ivano-Frankivsk," he said while meeting with foreign ambassadors in the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday.

[John]

It is going to get very bad there. It is a shame too. From what I have seen and read, the Ukraine is a pretty nice country.

[kinnath]

Ukraine, not "the Ukraine".

[John]

Close enough.

[UnCivilServant]

So it's only A Ukraine and not The Ukraine. I'm disappointed.

[grrizzly]

I wonder why the Dutch from the Hague in the Netherlands don't suffer from the the inferiority complex. Also, Deutschland--no article, but die Schweiz comes with an article. And the Swiss live with it.

[Rhywun]

So do der Iran and der Irak, and many others.

[RightofCenter]

It's a sign of age, along with adding an 's' to the end of store names: "Martha, I'm going to The Krogers to fill my lumbago prescription."

[Rhywun]

We're not dead yet. It was "The Ukraine" until 1991, FFS.

[tarran]

seize
s?z/Submit
verb
past tense: seized; past participle: seized
1. take hold of suddenly and forcibly.
"she jumped up and seized his arm"
synonyms: grab, grasp, snatch, take hold of, get one's hands on; More
antonyms: let go of
take forcible possession of.
"army rebels seized an air force base"
synonyms: capture, take, overrun, occupy, conquer, take over More
antonyms: relinquish, liberate
(of the police or another authority) take possession of (something) by warrant or legal right; confiscate; impound.
"police have seized 726 lb of cocaine"
synonyms: confiscate, impound, commandeer, requisition, appropriate, expropriate, take away; More
antonyms: release
take (an opportunity or initiative) eagerly and decisively.
"he seized his chance to attack as Delaney hesitated"
(of a feeling or pain) affect (someone) suddenly or acutely.
"he was seized by the most dreadful fear"
strongly appeal to or attract (the imagination or attention).
"the story of the king's escape seized the public imagination"
formal
understand (something) quickly or clearly.
"he always strains to seize the most somber truths"
2.
(of a machine with moving parts or a moving part in a machine) become stuck or jammed.
"the engine seized up after only three weeks"
3. (of a pro-government paramilitary force or member) to take possession of (something) given by government officials for use in 'unofficial' action
"Somebody siezed our rifles and they are no longer in our inventory"

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

The chairman of the White House's Council of Economic Advisers disputed the CBO's estimate that a higher minimum wage would cause job loss, because, what, you expected him to be economically literate?

In that case, it would appear that most actual scientific studies of the effect of small minwage increases are also economically illiterate and dispute economic reality.

But Ed Krayewski knows better!

[Citizen Nothing]

Suddenly the theme song to the old "Flipper" TV show popped into my head, only with "Tulpa" replacing "Flipper."

They call him Tulpa, Tulpa,
Faster than lightening...

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Wow, that's funny. I always associate you with the them from Punky Brewster for some reason.

[Citizen Nothing]

Punk-y Brew-ster. Cit-I-Zen Noth-ing. Doesn't scan.

[gaijin]

scientific studies of the effect of small minwage increases

Science and economics. Never really thought they were the same thing when it came to effectively predicting future results at such a micro level.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

This is macro, not micro.

[Citizen Nothing]

No one you seeee
Is smarter than heeee...

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

It's not nitpicking to point out that someone's argument is irrelevant. Keep the derp alive, CN.

[Citizen Nothing]

Will do, boss!
And we know Tupla
Lives in a world full of wooon-der....

[Citizen Nothing]

They call him Tupla, Tulpa, stopping for red lights
No one you see, drives safer than he!
And we know Tulpa, parks in a parallel fashion
Driving there under -- the CCTV!

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

NOW IT IS IN MY HEAD!!!!!

[gaijin]

This is macro, not micro.

That's what I don't get...in an economy the size of ours, a $3 hike in the minimum wage (which affects about 1% of the workforce) is considered macro.

[Auric Demonocles]

Hmm, I'll have to tell my friend to turn his degree back in because clearly his thesis was based on bad data.

[UnCivilServant]

You know how many improvidently issued degrees we could get back if we did that? Let's start.

[Auric Demonocles]

We'll also have to do something about that pesky data he based it on too. Maybe some statistical guy on the state payroll can pay back his salary for the time he was compiling those clearly fraudulent numbers.

[Invisible Finger]

we can start with anyone educated at a school where Tulpa was employed.

[mr simple]

If you take the studies and Ed's remark out of context, then your comment makes sense.

[RightofCenter]

Ima pop out of lurker mode again to say my wife and I have been re-watching the West Wing from the beginning. While we still like the drama of the show, it's funny to see the propaganda they were putting out in 1999 and compare it to today's issues.

