Reason.com - Free Minds and Free Markets
Reason logo Reason logo
  • Latest
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Archives
    • Subscribe
    • Crossword
  • Video
  • Podcasts
    • All Shows
    • The Reason Roundtable
    • The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie
    • The Soho Forum Debates
    • Just Asking Questions
    • The Best of Reason Magazine
    • Why We Can't Have Nice Things
  • Volokh
  • Newsletters
  • Donate
    • Donate Online
    • Donate Crypto
    • Ways To Give To Reason Foundation
    • Torchbearer Society
    • Planned Giving
  • Subscribe
    • Reason Plus Subscription
    • Print Subscription
    • Gift Subscriptions
    • Subscriber Support

Login Form

Create new account
Forgot password

A.M. Links: Ferguson Protests Continue, Hong Kong Protest Crackdown, EU Opens Anti-Piracy Base in Mogadishu

Ed Krayewski | 11.26.2014 9:00 AM

Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL
Media Contact & Reprint Requests
Large image on homepages | CNN
(CNN)
  • Joshua Wong
    CNN

    Protests in Ferguson, Missouri continued for a second night over the grand jury decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting of Michael Brown.

  • Police in Hong Kong arrested a top student protest leader and cleared a protest site as anti-government demonstrations continue for a second month.
  • A federal judge overturned gay marriage bans in Arkansas and Mississippi.
  • The European Union is opening an anti-piracy base in Mogadishu.
  • Sony will issue partial refunds to resolve Federal Trade Commission charges over deceptive advertising for the PS Vita.
  • The Seattle Seahawks' Richard Sherman and Doug Baldwin held a press conference to criticize the NFL for fining Marshawn Lynch $100,000 for not speaking to the media.

Follow Reason on Twitter, and like us on Facebook. You can also get the top stories mailed to you—sign up here. 

Start your day with Reason. Get a daily brief of the most important stories and trends every weekday morning when you subscribe to Reason Roundup.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

NEXT: National Guard Steps Up Role in Ferguson

Ed Krayewski is a former associate editor at Reason.

Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL
Media Contact & Reprint Requests

Hide Comments (330)

Editor's Note: As of February 29, 2024, commenting privileges on reason.com posts are limited to Reason Plus subscribers. Past commenters are grandfathered in for a temporary period. Subscribe here to preserve your ability to comment. Your Reason Plus subscription also gives you an ad-free version of reason.com, along with full access to the digital edition and archives of Reason magazine. We request that comments be civil and on-topic. We do not moderate or assume any responsibility for comments, which are owned by the readers who post them. Comments do not represent the views of reason.com or Reason Foundation. We reserve the right to delete any comment and ban commenters for any reason at any time. Comments may only be edited within 5 minutes of posting. Report abuses.

  1. Fist of Etiquette   10 years ago

    Sony will issue partial refunds to resolve Federal Trade Commission charges over deceptive advertising for the PS Vita.

    And charge them for rape.

    1. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

      Hello.

  2. Fist of Etiquette   10 years ago

    Protests in Ferguson, Missouri continued for a second night over the grand jury decision not to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting of Michael Brown.

    I'm beginning to suspect this rioting protesting will be counterproductive.

    1. gaijin   10 years ago

      Unrest, Fist, unrest.

      1. Clich? Bandit   10 years ago

        Of course it is unrest, they were up all night.

        *rimshot*

        1. Fist of Etiquette   10 years ago

          You know who else had to deal with Unruhe?

          1. gaijin   10 years ago

            St Vitus?

          2. Charles Easterly   10 years ago

            "You know who else had to deal with Unruhe?"

            Agent Mulder?

            1. Fist of Etiquette   10 years ago

              Well, I was thinking more Scully.

              1. Charles Easterly   10 years ago

                Great picture of Gillian Anderson:

                http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000096/

    2. Rich   10 years ago

      Just wait'll Brown's stepfather gets indicted for inciting a riot.

    3. Doctor Whom   10 years ago

      Salaam alaikum.

      People in my social-media feeds have already informed me that it's RACIST!!! even to consider that possibility.

      1. RBS   10 years ago

        If your concerns about violence are limited to property damage and looting, and you have never shed two tears for the history of institutional violence, murder, colonialism, segregation, lynching, genocide and police brutality against peoples of color, your words mean nothing; they mean less than nothing. Your outrage, in such a case is grotesque, an inversion of morality so putrescent as to call into question your capacity for real feeling at all. So long as violence from below is condemned while violence from above is ignored, you can bet that the former will continue--and however unfortunate that may be, it is surely predictable. If you'd like the former to cease, put an end to the latter, and then I promise you, it will.

        1. RBS   10 years ago

          and

          Agree. But most white folks do not understand history, and their white privilege lets them remain blind - so they see this current behavior with no context and draw their conclusions.

          1. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

            White privilege? Don't forget Nonwhite Immigrant Shopkeeper Privilege. And Car-Owner privilege.

            1. RBS   10 years ago

              Yeah, I've been trying to figure out which typical reaction is the most obnoxious: 1) the full on racism of the "thugs and animals" crowd 2) the "civil rights" race baiters 3) the cop fellators or 4) the SJW white guilt.

              1. Atanarjuat   10 years ago

                I don't know about *most* obnoxious, but a friend changed his FB picture to this, which seems a bit overwrought.

                Actually, I'm sure the overt racists are most obnoxious. The rioters probably have a bunch of legitimate beefs from cops acting like a more cowardly samurai class that contribute to their pent-up anger.

            2. Doctor Whom   10 years ago

              A progressive acquaintance has actually said that concern over shopkeepers is racist. Stop the world; I want to get off.

              1. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

                Well, he is, almost by definition, bourgeois.

                1. Free Society   10 years ago

                  SJW: "Let's just do something about the Kulaks already."

        2. Zeb   10 years ago

          So what are they saying? It's OK to commit violence against completely innocent people as long as your are outraged at the right things? Two wrongs make a right?

          I suppose there are a fair number of assholes out there for whom the police can do no wrong. Perhaps some of the comment is appropriate directed at them.

          At the risk of being some sort of racist, I'd also like to point out to this person that "peoples of color" have committed a whole lot more genocide against each other than white people have against them. White people seem to for the most part prefer to genocide other kinds of white people.

          1. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

            They're saying that as a member of the bourgeoisie, the shopkeeper is part of the problem. A problem that they intend to eliminate.

          2. RBS   10 years ago

            Sorry Zeb, your white privilege is blinding you.

          3. PM   10 years ago

            So what are they saying? It's OK to commit violence against completely innocent people as long as your are outraged at the right things? Two wrongs make a right?

            Did you not see Do The Right Thing?

            1. Zeb   10 years ago

              I actually love that movie. Though I think I might not get exactly the intended message from it.