Talk about your mask-slipping; in the show it comes off completely. Dems are the "good guys" who refuse to engage in the underhanded skulduggery of the Repub Christian Fascist Rednecks. They have Josh say the gov't isn't returning surplus taxes because "you wouldn't spend it right." Too many other good examples to report. It's almost like watching the comment section here in H&R. To her credit, my wife has been paying enough attention to me that the statism is shining through to her as well.

Back to my cave.

[John]

What is funny is that as bad as the West Wing is, it is downright Shakespearean in its subtly compared to The Newsroom.

[Lord Humungus]

The only episode I watched was with Martin Sheen pontificating to some oohing reporters... and then solves the Israeli/PLO standoff with a swish of his hand.

[John]

The Newsroom is like if Sugar Free wrote a parody of a liberal propaganda show and they cut out all of the parts that were too dirty for even HBO. A conservative couldn't have written that show as parody because no one would have believed him.

[SugarFree]

Yes. Newsroom is hilariously ham-fisted. It just lurches from scene to scene, spewing nonsense with a straight face and the smug assurance that its hindsight will always be 20/20.

And it is the most sexist show on television. Almost every woman on it has an anxiety disorder, mental deficiencies, is a cheating slut floozy, or is a wet blanket you want to throttle. The one smart woman is treated with suspicion because she might not be a 100% Democrat stooge on every issue.

[John]

It really is. But all of his shows have been sexist as hell. He is right out of central casting, the angry women hating male who covers it up by being overtly liberal and PC.

[UnCivilServant]

He nuked Palestine?

[Palin's Buttplug]

Unfortunately, your rank and file Republican voter deserves that depiction.

[WTF]

BUSHPIGS!!111!!!!CHRISTFAGS!!11!!!!111!

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Doesn't he have his head up someone's ass?

[Certified Public Asskicker]

My friend loves West Wing.

It's one of many reasons I secretly hate him.

[Fist of Etiquette]

I enjoyed the show. Just as I am able to suspend disbelief about dragons and zombies, I was able to view it as the fantasyland it was. And it was interesting to watch what they thought would be workable policies. And I liked the final two seasons of primary and general elections.

[Certified Public Asskicker]

Except for him, he uses it to stroke his political biases.

[Lord Humungus]

Streaming Wars: Netflix Traffic Gets Throttled By Broadband Companies, Leading To "Unwatchable" Results

Netflix Inc. subscribers have seen a lot more spinning wheels lately as they wait for videos to load, thanks to a standoff deep in the Internet.

The online-video service has been at odds with Verizon Communications Inc. VZ and other broadband providers for months over how much Netflix streaming content they will carry without being paid additional fees.

Now the long simmering conflict has heated up and is slowing Netflix, in particular, on Verizon's fiber-optic FiOS service, where Netflix says its average prime-time speeds dropped by 14% last month. The slowdown comes as Netflix is rolling out the new season of its Emmy-winning series "House of Cards."

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

That wailing sound you hear is from the slashdot commentariat.

[Wandering Texan]

Odd, I'm still not having a problem streaming Netflix on the aformentioned service.

Still, I gotta side with VZ here. Netflix is dumping a fuck-ton of data into the mix, and while "tubez" is still a good reference joke, there is a maximum amount of data a particular link can carry.

[UnCivilServant]

I can tell when my neighbors are online and streaming because my throughput goes down. It's usually in the evening on weekdays.

[Invisible Finger]

Back in the very early days of broadband, the knock on cable companies was that their throughput wasn't guaranteed and speeds would be affected when lots of users were on.

But since people didn't adopt broadband all at once, no one noticed the slow degradation of the throughput,until they actually started USING the alleged broad bandwidth.

Still, Comcast et al are lying sacks of shit. Every month they try to sell my company "business class" internet service because it is "such a savings over AT&T". But they still can;t offer an SLA or any throughput guarantee, whereas AT&T not only offers those things, they often tell us of a barely-noticeable 10% drop in throughput before anyone notices.

It's only a matter of time before NFLX starts buying bandwidth providers.

[Rich]

Sebelius Excuses Sloppy Spanish Obamacare Website: 'Terminology in Insurance Is Pretty Arcane'

Emphasis added. I suppose that's why ol' Kathleen keeps fucking up.

She truly is shameless.

[John]

The very same people who sold this thing as the culmination of a 70 year project and Obama's signature achievement, now act as if they had no idea this was going to be such a big deal.

Pretty much daily someone connected with this admits they don't know anything about health care or insurance. They were all political hacks who thought mouthing talking points and saying various buzz words made them experts. It is Ezra Kleins all around

[Auric Demonocles]

All you had to do was tell the big mean insurance companies they had to cover everyone, and the rest would all take care of itself!

[John]

Exactly. They are people who have no experience doing anything other than talking. That is it. Sibileus is fifty or sixty years old and she has never once in her life tried to make anything work and is now shocked that competence really doesn't have anything to do with ideology.

[Invisible Finger]

Add in a lot of lawyers who think they are experts in systems analysis of every industry because they know how to do legal analysis. The most simple-minded system analysis I've ever heard comes from lawyers, without exception.

[John]

Lawyers are a menace to have on a staff. I say this as a lawyer. The problem with lawyers is they are just smart enough and have just enough time to learn just enough to be dangerous. Worse still, they are trained to make bad arguments look good. Combine that skill with a little bit of knowledge and a forceful personality and you have a walking talking machine designed to convince people stupid and simplistic ideas are the right ones. Sadly, a lot of people want to listen to the lawyer because doing so is an easy way to relieve themselves of responsibility. If things go wrong, they can just say "the lawyer told us we had to do it this way".

The role of lawyers in advising clients has gotten totally out of kilter. The lawyer's job is to keep you out of jail and give you the left and right bounds of what you can do. What is done between those bounds is up to the people hired to do the job, not the lawyer. The lawyer advises you not decides for you. Sadly, we seem to forget that a lot.

[Andrew S.]

Why does she still have a job? Heck, you'd think that at least Obama would've fired her or there would've been a "resignation" to allow him to save face and deflect blame.

[Rich]

Serious question: Has he ever fired anyone other than a General or two?

[John]

No. And he won't. Every person in his cabinet probably knows something damaging. So he can't fire them. I doubt he wants Sibeleus out of government and no longer under the protection of executive privilege so congress can put her under oath about the IRS scandal and a lot of other things.

[gaijin]

Sebelius Excuses Sloppy Spanish Obamacare Website: 'Terminology in Insurance Is Pretty Arcane'

If only she'd had the website typed in all caps...and with spaces between the letters so that it would be read slowly.

[Nephilium]

Here it is... the ultimate in grievance studies:

Racial and gender gap in e-sports

[John]

Is that talking about video games?

[Auric Demonocles]

I'm not sure, I got distracted by the "More from" links at the end.

[John]

Yeah, who wouldn't think a story about a cute three legged dog is more interesting than this?

[Auric Demonocles]

Ah, it appears that the ones that appear are random. Let's just say that I got a row of particularly... focused articles. (EJ Dickson, you scoundrel!)

[John]

I am apparently surfing the wrong sites.

[Auric Demonocles]

Try refreshing a couple of times.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

There shall be no entertainment that is equitably appreciated.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

not equitably appreciated dammit

[SugarFree]

The article makes much hay out of the hoary "50% of video games players are women" red herring. To get to 50%, you have to count every middle-aged women playing Farmville or Candy Crush on Facebook the same as a guy on COD or Madden or Skyrim. They are fundamentally different markets.

That the former doesn't want to watch the latter play video games (esports) is neither a crisis in gaming or some travesty of gender discrimination.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

You sound patriarchical

[SugarFree]

I do have a beard, so...

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

What's her name?

[SugarFree]

Nancy.

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

Isn't she a little old for you?

[SugarFree]

I like 'em dusty.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Nice to meet you!

[Auric Demonocles]

Nothing screams racist and sexist like a scenario where what you are watching has no connection to the race or sex of the player.

[UnCivilServant]

Clearly the Zerg Rush is symbolic of the rape culture somehow.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Nicely done!

[John]

That 50% figure is like saying that Ferrari should cater more to women because 50% of cars are bought by women.

The willingness to pass the time at your kid's baseball game on a free app is not the same as the willingness to spend hundreds of dollars and thousands of ours online playing WoW or whatever.

I really think they are being truthful though. I think that they think that 50% figure means something. They are really just that stupid and can't make the logical distinction I make above.

[Clich? Bandit]

I wish I still played WoW. I miss it.

[lap83]

Actually, from a marketing standpoint it makes perfect sense to advertise to any demographic that is willing to spend the money, even if they are just passing the time. Some of those popular mobile games are raking in the dough.

What doesn't make sense is why anyone besides marketers or game developers gives a shit about who is buying the games. I can't for the life of me understand why it's some kind of deep moral issue.

[waffles]

It's absolutely appalling that a game designed for geeky teenage males is competitively played by geeky teenage males. Is it also unfair that the Asian teams completely dominate?

[SugarFree]

I think it is to the credit of women that they don't want to watch other people play video games. By all the Gods below that sounds ultraboring.

[waffles]

I'm ashamed to admit this, but I've played league of legends enough to become competitive at it. Watching a match between two highly skilled teams gives me the vicarious thrill of playing at that level without the horrifying timesink.