              1. PM   10 years ago

                Spike Lee's take on it was that human life is more valuable than a pizzeria, and anyone who took issue with the riot and the destruction is a racist who thinks less of black lives than white property. Of course, the artist doesn't determine how the viewer perceives his work.

                Spike Lee has remarked that he himself has only ever been asked by white viewers whether Mookie did the right thing; black viewers do not ask the question. Lee believes the key point is that Mookie was angry at the death of Radio Raheem, and that viewers who question the riot's justification are implicitly failing to see the difference between property and the life of a black man.

                1. Zeb   10 years ago

                  I wonder if he assumes that black viewers never ask because they all think that the answer is "yes". I would imagine (and hope) that some of the black viewers are sure that he did not do the right thing and don't feel the need to ask Lee.

                  I think it's more complicated than "why are these stupid people burning down their own neighborhoods". The anger and frustration are certainly understandable. But the understandable and possibly sympathetic thing isn't necessarily the right thing. Especially when the effect is basically shooting yourself in the foot. Even if riots are understandable, they never do anyone any good.

                  1. Invisible Finger   10 years ago

                    Riots are never about doing good, they are only ever about revenge. Same as lots of laws and their enforcement.

                    1. Zeb   10 years ago

                      Which is why I don't like laws and punishments that are all about revenge any more than I like riots.

          4. wareagle   10 years ago

            they're not "saying" anything. When someone trots out privilege!!11!!, it's like wearing a big sign that says "ignore me for I have nothing to offer but platitudes and grievance-mongering."

            The reality is that the single greatest threat to the mortality of young black men is other young black men. I'm in with eliminating the drug war as prohibition has a long history of not working. BUT, poverty among blacks took a big tumble during the middle of the last century, before the progs decided to "help" black folk.

            1. Invisible Finger   10 years ago

              poverty among blacks took a big tumble during the middle of the last century, before the progs decided to "help" black folk.

              So then the single greatest threat to young black men is actually government.

          5. Invisible Finger   10 years ago

            So what are they saying? It's OK to commit violence against completely innocent people as long as your are outraged at the right things? Two wrongs make a right?

            The police have been saying that for decades.

    4. antisocial-ist   10 years ago

      Riots on the streets of Miami
      Whoa, riots on the streets of Chicago On the streets of Long Beach
      In San Francisco
      Riots on the streets of Kansas City Tuskaloosa, Alabama
      Cleveland, Ohio
      Fountain Valley,
      Paramount, Victorville
      Eugene, Oregon Eureka, California Hesperia Santa Barbara Winnemucca, Nevada Phoenix, Arizona
      San Diego Lakeland,
      Florida fuckin' 29 Palms

    5. antisocial-ist   10 years ago

      Riots on the streets of Miami
      Whoa, riots on the streets of Chicago On the streets of Long Beach
      In San Francisco
      Riots on the streets of Kansas City Tuskaloosa, Alabama
      Cleveland, Ohio
      Fountain Valley,
      Paramount, Victorville
      Eugene, Oregon Eureka, California Hesperia Santa Barbara Winnemucca, Nevada Phoenix, Arizona
      San Diego Lakeland,
      Florida fuckin' 29 Palms

  3. sarcasmic   10 years ago

    'He'd be alive if he just followed orders': Defiant cop Darren Wilson says he was 'doing his job right' when he shot dead Michael Brown - and he would do it again

    Ferguson, Missouri Police Officer Darren Wilson has given his first televised interview since shooting dead black teen Michael Brown last August
    The 28-year-old police officer spoke with ABC's George Stephanopoulos less than 24 hours after a grand jury decided not to indict him on charges
    Wilson detailed the August 9 confrontation with Brown, which ended with the 18-year-old's death
    The grand jury's decision not to indict Wilson sparked riots in Ferguson Monday night
    Angry protesters clashed with police, looted local businesses and set more than a dozen buildings and cars on fire
    In the aftermath of the decision, one of Wilson's family members spoke with MailOnline to say they have received death threats
    The family member, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal, says Wilson is not racist and that he made the right decision to shoot
    Wilson remains on paid leave while police conduct internal investigation

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....-life.html
    Obey. Or die.

    1. This Machine Slips It In   10 years ago

      THE INNOCENT HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR.

    2. wareagle   10 years ago

      he was walking in the road and was asked to get on the sidewalk. What followed is largely on Brown. I get that you hate cops and a lot others here do, too, but what sort of dumbass thinks it's okay to walk in the roadway? Had he or his companion be hit, the cop would have been accused of indifference because the pair was black.

      1. sarcasmic   10 years ago

        What sort of person thinks it's perfectly OK to kill anyone who doesn't obey them?

        1. wareagle   10 years ago

          no one does, but that's not what happened. What sort of person thinks it's okay to be attacked and simply take it?

          Would you feel better if Wilson had phrased it differently, saying "I asked him to get off the road and onto a sidewalk so as to avoid a traffic hazard or accident"?

          1. sarcasmic   10 years ago

            'He'd be alive if he just followed orders'

            1. wareagle   10 years ago

              orders, request, so fucking what? Walking in a traveled roadway is not sharp behavior. Neither is attacking a cop and going for his gun.

              Brown could have hopped onto the sidewalk and bitched about the cop being a dick. At least he would be alive. But no, he had to be the badass against an agent of the state with a license to kill. That always ends well.

              1. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

                Brown could have hopped onto the sidewalk and bitched about the cop being a dick. At least he would be alive.

                Are you certain of that?

                1. wareagle   10 years ago

                  Are you certain of that?

                  unless your argument is that the officer was hell bent on shooting someone that day, I'm fairly certain. Any reason to further interact with Brown would have disappeared.

                  1. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                    One of the most chilling things I ever heard was some drunk cops talking shop at a bar. One was complaining that he'd never had the opportunity to kill someone, and his buddies were consoling him. This was after they traded several stories about choking people. Seems that cops really enjoy choking people. The one who complained about not killing anyone was bragging about holding his gun to a woman's head until she peed herself in terror, and his buddies thought that was hilarious.

                    And people wonder why I view cops with nothing but contempt.

                    1. wareagle   10 years ago

                      And people wonder why I view cops with nothing but contempt.

                      in this case, it appears unjustified. We've seen the baboons with guns narrative played out with pre-dawn raids, burned babies, etc.

                      We'll use your word: Brown was "ordered" not to walk in the middle of the roadway. What followed, based on the evidence, seems exclusively due to Brown's response.

                  2. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

                    unless your argument is that the officer was hell bent on shooting someone that day, I'm fairly certain.

                    The narrative that Wilson was just Superman without his cape on, a paragon of justice and humanity, different than the 99.98 percent of the 'roided-up, hyper-violent baboons that make up his colleagues is just the mirror image of Brown as the innocent 'gentle giant' schoolboy.