[Auric Demonocles]

I've had fun watching friends play games sometimes (most recently I hung out at a friends while she played Zelda), but I can't imagine watching someone play if I don't know them and can't talk to them.

[mr simple]

From the same site:
Where are the women in 'Star Wars: Rebels'?

While it's been known for sometime that there will be two female leads as part of the ensemble cast...

The complaint is they're not releasing the character info or action figures fast enough, so SEXISM!

[Rufus J. Firefly]

My left-wing sister just announced she's volunteering for the Liberal party. She's drinking the fricken Justin Trudeau kool-aid.

Like the media narrative down south sentimentally and emotionally succeeded in creating an image of Obama being 'the smartest man in the room' and a man who will 'transform' America, the Canadian media led by the CBC attempt to do the same with Justin Trudeau.

And people will eat it up like a porn star drinks cum.

Derp.

[John]

So Canada has idiot commie sons just like America does. Sorry to see you guys follow our lead on that one.

[neoteny]

If Obama had a son with an albino woman, he would look like Justin Trudeau.

[Lord Humungus]

being on the slow Netflix DVD train, tonight I finally get to watch Game of Thrones season 3. I kind of forgot what the hell is going on.

[UnCivilServant]

A lot of people died.

Others misplaced their clothes.

Take a drink for each severed head.

[Mickey Rat]

I am not sure even Humungous has that kind of capacity.

[Tim]

Those fucking Karstarks.

[Andrew S.]

On another topic, the first trailer for Guardians of the Galaxy is spectacular. Bradley Cooper as a raccoon and Vin Diesel as a tree. John C. Reilly as a Space FBI agent. And it has Zoe Saldana. What's not to like? Nothing. There's nothing not to like about that. It's all awesome.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Hmmmph...it doesn't look like a CW network production!

Actually, that was quite fun for a trailer. I think I'm sold.

[Tim]

Looked good to me. So sick of deadly serious Batman, deadly serious Superman.

[Mickey Rat]

"...Vin Diesel as a tree."

Playing to his strengths, then?

[MJGreen]

AND Karen Gillan, though she's bald. And Peter Serafinowicz as the other FBI agent. Pretty stoked.

[Lord Humungus]

for the audio geeks, I've been busy writing output tube reviews:

Shuguang KT88
http://6streetbridge.blogspot......trode.html

The Reflektor 6P3S-E (aka Sovtek 5881)
http://6streetbridge.blogspot......power.html

[Lord Humungus]

oh and the Valve Art 350B
http://6streetbridge.blogspot......ntode.html

[Rich]

Chinese fraudster fakes superhuman powers to rob victims

"Chinese"? Don't you mean *Hawaiian*?

[John]

http://online.wsj.com/news/art.....32558.html

England's descent into third world status continues. They cannot even do proper flood control anyone. But the floods are the result of "climate change" not a commitment to the environmental cult that prevented them from doing proper dredging.

[UnCivilServant]

Isn't it also somerset? You know, a marsh known for summer flooding before the romans showed up and did some environmental engineering?

[John]

Yes. Amazing, living over an old swamp requires periodic dredging. In fairness, we have only known about that since the time of the first cities in Sumaria. But maybe the Brits didn't get that message.

[Invisible Finger]

The Romans used slaves, very cheap labor. The Brits use unions, the most expensive labor.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Dear Europe! Now we are at war.

Don't be afraid to call it war. It is not a conflict between east and west, Russians and Ukrainians, for or against EU. It is a war for our rights to be treated as human beings and not slaves. Do you remember what "slaves" means? We do. Leave your panic aside. We are fed up with your sanctions. We can't devour them anymore. Our gas, blood, and riots is the vomit of your invisible sanctions.
You are too cozy, dear old Europe. Too wrinkled. Too immobile. You forgot what freedom is ? freedom as an opposition to slavery. Perhaps, because you are too old.

http://maidantranslations.word.....re-at-war/

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Yeowch - that is leaving a mark.

[BigT]

Bret Easton Ellis: You have to understand that I'm coming to these things as a member of the most pessimistic and ironic generation that has ever roamed the earth. When I hear millennials getting hurt by "cyber bullying," or it being a gateway to suicide, it's difficult for me to process. A little less so for my boyfriend, who happens to be a millennial of that age, but even he somewhat agrees with the sensitivity of Generation Wuss. It's very difficult for them to take criticism, and because of that a lot of the content produced is kind of shitty. And when someone is criticized for their content, they seem to collapse, or the person criticizing them is called a hater, a contrarian, a troll.

[SugarFree]

I read the whole thing. I don't disagree with Ellis, but I think he underestimates the effect of the internet. I'm not sure if more people are whining as much as their whining is so much louder and they have been able to connect up with other whiners to form co-dependent internet soapboxes.

I am intrigued with the idea of him writing a TV series set in late-60s LA.

[John]

There is definitely a selection bias in the internet. The people who don't whine don't bother to post about not whining.

But I think there is something to the idea that middle and upper class kids from this generation have been so sheltered by their parents growing up they have been left without the skills necessary to handle adversity and don't know how to do anything in the face of it except whine.

[SugarFree]

Admittedly it is a small sample, but I employ or oversee a couple dozen millennials at any given time (and a total of a couple of hundred over the last 12 years) and I just don't see the dire things people keep predicting. They could be a little tougher, sure, but they aren't the paralyzed wimps the media makes them out to be.

I willing to think the problem could be worse on the coasts--the only parts of the country the media pays attention to--but most all I see are fairly hard-working kids who are smart and considerate.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

I think we need to be careful as to not fall into the 'in my generation' trap.

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

The soldiers I lead or served with that were "Millenials" seemed to hold up OK - of course the selection process would preclude the thumb sucker types, I suppose.

[Wandering Texan]

Had a few sailors in recent years that see the service as an easy job and college money.

It is so much fun to break that image.

[Brett L]

My millennial protege (I hate the word mentee as the student of a mentor.) is just lazy. So I try to make it worse on him when he fails to take initiative than when he takes independent action wrongly. I don't think this is a millennial trait. I had any number of Gen X peers who were equally lazy or even more so. I do think a lack of summer job experience has made what I consider the most basic level of initiative -- ask a question if you don't understand rather than do what you don't understand wrong -- no longer a near guarantee. I'm pretty sure having to restock entire shelves at the grocery store because I didn't ask the manager to articulate trained that into me before I got my first "real" job.

[RBS]

I saw this a lot in law school. If a professor ever changed a due date or an exam format, holy shit.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

This.

It used to amaze me how students reacted to a change. It was sad.

[Redmanfms]

College students have been whiny fucktards since forever.

Surprise, Millenial college students conform to college students being whiny fucktards.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

And when someone is criticized for their content, they seem to collapse, or the person criticizing them is called a hater, a contrarian, a troll.

I had no idea there were so many millenials on H+R.

[UnCivilServant]

Define "Millenial"

[Certified Public Asskicker]

The teachers union in New York City is now pushing for "back pay" because it believes teachers deserved a raise a long time ago. What could anyone who comes up with that kind of logic actually teach?

Of course they are underpaid! I have been told even if they are paid $8 an hour to babysit 30 kids, why that's 8*6.5*30*180...$280,800!

[Elspeth Flashman]

CNN and Above the Law posted it yesterday, I don't know if it was repeated here, but George Zimmerman plans to become an attorney now.

[John]

Good for him.

[RBS]

That should be an interesting application to read.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

The only ambulances he will chase will be those driven by young black males.

[John]

Watch him take his coming large settlement from NBC, go to law school, and become a crusading defense attorney for the poor.

[Andrew S.]

Well, there goes any support I may have once had for the man.

[RBS]

GZ Law School

I wonder school will take him?

[Brett L]

The school will. It'll be interesting to see if the Bar lets him sit for the exam.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

No!

Money down!

[The Late P Brooks]

Like the media narrative down south sentimentally and emotionally succeeded in creating an image of Obama being 'the smartest man in the room' and a man who will 'transform' America, the Canadian media led by the CBC attempt to do the same with Justin Trudeau.

But does he have a hot wife who flashes her beave in fancy restaurants?

Get to the good part.

[waffles]

Trolling makes you stupid.

We'll does it?

I think getting myself at all emotionally worked up about anything I read on this site leads to diminished enjoyment of other aspects of my life. I guess when you notice this, it's time to take a break.

[Lord Humungus]

so has Shreek reached peak derp yet?

[Mike M.]

Weigel hit peak derp back when he blew open the entire JournoList by behaving like the scumbag that he is (most people there couldn't stand him either).

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Peak Derp - approachable, but never attained. He and Tony are locked in a struggle to see who will get there first, or at least closest...

[Clich? Bandit]

Zeno's Peak Derp Paradox.

[Redmanfms]

Forever closing the half distance...

[Rich]

[New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio] is calling on the TLC [sic] to explore automated technology solutions like pausing the meter if the [taxi] driver exceeds the speed limit

"To the airport! And step on it!"

Hey, anyone else think "de Blasio" sounds like a dog's name?

"Mom, de Blasio crapped on the neighbor's porch again!"

[UnCivilServant]

Except, in NYC, the regs say a trip to the airportJFK is always $50, not a metered run.

(I almost forgot about laGuardia)

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Because private road owners would never try to keep people from speeding on their roads...