                    Any reason to further interact with Brown would have disappeared.

                    That contradicts the latest evidence that an APB was issued after the convenience store robbery that described Brown to a "T" and that Wilson approached Brown on the basis of that APB.

                    1. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                      That contradicts the latest evidence that an APB was issued after the convenience store robbery that described Brown to a "T" and that Wilson approached Brown on the basis of that APB.

                      Yeah, well that part about Wilson approaching him on the basis of the APB is a lie. Wilson said he didn't know anything about the robbery until after he talked with a union lawyer.

                    2. wareagle   10 years ago

                      HM,

                      Wilson saw a guy walking in the road. Maybe he would have questioned Brown about the robbery. I doubt the next step would be summary execution. What is he, Judge Dredd?

                      You're walking IN the street and cop says don't do that. Is your next move to attack him?

                    3. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

                      Maybe he would have questioned Brown about the robbery. I doubt the next step would be summary execution. What is he, Judge Dredd?

                      You're walking IN the street and cop says don't do that. Is your next move to attack him?

                      I don't do things like walking in the street because I explicitly try to limit my interactions with the police as I don't wish to be the cat in a Schrodinger's Psychopath experiment.

                    4. wareagle   10 years ago

                      and I'm with you, HM. But when you are purposely doing things that will spawn an interaction, first don't be surprised when it happens. Second, don't escalate it. But that's me.

              2. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                The common theme among most of these police shootings is a failure to obey. Cop gives an order to a peasant and the peasant doesn't obey. Before long the peasant is dead. The cop feels smugly justified because he is to be obeyed, and anyone who doesn't obey deserves to die.

                We live in a feudal system. Only the costumes have changed.

                1. wareagle   10 years ago

                  The cop feels smugly justified because he is to be obeyed, and anyone who doesn't obey deserves to die.

                  now you're just projecting your sentiments about cops onto all of them. This guy did not leave his house that morning thinking "this will be a good day to kill someone."

                  I've read the stories about cops gone wild here and in other places, but this guy asked a citizen to not walk in traffic. Again, Michael Brown remains someone no one knows had he, too, thought that a good idea.

                  1. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                    This guy did not leave his house that morning thinking "this will be a good day to kill someone."

                    See my 10:23 comment. I have no doubt that there are many cops out there who start their day hoping that it will be the one where they get to kill someone.

                    1. wareagle   10 years ago

                      Nothing that we have seen says this cop was a bonehead. And seriously, a cop tells you not to walk in traffic. You gonna attack him? I doubt it.

                    2. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                      That conversation I overheard wasn't even in a big city. It was in Kennebunkport Maine. If cops in a sleepy town like that are looking for an excuse to kill people, I imagine it must be a lot worse in a big city.

                    3. wareagle   10 years ago

                      sarc,

                      I imagine you're right. I just don't see or haven't seen anything that makes Wilson out to be one of those guys. All I have been saying is that Brown's actions contributed mightily to what followed.

                    4. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                      I just don't see or haven't seen anything that makes Wilson out to be one of those guys.

                      Give him a few drinks and it will come out. En vino veritas. It's part of the culture. If they're not "one of those guys" then they're not welcome on the force.

                    5. wareagle   10 years ago

                      and if that occurs, I will say you were right. As it is, what followed their initial interaction was as needless as can be, and the evidence says it was brought on largely by Brown's behavior. That's not just Wilson, that is also the eyewitness accounts from several black people who have zero reason to lie for a cop.

                  2. Shirley Knott   10 years ago

                    No, perhaps not.
                    But he did leave his house that morning feeling that it would be yet another day to get people to obey.
                    That's really all it takes.

                    1. wareagle   10 years ago

                      fine, Shirley; he thought it would be cool to have Brown "obey" when told to not walk in the middle of the road. If Brown does so, odds of anything else happening decrease dramatically.

                2. Free Society   10 years ago

                  We live in a feudal system. Only the costumes have changed.

                  To equate our current system of government to a feudal system is an insult to feudalism.

      2. Stormy Dragon   10 years ago

        Walking on the roadway is perfectly fine. You're only not allowed on the road if you're obstructing traffic.

        1. wareagle   10 years ago

          so the next step is attack the cop?

          1. Invisible Finger   10 years ago

            The state needs to fear the citizens.

          2. The Whole Truth   10 years ago

            Why are you still posting when you initial premise has been crushed and you look fucking dumb?

            Need to suck cop dick that much?

      3. The Whole Truth   10 years ago

        "the cop would have been accused of indifference because the pair was black."

        This is something that keeps getting repeated and is massively irrefutably stupid.

  4. sarcasmic   10 years ago

    Putin's tiger kills 15 goats in northeast China

    http://news.yahoo.com/putins-t.....05858.html

    1. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      Each of those 15 goats represents a former Soviet republic. Beware!

    2. Brett L   10 years ago

      In one night? My "tiger" has never "killed" more than 3.

      1. Steve G   10 years ago

        what you did there, I see it

    3. Fist of Etiquette   10 years ago

      He's going to have to chain them up in the catacombs and won't be able to take them across the sea to conquer the west.

      NO SPOILERS.

      1. Drake   10 years ago

        You forget that Putin has the horn of Lenin.

      2. Rhywun   10 years ago

        NO SPOILERS.

        Winter is coming?

    4. Steve G   10 years ago

      Imagine what Kim Jong Un's tiger could do then??

  5. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    Frenchman develops pills to make flatulence smell of roses
    65-year-old inventor says he came up with his range of indigestion tablets after he was "nearly suffocated" by the smell of farts

    1. sarcasmic   10 years ago

      dang you

      1. Homple   10 years ago

        Dang him in his general direction.

    2. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

      "You see, my farts really *do* smell like roses!"

      1. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

        Alternate joke: Now when a Frenchman says "I fart in your general direction" it's a *compliment!*

    3. Atanarjuat   10 years ago

      Obama's been taking those for years!

      /shriek

  6. sarcasmic   10 years ago

    Pictured: Menacing approach of 302-pound killer black bear, captured by the 22-year-old hiker it mauled to death minutes later

    Darsh Patel, a student at Rutgers University, was killed in September
    Had been hiking in Apshawa Reserve with four friends and found the bear
    At first they went closer and took these pictures of the beast in the distance
    It then drew closer - and despite attempts to flee it caught and killed Patel

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....later.html

    1. Jordan   10 years ago

      At least the kid wasn't armed.

      /progderp

    2. db   10 years ago

      Did it have the face of a demon?

      1. RBS   10 years ago

        It was behaving aggressively, so officers killed it with two shotgun blasts: one to the shoulder and another to the jaw.

    3. RBS   10 years ago

      At first they went closer

      Well, there is the first mistake.