[sarcasmic]

Keep flogging those straw men.

[Fluffy]

That will create incredible road hazards for the taxi driver, their occupant, and everyone else around them.

I made the mistake of renting a Ryder truck with a speed governor on it once.

I am still surprised that I didn't kill at least a dozen people on the New Jersey turnpike.

It's simply not safe to have a vehicle on the road that cannot exceed the speed limit, if only briefly.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Not even remotely the same situation. The cabs would still be able to exceed the speed limit, it's just that the meter would stop recording distance for that time. If it's only a brief overage, the effect would be minimal even there.

[Fluffy]

It's technically safer than having the engine simply fail based on the speedometer, but still unsafe.

The simple problem (as often comes up in discussion of speed cameras) is that all speed limits, everywhere, are set too low.

Speed limits are what they are based on political considerations and bear no relationship to actual safety.

The situation is made somewhat tolerable by the fact that speed limits can't be enforced. There's a balance between the unreasonableness of the rule(s) and the difficulty of enforcement, and the equilibrium point where everyone drives X above the speed limit works out fairly well most of the time.

That balance is destroyed by improvements in enforcement. It's destroyed in an unsafe way if you improve enforcement for a limited subset of drivers only.

It would be bad enough if you suddenly ratcheted all drivers down to the posted speed limit everywhere. Then at least very rapidly everyone would discover at once that pretty much all speed limits needed to be changed. Ratcheting some drivers down but not others is pretty much the worst of all possible worlds.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

The drivers who are affected by this are some of the biggest rent-seekers in NYC, so watch me not care about their plight.

Speed limits are what they are based on political considerations and bear no relationship to actual safety.

That's true in a lot of cases on the highways, but residential area speed limits are usually reasonable.

[Fluffy]

That's true in a lot of cases on the highways, but residential area speed limits are usually reasonable.

I would argue that it's the reverse.

A 15 MPH speed limit is never reasonable. I don't care if you're a school for blind retard sprinters, there's no need for traffic going by to go 15.

A 30 MPH speed limit is never reasonable on flat terrain without switchback curves.

The residential speed limits are the worst of all, because they are set according to what is desired by people who aren't even on the road. "The lower I can get them to set the speed limit on my street, the happier my realtor will be."

[Roger the Shrubber]

When you first wrote Speed limits are what they are based on political considerations and bear no relationship to actual safety. I figured that you must mean that the speed limits could be raised without effecting safety but existing statutes and engineering criteria prevent it. But is seems that your under the impression that comminity groups could petition their local government to arbitrarily lower speed limits.

I can only speak for my state, and only for the roads regulated by them, but this is not the case. Engineering criteria determine the posted speed limit. Communities can petition the DOT to request a lowering of the speed limit, but it wont occur unless the criteria are met. It is possible that new development has occurred that would justify a lowering of the speed limit, but it is not a political matter.

Any political body would have to be responsive to both the drivers and the street's residents, so I don't know why you would think that the residents have some undue influence.

You can rightfully argue that the engineering criteria used to set speed limits are to strict, but your incorrect to think that politics plays a role on the posted speed limit on a particular road.

[Tim]

So peeps won't just pay cash for a little extra speed?

[SugarFree]

People truly interested in getting somewhere quickly will just strike a deal to pay for the meter lost to speeding plus a suitable tip.

[Rich]

"To be fair", de Blasio also wants governors on the cabs, as folks above have alluded.

[SugarFree]

To truly do something about pedestrian deaths, you'd have to install a kill switch for cellphones once they got within two feet of the curb.

[Pelosi's Bushweave]

Hey, anyone else think "de Blasio" sounds like a dog's name?

Ehh, I think it sounds more like the name of someone who would be enemies/antagonists of the SweatHogs.

[Fluffy]

Russia's actually going down here.

They aren't going to come back.

Will any building in Sochi be left standing?

[John]

To Norway? Holy shit. Are there going to be any Russian NHL players on the team who make it back to the US alive?

[Fluffy]

It's Finland.

A colleague popped his head in when he saw I was watching the stream and suggested perhaps Russia would simply invade and annex Finland again, merge their teams, and take their place in the medal round.

[Rich]

"Russia triumphs in strategic Finnish"

[John]

That didn't go so well the last time they tried it. I bet it wouldn't go any better this time. The Fins are a tough breed. You really don't want to fuck with them on their home soil. There is a lot of big, cold forests up there and the Fins are basically still pagans who know how to live in them.

[Tim]

Sisu.

[Mickey Rat]

There's a reason Scandinavians are really good at the Biathlon.

[robc]

Finns arent Scandinavian. Well, accept the 5% of swedish descent or whatever.