      1. antisocial-ist   10 years ago

        No, their first mistake was hiking in bear country without at least a .45.

        1. Restoras   10 years ago

          I'm not sure a .45 would cut it against a bear, even a small one.

        2. Zeb   10 years ago

          Black bear attacks are extremely rare and bear country is pretty much everywhere that isn't a dense populated area in the north east. I'm not going to call them stupid for not being armed. Plus, it's New Jersey and it probably would have been illegal.

          1. antisocial-ist   10 years ago

            In that case their first problem was being in New Jersey.

    4. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

      hiking in Apshawa Reserve with four friends

      Obviously, not very good friends.

      1. Homple   10 years ago

        "I only have to run faster than you."

        1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

          It was a 300 lb bear...

          4 (sorry five) men sticking together would have been able to scare off or even if necessary kill the bear using rocks and sticks. These 'friends' left this guy to die.

          1. tarran   10 years ago

            They weren't going to fight the bear. They were likely socialized to flee instead of fight.... like prey.

      2. Doghouse Riley Jr.   10 years ago

        "Patel and his friends turned around when the bear got within 300ft, but it kept following. When it got to within 15 feet, the group split up and fled."

        So, five people who didn't know how to act around large predators, four of whom were lucky. Maybe that commercial where the group decides to hide behind the chainsaws isn't so far fetched after all.

        1. mousefeathers   10 years ago

          Apparently, people think Disney animated films are realistic portrayals of animal behavior.

          (Possibly apocryphal) account of a conversation between a ranger and a tourist in Yellowstone (necessarily paraphrased):

          Ranger: Don't get near the bears. They're dangerous.

          Tourist: Don't be silly. If they were dangerous, you guys would put them in a zoo.

          1. Shirley Knott   10 years ago

            There's video of a man dipping his small child's hand and lower arm in honey so the bear could 'lick it off'.
            The bear bit it off, of course.
            People are idiots. Nature's a bitch. Stupid is stupid.

          2. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

            There's a raccoon out there!

            That's girl's so scared!

            She's scared of the raccoon!

            She's scared of the raccoon!

            She's scared of the raccoon!

        2. Zeb   10 years ago

          In the East, people really don't consider large predators very much at all. Black bears are pretty much it and they almost never attack people (there are some cougars around too, but human encounters with them are ever more rare).

          I'm sure that they could have done better in the situation, but I can't hold it against them. They were just very unlucky to encounter the one bear who decided that hikers might make a nice meal.

          1. Doghouse Riley Jr.   10 years ago

            I guess people don't learn any lessons from nature films: predators go for the prey split off from the herd. If they'd stayed together there's a good chance the bear wouldn't have attacked them at all.

            1. Zeb   10 years ago

              Yeah, if they'd stayed together, picked up some big sticks and made a lot of noise, they probably could have driven the bear off.

  7. Fist of Etiquette   10 years ago

    The European Union is opening an anti-piracy base in Mogadishu.

    Arrrr, matey.

    1. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      The European Parliament, EU and its bureaucracies approve. Funding will be provided by freshly printed money coming out of the European Central Bank.

    2. Pope Jimbo   10 years ago

      What? I thought Somalia was the libertarian homeland. Now you are telling me that they are doing network filtering to stop torrenting of illegal downloads?

      What the fuck is this world coming to?

    3. Steve G   10 years ago

      Well, if the war on drugs is any indication, piracy is about to get a whole lot more lucrative and dangerous.

  8. sarcasmic   10 years ago

    'If Moses lived today, they'd send drones after him': Christian Bale's take on biblical story after he studied it for upcoming film

    Christian Bale plays Moses in upcoming film Exodus: Of Gods and Kings
    Says drones would've been sent for Moses, had been real and alive now
    Said Moses was a Hebrew freedom fighter, but a terrorist to Egyptians

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/new.....-film.html
    First Noah the action hero, now Moses. What's next? Sampson: Bitch set me up!

    1. Doctor Whom   10 years ago

      Obama = Pharaoh? The more I think about it, the more sense that makes.

  9. sarcasmic   10 years ago

    Frenchman develops pills to make flatulence smell of roses
    65-year-old inventor says he came up with his range of indigestion tablets after he was "nearly suffocated" by the smell of farts

    http://www.telegraph.co.uk/new.....roses.html

    1. gaijin   10 years ago

      Frenchman develops pills to make flatulence smell of roses

      His mother was a hamster and his father smelt of elderberries

    2. Brett L   10 years ago

      Great. As if there aren't already enough people who believe their shit don't stink.

    3. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      HEADLINE: Frenchman makes the Dutch Oven a pleasurable experience.

    4. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      HEADLINE: Frenchman makes the Dutch Oven a pleasurable experience.

    5. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      HEADLINE: Frenchman makes the Dutch Oven a pleasurable experience.

      1. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

        I swear to God I posted this comment only once. The squirrels are up to something.

        1. kinnath   10 years ago

          As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly.

          1. Restoras   10 years ago

            They can - the wild variety, at least. They can run fast too.

            1. tarran   10 years ago

              First time I saw a wild turkey fly, I about fell over. The damn thing took off at a 60 degree climb angle and perched on the upper limbs of a very tall tree that I was parked under.

              Then it peered down at me doing its best Snoopy-pretending-to-be-a-vulture impression.

              I actually paused and considered the question of whether I should just postpone my departure from the parking lot. I think I could take it in a fair fight, but it would mess me up with those talons before I snapped its neck, but I remain really reluctant to find out.

              1. Zeb   10 years ago

                Turkeys flying is an awesome and hilarious thing to watch. I get big herds of turkeys through my yard a lot. And I have a stupid cat who thinks he can catch one. Its very amusing to let him out and watch the turkeys flap up into the trees.

                1. DontShootMe   10 years ago

                  It won't be funny if one of the turkeys decides to disembowel your cat.

                  1. robc   10 years ago

                    Yes, it would.

                  2. Zeb   10 years ago

                    It might be a little funny. It seems very unlikely, though. They very rarely get aggressive.

                    1. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                      Males get quite aggressive. My wife used to work at a place where wild turkeys would fill up the parking lot, and was more than once trapped in her car by aggressive males.

                    2. sarcasmic   10 years ago

                      And those spurs they got can do some serious damage.

            2. sarcasmic   10 years ago

              One of the funniest things I ever saw was a wild turkey roosting on top of a telephone pole early in the morning.

          2. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

            A classic for all time.

          3. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

            The turkeys are hitting the ground like wet bags of cement!

            The horror, the horror!

            /One of the funniest moments on TV, ever

        2. Ted S.   10 years ago

          I had to reload three or four times to get the "reply to this" links to show up.

          1. trshmnster the terrible   10 years ago

            I've had better luck when clicking the "remember me" box when I log in.