[Mickey Rat]

I accept the correction, I was trying to group them into the countries on the north side of the Baltic.

[Auric Demonocles]

Goooo Rask!

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Russia can't play as a team for shit. And the coaching leaves much to be desired. Finland are a tight, tenacious unit. Canada needed OT to beat them.

[Citizen Nothing]

They shoulda' started Bob.

[Mickey Rat]

Stick a fork in the Russian Hockey team. They are done.

[Fluffy]

Shocking.

You know who's the happiest guy in Russia right now?

Whoever was responsible for the ring opening failure in the Opening Ceremony.

Everyone in Russia just forgot that guy.

Who bets they blame this on the disallowed goal against the US? "The US took our rightful spot in the draw!" etc. etc.

[John]

I don't think so. They are going to blame it on the team and the players. This is like the US basketball team losing in the Olympics. The players will seen as loser prima donnas who were just interested in getting back to earning a paycheck.

[Mickey Rat]

The announcers in the game yesterday mentioned that there was a rift between their European leagues players and their NHL players. Probably for these types of reasons.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

If they do, they're losers for real because the team had waaayyy bigger problems than a properly disallowed goal.

[grrizzly]

The ring opening failure was universally considered a minor issue not worthy of much reflection in Russia.

[NoVAHockey]

NOvechkin!

[Swiss Servator, mehr K?se!]

Add another FAIL to his resume.

[Mike M.]

Mike Milbury is right; the guy is a lazy stat padder.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Milbury is an idiot. Just like Melrose.

[Libertymike]

Aren't you afraid that he will slap you upside your head with your shoe?

[Rufus J. Firefly]

No.

I played hockey too and have the scars and root canal to prove it.

[Fluffy]

Milbury went from being a solid defenseman to being the worst NHL exec of all time.

He's just waiting for Cherry to die so he can take over the title of worst color guy working.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Excuse me?

You can't compare Milbury to Cherry on any level. Cherry actually makes valid and cogent points. Cherry knows his shit and Canadians know it that's why he's popular.

Milbury is a cheap knock off.

[Mickey Rat]

Cherry can be entertaining in his ranting, Milbury just looks smug.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

It's hard to feel for the Russians. Ever see them at the World jrs after a win? They're taunters.

Canadians and Americans can be bad, but they don't pull the crap Kovalchuk, Ovechkin and that kid from the last tournament pulled over the years.

[Elspeth Flashman]

NSA and Homeland Security settle lawsuit over parody of logos.

http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2014/.....ody-logos/

The National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security acknowledged in a settlement made public Tuesday that they were wrong to ban a leading custom-merchandise retailer from selling t-shirts, mugs, and posters that poked fun at the agencies.

The agreement puts to rest a First Amendment lawsuit against the federal government brought last year by a t-shirt designer, Dan McCall, who hawked merchandise on Zazzle.com that parodied the official seal of the NSA with jokes referencing the spy program disclosures. Another design imprinted on mugs featured a look-alike Homeland Security logo for a "Department of Homeland Stupidity."

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

I have the NSA version. It's my new favorite shirt.

[Rich]

As part of the settlement, the NSA agreed to write another letter to Zazzle acknowledging that Mr. McCall's images were intended as parody and "should not have been viewed as conveying the impression that the designs were approved, endorsed, or authorized by NSA."

As another part of the settlement, the NSA agreed to comprehensively monitor Zazzle and McCall and to have the FBI hound them to their graves.

[UnCivilServant]

Why is it the raft of parody logos all look better than the official logos?

[Rich]

Remember the discussion about the spooky octopus in the IRS logo?

[John]

http://thehill.com/blogs/ballo.....od-a-bimbo

Former Dem Congress Critter calls Dem woman who defeated him a "bimbo".

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

It was Gloria Negrete McLeod of Clan McLeod.

[gaijin]

IN elections, there can be only ONE!

[Root Boy]

Semper Fi!

Daughter of Marines in SI swimsuit issue:

http://www.reuters.com/article.....CW20140218

And, since the douchebags at Reuters do not include a photo (for you single guys of course - and she likes to shoot):

http://www.bing.com/images/sea.....&FORM=IGRE

[John]

She is a bit thin, but works for me, especially the shooting part.

[Fluffy]

Yes, the women's biathlon has definitely sold me on the whole concept of "girl who cross country skis and shoots".

Gabriela Soukalova - whoa.

[SugarFree]

Holy moley!

[Killaz]

I can look all I want, it's the 'no touchy' that's stated in the contract.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

I found out about the vote in the House raising the debt ceiling while reading the Washington Post website that night. It had a graphic showing the '42 times in recent history the debt ceiling had been raised. I thought, well, that is great, it will show people that we have indeed been on a sort of coked up spending on credit binge. But after looking at it, it dawned on me that what they were aiming for is to convey to the reader that, hey, this has been done so many times it should be done now with no fuss. I do not think anything could be more representative of the gulf between me and leftists these days.