            1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

              We're trying to "forget you'.

              1. trshmnster the terrible   10 years ago

                You WILL remember me! *rides off into the sunset on a horse*

        3. Pope Jimbo   10 years ago

          They've been weaponized:

          https://i.chzbgr.com/maxW500/8385452288/hCDDDB356/

  10. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

    The European Union is opening an anti-piracy base in Mogadishu.

    Anti-piracy, where you board ships and put additional cargo on them.

    1. DJF   10 years ago

      EU paperwork will stop the pirates

      1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

        "You have to file the correct forms to raid this vessel, and get them countersigned by at least the assistant deputy minister for sustainable maritime agriculture!"

        /EUrocrat

        1. Clich? Bandit   10 years ago

          "The rescuing President form is the blue one."

    2. DontShootMe   10 years ago

      I dunno why, but I found that danged funny. Thanks

  11. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    West Island Man's Toilet Explodes While City Crew Cleans Sewers

    When Robert Pentney awoke to a bad smell filling his Beaconsfield home, he set out to find what was causing the smell. He got his answer when he opened the door to his ground-floor bathroom.

    "It was a disaster. It looked like someone had exploded a bomb in the toilet. The place was covered from ceiling to floor with sewage ? that's feces, you name it. Whatever you find in a city sewer, it came through my powder room and into the hallway of our home. The smell was absolutely horrific," said Pentney.

    Looking for a possible cause for the explosion, Pentney noticed a group of workers running large hoses into the sewers outside.

    1. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

      I worked in Beaconsfield for five years at a trust company. Lovely, wealthy town.

    2. Rich   10 years ago

      The place was covered from ceiling to floor with sewage ? that's feces, you name it.

      SHITE!

    3. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      The unionized sewage workers obviously need more training, but tax cuts for the 1% caused a decrease in the training budget.

    4. trshmnster the terrible   10 years ago

      I wonder if the shit hit the fan.

      1. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

        "....Send lawyers, guns and money...the shit has hit the fan!"

        1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

          +1 KGB Waitress

          1. C. Anacreon   10 years ago

            Dang it UnCivil Servant, I'm going to catch you this time, I've left a couple other posts for you but I think it's always after you've gone.

            We just got the ebook of Shadowboy for my son based on your posts here. I'll let you know how he likes it, and if he does we will get Shadowdemon.

            C dot Anacreon at gmail dot com

            1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

              Well, it does have generally favorable reviews... Quote H&R: "It didn't suck".

              1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

                Oh, Shadowdemon has a bit more profanity than Shadowboy because Walter Arroyo has a hard time talking without dropping an f-bomb. The impression he leaves on the narrator is summed up by the following line:

                "I swear the man was eighty percent bitterness and twenty percent coffee." - Travis Colfax.

        2. C. Anacreon   10 years ago

          +1 excitable boy

    5. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

      I had a toilet blow up one time. Powered by a 210cfm diesel air compressor. It made me proud to see my turd stuck to the ceiling.

  12. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    Woman faces assault charge after Monopoly game gets out of hand

    Alyssa Ferraro, 21, is charged with domestic violence-related simple assault.

    Police said it was 11:59 p.m. Sunday when officers went to 61 Post Road for a reported domestic disturbance.

    Ferraro told officers she got into an argument with her boyfriend over a game of Monopoly and slapped him with an open hand in the face.

    1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

      "You do not put bail money on 'free parking'!"

      1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

        "I wanna be the top hat (or race car)!"

        Cause nobody wants to be the shoe.

    2. db   10 years ago

      Calling the cops when a woman slaps you over a Monopoly game is so unmanly, I can only assume that Pajama Boy has found love.

      1. Brett L   10 years ago

        However, any woman who slaps you full on over a Monopoly argument, is probably one you should not keep. Abusive is abusive.

        1. db   10 years ago

          Definitely there are abusive women, and it's quite possible this guy has had enough and decided to start documenting the events. But why doesn't he just leave her? 😉

          1. Restoras   10 years ago

            Hot make-up sex?

            1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

              You don't stick it in play monopoly with crazy?

            2. C. Anacreon   10 years ago

              Hot make-up sex?

              At first after reading I was thinking the girl was Alyssa Milano, age 21, and my thoughts immediately went to hot make-up sex, that lasted several hours of course.

          2. Brett L   10 years ago

            I agree. The manly thing to do is to leave and never speak to her again if this is a repeat offense.

            1. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

              The manly non-stupid thing to do is to leave

      2. Ted S.   10 years ago

        If a man had slapped a woman over a Monopoly game, it would have been TEH PATRIARCHY committing its culture of violence against women.

    3. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

      She slapped him and he called the cops?

      1. RBS   10 years ago

        Apparently, I'm willing to bet this isn't the first time the cops have been involved with these too though.

        1. RBS   10 years ago

          Ummm, TWO, my brain is already on vacation.

      2. tarran   10 years ago

        It might not have been him; a neighbor could have called the cops, and then - as mandated by the Violence Against Women Act - to cops arrested the person who admitted to committing domestic violence.

        1. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

          "You need to come now officers, she's getting out her rolling pin."

    4. antisocial-ist   10 years ago

      How do those Parker brothers sleep at night?

      1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

        Easy, they're dead.

      2. trshmnster the terrible   10 years ago

        On a bed of orphans, of course.

    5. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

      I was going to comment that my wife and I's games get just as heated, and then I see they just live in the next town over!

      Must be something in water of Lake Massabesic. Geez.

    6. Pope Jimbo   10 years ago

      Pfft!

      Local Minnesodan goes on rampage after friend wouldn't loan him his car after a night of drinking.

      Shoots friend in the back of the head with a crossbow, then hits him in face with a pick ax when he turns around. Takes car to go to casino, runs into ditch, hits girl friend in head with hammer.

      http://blogs.citypages.com/blo.....e.php#more

      Why we don't have common sense crossbow, pick ax and hammer laws here in Sunny Minnesoda is beyond me.

  13. db   10 years ago

    You don't suppose that *during a riot* might not be a really good time to serve a warrant not directly related to said riot?

    1. Jordan   10 years ago

      A couple of geniuses there.

    2. Drake   10 years ago

      I saw this story on the news this morning and could not tell wtf they were describing.

    3. mousefeathers   10 years ago

      The guy they were serving might have needed apprehension sooner rather than later: He had (allegedly) murdered his mother while trying to burglarize her home the day before, and had wounded a cop while getting away.

      1. db   10 years ago

        Fair enough.

  14. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    New York Times makes the case for fully repealing Obamacare

    Given that Obama will be wielding a veto pen next year, the focus has shifted to whether Republicans could roll back pieces of the law ? maybe even with bipartisan support.

    In an editorial for its Nov. 23 print edition, the New York Times slammed the idea of repealing the medical device tax, the employer mandates, the insurer bailout, and the individual mandate.

    Much of the editorial was misguided, but to the extent that it did raise legitimate points about the consequences of repealing certain measures in isolation, that only reaffirmed the case for fully repealing the law.

    1. DJF   10 years ago

      The next president can refuse to enforce it.

      1. Rich   10 years ago

        And let the good times roll.

      2. Frank Frankelson   10 years ago

        I thought that there was some executive waiver issuing power written in the ACA that would make it possible for any president to effectively and without any extra-legal orders, wipe the law from the books if he/she were so inclined.

      3. Invisible Finger   10 years ago

        But the IRS might lose the email telling them not to enforce it.

  15. Clich? Bandit   10 years ago

    Heading to NYC,, hopefully, today. Last chance to let me know what bar is Reason friendly on Fri/Sat night...

    1. Restoras   10 years ago

      At the moment it's just raining here.

      My favorite is Rattle N Hum...
      http://www.rattlenhumbarnyc.com/home

    2. Ska   10 years ago

      Where are the other NYC reasonoids at?

      1. Restoras   10 years ago

        Most evacuate the city for the holiday - no one has enough space to host so we mooch off of our relatives.

    3. Rhywun   10 years ago

      I don't do bars anymore and you probably wouldn't like the ones I used to hang out at if I did 🙂

  16. Longtorso, Johnny   10 years ago

    New domestic violence law will outlaw coercive control
    ...Theresa May, the Home Secretary, is expected to announce new powers allowing the police to prosecute those who are guilty of psychological and emotional abuse.

    It means for the first time men who control their partners through threats or by restricting their personal or financial freedom, could face prison in the same way as those who are violent towards them.
    Campaigners have long called for a change in the law to put psychological exploitation on a par with physical violence, in the hope it will encourage more victims to come forward and report abuse in the home....

    1. db   10 years ago

      Yeah, that'll work.

      1. DontShootMe   10 years ago

        the goal is to punish men for simply existing. It'll do what its authors intend.

        1. C. Anacreon   10 years ago

          The story doesn't say, but are men even allowed to be the victims in reporting this crime? If not, be very scared.

    2. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

      Still not going to apply the same standards against women?

      1. Drake   10 years ago

        You probably can't jail half the population.

    3. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

      Under the terms of the Bill a person convicted of coercive control could face up to 14-years in prison and there will be no statutory time limit for the offences

      I am so glad I don't date anymore. They're out of their goddamn minds.

    4. DJF   10 years ago

      Is refusing to have sex coercive?

      Or only if its men refusing sex?

    5. Restoras   10 years ago

      If I were in my mid 20's right now there is no effin way I'd get married.

      1. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

        No kidding.

    6. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

      "Honey, if you *really* loved me you'd buy me a fur coat..."

      "I'm sorry, ma'am, I'll have to ask you to accompany me down to the station."

    7. RBS   10 years ago

      It means for the first time men who control their partners through threats or by restricting their personal or financial freedom, could face prison in the same way as those who are violent towards them.

      Right, because there has never been a case of a woman using, let's call them children< to coerce a man or restrict his personal or financial freedom.

    8. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

      The thought police has arrived.

      1. Zeb   10 years ago

        It's the UK. They arrived there some time ago.

    9. Zeb   10 years ago

      Threats, OK, that's assault. The rest is so vague that it can't work out well.

      What is "restricting financial freedom"? Not giving her as much money as she wants? Or is it taking her paycheck? Theft is already against the law, I think.

      Emotionally abusive relationships are certainly a thing, and can be very bad and damaging. But a law like this is a pretty blunt instrument that is bound to have some "unintended" consequences.

    10. Pope Jimbo   10 years ago

      So muslim immigrants will be locked up if they insist on forcing their wives to wear a burqua?

  17. Jordan   10 years ago

    Privacy chief for NSA: 'This is a real job'

    One of the toughest tasks for the top privacy official at the National Security Agency (NSA) might be convincing the public to take her seriously.

    Rebecca Richards, who took over as the spy agency's first ever civil liberties and privacy director in February, took to Tumblr on Monday to answer questions about the agency's regard for privacy and civil liberties.

    The first question: "Is 'NSA Civil Liberties and Privacy Director' a real position or is this all a joke?"
    Richards responded that she is real, "and this is a real job."

    "My job is to lead the integration of civil liberties and privacy protections across the NSA and strengthen transparency," added Richards, a former official in the Department of Homeland Security's privacy office.

    The spy agency, she responded to other questions, is watched by an "extensive" oversight system that ensures all of its programs fall within the confines of the Constitution.

    First of all, it's a government job, so no, it's not a real job. And second of all, it's clearly a bullshit PR position designed to mollify the NSA's critics without actually accomplishing anything (similar to the USA FREEDOM Act).

    1. Rich   10 years ago

      "My job is to lead the integration of civil liberties and privacy protections across the NSA and strengthen transparency."

      OK, then, Becky, what *exactly* do you do?

    2. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

      "I mean, I go to two meetings a week and make all these power-point presentations! Of course it's work!"

      /sinecure holder

      1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

        "I got people skills!"

        1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

          Link

    3. gaijin   10 years ago

      and this is a real job.

      Oh yeah? If it was, they'd be calling you a czar.

    4. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

      The rest of her days are spent looking at agency activities and trying to adjust them to avoid any potential "high risk" impacts to privacy or civil liberties.

      Yeah, don't mention that program. We don't talk about this one either. You should really change that wording, "anal probe" sounds so invasive, maybe "colonic monitoring" instead.

    5. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      and strengthen transparency," added Richards

      Well, then let us see all your emails, phone calls, text messages. That's what you do to us, right?

      What a joke.

    6. PRX   10 years ago

      and this is a real job

      like HR?

  18. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    Applications for US jobless aid jump to 313,000

    The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits jumped last week, pushing total applications above 300,000 for the first time in nearly three months.

    Weekly applications rose 21,000 to a seasonally adjusted 313,000, the Labor Department said Wednesday. That's the highest level since the first week of September. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, rose 6,250 to 294,000.

    The increase is unlikely to raise concerns about the broader health of the job market. At least some of the rise occurred because of seasonal layoffs in businesses affected by the cold weather, such as construction. The department seeks to control for such seasonal factors but doesn't always do so perfectly.

    You know who else couldn't perfectly control seasonal adjustments?

    1. gaijin   10 years ago

      Black Friday shopping isn;t going to pay for itself...

    2. Doctor Whom   10 years ago

      The people in charge of de-icing Metrorail?

      I blame Bush and capitalism for the jobless claims. Of course, whenever the nominal unemployment rate looks good, I praise Obama.

    3. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

      Any local meteorologist?