[John]

As long as there is still checks in the checkbook...

[Bo Cara Esq.]

It really is an amazing thing.

I see someone who has 'raised their credit limit 42 times recently' and I think, this fellow is out of control, the last thing he should do is go for 43. But they see 'hey, this has been done lots of times, what kind of nut would buck the 43 time?'

That is not some minor policy disagreement, that is a fundamentally different view of reality and the world.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

The argument they're making is that this is something the GOP did too, so they're hypocrites for being against it now. Which is true (and BO is a hypocrite too since he opposed it in 2005), but irrelevant.

[Bo Cara Esq.]

That is like saying that if the spouse of someone who has 'raised their credit limit' 42 times recently happily went along with it those times but finally comes to her senses and says 'this is madness, we can not do it a 43rd time' then she is somehow a 'hypocrite.' It is crazy.

[Libertymike]

Indeed.

[Rich]

That is not some minor policy disagreement, that is a fundamentally different view of reality and the world.

This can not be over-emphasized.

[waffles]

That you worry at all about deficit spending is merely a symptom of your false consciousness.

[DEG]

Seen while perusing CNN:

North Korean ski resort

No information about Kim Jong-Un's skiing "prowess".

[Scruffy Nerfherder]

You couldn't pay me enough to ride a North Korean ski lift.

[DEG]

Wise move. I don't ski, so it's not something I worry about.

[mad libertarian guy]

Traffic police in Somalia are struggling to impose rules on Somali drivers, who are used to roads but not governments.

Unpossible. I've been assured that, as a libertarian paradise, Somalia has no roads.

[Tulpa (LAOL-VA)]

Somalia had a government before 1992, and the roads didn't immediately evaporate when it fell.

[Libertymike]

Needs more sarcastic statist obsequiousness.

[UnCivilServant]

Judging by the frequency of DOT work, government made roads biodegrade within months if not constantly replaced. Therefore, there were no roads as of 1993.

[Bubba Jones]

I wonder what VW learned from this event.

[UnCivilServant]

Don't make cars in America.

[Sevo]

Do NOT invite Moonbeam and Lt. Guv Newsom to the same party:

"Newsom opposes high-speed rail - other Dems to follow?"
[...]
In California, where Democrats and Republicans don't agree on much, the emergence of Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom as the state's highest-ranking Democrat to pull his support for Gov. Jerry Brown's high-speed rail project is being closely watched as the possible harbinger of political change.'

The guy's always been good at weather-vaning to the public opinion.
http://www.sfgate.com/default/.....246249.php

[The Late P Brooks]

The simple problem (as often comes up in discussion of speed cameras) is that all speed limits, everywhere, are set too low.

Speed limits are what they are based on political considerations and bear no relationship to actual safety.

The situation is made somewhat tolerable by the fact that speed limits can't be enforced. There's a balance between the unreasonableness of the rule(s) and the difficulty of enforcement, and the equilibrium point where everyone drives X above the speed limit works out fairly well most of the time.

And we now see the NHTSA (among others) beating the gong for "smart" cars which can communicate with each other, because IT WILL REDUCE ACCIDENTS. And, as we all know, in the mind of government traffic safety experts, the single biggest cause of traffic accidents is excessive speed.

Having hacked my way through a lot of heavy traffic over the years, I can say a car which arbitrarily decided on its own initiative whether or not to accept my steering, throttle, and braking inputs would have killed me many many times by now.

And, of course, a car which can communicate with the cars around it can also communicate with the speed limit signs. Presto! You gotta governor, he gotta governor, all god's chilluns gotta governor!

[Invisible Finger]

But can it communicate with the potholes?

At least we'll all be accelerating at the rate of the heaviest 53' semi on the road.

[Kaptious Kristen]

So I'm late. I was distracted by my discovery of Norwegian men's curling.

[Tonio]

To follow up on the fine comments posted in yesterday's PM links about NPR's reporting on the Anti-Cartel Citizens' Militias in Mexico - you guys missed the reporter's description of government troops armed with "automatic machineguns."

[prolefeed]

The report also found a wage hike would lift 900,000 people out of poverty.

There are words to describe a government report alleging that government prohibiting certain voluntary employer-employee contracts might cause 900,000 people who are currently earning slightly below an arbitrary government figure to earn slightly above that arbitrary figure, while causing perhaps the same number of people to have their wages plummet to zero ... but "lifting people out of poverty" would not be the words I would use to describe that fiasco.