    4. C. Anacreon   10 years ago

      Heat Miser?

  19. Longtorso, Johnny   10 years ago

    Feds Paid $5 Million For Monthly Government-Sponsored Hipster Raves, Featuring Lots of Anti-Conservative Political Agitprop
    ...Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) are using taxpayer dollars to bring anti-tobacco marketing into bars by selling posters and t-shirts, including those that deride the views of neoconservatives, saying the political philosophy is as bad as world hunger.

    The $4,904,466 grant was awarded in 2011, and runs through 2016.

    "In our prior research, we identified a high-risk subpopulation of young adults in San Diego, CA: the 'hipster' subculture, a group focused on the alternative music scene, local artists and designers, and eclectic self-expression," the grant explained. "We developed a yearlong pilot social branding intervention to decrease smoking among this group, using social events and social leaders to promote a strong nonsmoking lifestyle."

    Pamela Ling, a professor at UCSF School of Medicine, is leading the project. Ling was the "medical student who got her way" in the 1994 season of MTV's "The Real World" before becoming a doctor....

    1. Rhywun   10 years ago

      Looks like she's "getting her way" with the American taxpayer, too. Has she no shame?

  20. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    These Firefighters Are Having Too Much Fun Starting Deep-Fried Turkey Fires

    By now it's a well-known fact: deep frying a turkey mitigates that dryness that plagues Thanksgiving's main course, but also exposes you, your home, your pets, and all of your loved ones to the risk of intense grease fire explosions that only get worse when you instinctively throw water on them.

    But?with all due respect to Canada?this is an American holiday, dammit. We'll burn down whatever we have to just for the possibility of later enjoying deep-fried anything, and so, annually, we do.

    1. Raven Nation   10 years ago

      I had this for the first time last year. It's actually pretty good. The guys who were cooking it did so outside the house in below freezing temps with a wind chill. We expressed our gratitude from the other side of the sliding glass door.

      1. Clich? Bandit   10 years ago

        Simply tenting the breast (not a bad band name) and brining will prevent dryness. See Alton Brown's thanksgiving turkey recipe.

        1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

          Fried Turkey is delicious.

          Doing it away from the house with the neighborhood is the bomb.

          One year, at my Dad's we did at least ten birds while drinking Bloody Mary's...

          That was rock n' roll!

          1. Clich? Bandit   10 years ago

            I do not disagree. I find them awesome but they are not a requirement for juicy breast meat.

            1. DontShootMe   10 years ago

              "juicy breast meat" Also a good band name.

        2. trshmnster the terrible   10 years ago

          I put a good dry brine on last night. Hopefully it isn't too late. Dry brining isn't for the faint of heart, as you have to get the salt/seasoning mix in between the meat and the skin.

          In reality, if your turkey's breast is so big that you have to tent it, getting 2 turkeys is the better option.

          1. Zeb   10 years ago

            Or cut up the turkey before roasting it. Then you can take out the breast when it is just right.

            1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

              That ruins the ritual aspect of the celebration. The carcass must be displayed before final disarticulation.

              1. Zeb   10 years ago

                Which is why I don't do that on Thanks Giving. But that's how you roast a turkey if you want all of the parts to be properly cooked.

  21. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    Clinton has a clear lead among Democrats ? but would face stiff competition from Romney, Christie

    Despite Clinton's enormous lead among potential rivals in the Democratic primary, the survey indicates she would struggle against several GOP candidates. Romney has 45 percent to Clinton's 44 percent, if the election were held today. And Clinton would have 43 percent to Christie's 42 percent.

    She is a clearer favorite when matched against other GOP candidates, with a 46 percent to 41 percent edge over Bush, and a 46 percent to 42 percent advantage over Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan. And Clinton trounces Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, 48 percent to 37 percent.

    1. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      And they actively avoid mentioning Rand Paul or Scott Walker.

      Why do they keep propping up establishment excrement like Romney, (yet another) Bush and Donut Christie?

    2. straffinrun   10 years ago

      Hillary hasn't faced anything stiff in decades.

      1. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

        Don't underestimate Bill. He will stick it in anything that moves.

        1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

          But Hillary stopped moving for Bill years ago.

    3. Not a Libertarian   10 years ago

      The Post article does not discuss Senator Paul but the Quinnipiac survey does

      And Clinton 46% Paul 41%

      1. C. Anacreon   10 years ago

        And that's with 80% of the population still having no idea who he is, and much of the rest just knowing the progressive mantra that Rand is a racist who opposed the Civil Rights Act.

    4. Libertarian   10 years ago

      If Romney or Christie is giving you stiff competition, perhaps it's time to think about retiring from the public eye.

  22. Rich   10 years ago

    Illinois will have to find a new way to fix the worst pension shortfall in the U.S. after a judge struck down a 2013 law that included raising the retirement age.

    Sell off Chicago?

    1. gaijin   10 years ago

      Chicago has already been bought...repeatedly

    2. Brett L   10 years ago

      Only if they'll take Springfield as part of the package. Otherwise, nothing will change.

    3. Restoras   10 years ago

      Dollars to donuts Illinois tries for a bailout before Obama leaves office.

    4. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      So what recourse do the people of Illinois have against getting ripped off? Another constitutional amendment to repeal the 1970 amendment? Good luck with that.

      Question to the law school grads here: How is it that Prop 8 in California got struck down, but something like this can't be?

      1. Invisible Finger   10 years ago

        The state-generated propaganda about "the huge waste of money a constitutional convention would be" was outrageous last year.

  23. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    Journalist on leave after tangle with secretive 'NXIVM' group

    Respected Albany reporter James Odato has taken a leave of absence from the city's Times Union newspaper?a move that appears to be related to a lawsuit involving his in-depth coverage of a secretive personal development organization.

    For several years, the long-serving Times Union investigative journalist has produced a series of articles about the company, called NXIVM.

    Pronounced like "Nexium" and purporting to "help transform and, ultimately, be an expression of the noble civilization of humans," the group has been subject to high-profile media scrutiny largely because of its connections to the Bronfman beverage dynasty. NXIVM's controversial co-founder, Keith Raniere, has the reputation of a guru-like entrepreneur and self-improvement figure accused of leading a hermetic cult known for shady business dealings. (He has denied that NXIVM is a cult.)

    1. Rich   10 years ago

      Sounds like Odato may have taken the purple pill.

  24. The Late P Brooks   10 years ago

    Great. Some guy on MSNBC is spouting a lot of nonsensical hogwash about how sensitivity training will break down racial bias and prevent another "Ferguson". No mention of union contracts and the institutionalized protection of the evil and incompetent.

    1. gaijin   10 years ago

      yeah, training is bull. But I do think it would help to have more black cops in an area like Ferguson. ANd cops who got out and met the citizens once in a while in situations that didnt involve handcuffs (i.e., community policing)

      1. RBS   10 years ago

        It would also help if those cops are also from the community they are policing.

        1. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

          100X this.

    2. Restoras   10 years ago

      They can't cope with the reality that is human nature - they think that by engaging in 'training' and other 'educational' magic human nature can be transformed.

    3. Doctor Whom   10 years ago

      What, and question the omnibenevolence of the institution of government?

    4. Warty   10 years ago

      sensitivity training

      *taking notes*

      Do...not...shoot...children...with...BB...guns.

      *raises hand*

      Teacher? I don't understand. Why not?

      1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

        "Do not shoot children with BB guns"... right, we should be usiong real guns or tasers.

        /end other re-trainee

  25. Jordan   10 years ago

    Which one of you is this fine gentleman?

    Doctor 'drunk at work, wrote lewd notes on medical charts and left woman in labour to have sex with patient'

    1. Brett L   10 years ago

      For what my insurance and I paid for a doctor to attend the last 20 minutes of my son's birth and apply a couple of stitches, the least I expect is his presence, drunk or sober.

    2. Rich   10 years ago

      He was due to become president of the New Mexico Medical Society next year.

      Well, can he at least be the Social Committee Chairman?

    3. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

      "The doctor will puke on you now."

      ALTERNATE JOKE: "Open wide!"

      ALTERNATE ALTERNATE JOKE: "He's got a prescription...for love!"

      1. gaijin   10 years ago

        So if you please get on your knees
        There are no bills, there are no fees
        Baby, I know what your problem is
        The first step of the cure is a kiss
        So call me (Dr. Love)
        They call me Dr. Love (calling Dr. Love)

      2. Rich   10 years ago

        Love the first one.

        *** wipes tears from eyes ***

      3. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

        "Well this pregnancy's done, we should get another started."

    4. RBS   10 years ago

      1-800-DOCTORB. The B is for bargain!

  26. Lord Humungus   10 years ago

    Will this year's presidential turkey pardoning be like 'The Hunger Games?'

    President Obama will participate in a White House tradition on Thursday: the pardoning of a lucky turkey who will bypass the Thanksgiving table and spend the rest of his or her days living a life of luxury on a Virginia farm.

    This year's decision between two birds seems to have been made behind closed doors. That may be a relief for the pair, whose fate won't be decided via a popularity contest conducted via social media -- the way it was last year, when President Obama described it jokingly as "quite literally, 'The Hunger Games.'"

    1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

      Will this mean he's pardoned more fowl than humans?

    2. gaijin   10 years ago

      spend the rest of his or her days living a life of luxury on a Virginia farm.

      I always assumed the turkeys pardoned at Tgiving ended up like the contestants in Running Man.

      1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

        Well, they get until Chirstmas, then the farmer eats them.

        1. db   10 years ago

          I don't know, there is probably a whole department of the USDA dedicated to auditing the care and feeding of Presidentially pardoned turkeys. I wouldn't want to cross them.

          1. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

            "What happened to '11?"

            "Died of natural causes... exsanguination due to cervical avulsion."

            "uhhh.... okay" *marks clipboard*

      2. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

        "living a life of luxury on a Virginia farm."

        Sounds like what parents tell their children about dead pets.

    3. Zeb   10 years ago

      Will turkeys fight like chickens (cocks) do? That's what they should do.

      I suppose it's nice that it doesn't do any actual harm like most things presidents do, but the turkey pardon thing is just weird and stupid. What is it even supposed to mean? They still eat a turkey.

      What they should do instead is have the president kill a turkey himself on live TV every year.

      1. Pope Jimbo   10 years ago

        I think it would be far more educational for our increasingly urbanized population if the president would actually kill, pluck and butcher the turkey himself.

        1. Zeb   10 years ago

          Yeah, I like it. "This is where food comes from, you goddamn pussies".

  27. Rich   10 years ago

    Thieves steal Holocaust victims' shoes at Polish museum

    And you thought the economy was bad *here*!

    Seriously, WTF kind of person does this?

    1. Restoras   10 years ago

      I teenager on a dare, hoping to get laid out of it?

      1. Rich   10 years ago

        "Never stick it in crazy."

    2. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

      Ask Michael Brown's step father. He may lay an insight or two.

    3. Ted S.   10 years ago

      Imelda Marcos?

  28. The Late P Brooks   10 years ago

    Your outrage, in such a case is grotesque, an inversion of morality so putrescent as to call into question your capacity for real feeling at all.

    Your prose; it's so... purple! Lovely, lovely purple.

    1. Clich? Bandit   10 years ago

      The abuse of commas makes my eyes water.

  29. Palin's Buttplug   10 years ago

    Links are boring since fake scandal season has ended.

    1. Mike M.   10 years ago

      I would wish you a happy Thanksgiving, except I know you have nothing to be thankful for the way your life is going.

  30. Warty   10 years ago

    Richard Sherman is a troll genius and Marshawn Lynch even more so, but that link doesn't work. Here's a working one. Trigger warning: Buzzfeed.

    1. Rich   10 years ago

      "Pay no attention to the man behind the cardboard cutout."

    2. RBS   10 years ago

      The NFLPA should start having an All Troll Team.

      1. Rufus J. Firefly   10 years ago

        The AT-Team!

    3. gaijin   10 years ago

      It's like they are Key and Peele

  31. The Late P Brooks   10 years ago

    I do think it would help to have more black cops in an area like Ferguson. ANd cops who got out and met the citizens once in a while in situations that didnt involve handcuffs (i.e., community policing)

    I would like to believe this, but that whole community policing thing falls on its face when law and order culture is based on the clearly expressed belief that the primary function of the police officer is to actively seek a reason to lock everyone he comes n contact with in a cage and confiscate all their money.

    1. Clich? Bandit   10 years ago

      The Night Watchman of Rothenburg was a cool guy, why can't we use him as our police.

    2. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

      Black cops are not inherently more warm and fuzzy than white ones. Better to have cops of all races get out in the community and talk to the saner citizens and leaders, or even to the sketchier citizens, to open up communication.

      But it may be a bit late.

      1. gaijin   10 years ago

        Black cops are not inherently more warm and fuzzy than white ones.

        Agree. just thinking it removes the race hustlers from the agitation...which would enable real issues (like what P Brooks mentions) to be placed front and center.

        1. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

          But will this mean discriminating against white/Asian/Samoan cops?

          1. gaijin   10 years ago

            I'd like to believe that if the cops are drawn from the community, that there would be some representation for everyone. I don't believe a 99% asian force in a community that's 80% white makes sense. Not arguing for quotas, just suggesting that gross imbalances make no sense in a community that strongly identifies itself by race.

            1. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

              I may be incorrect, but I've heard that in large metropolitan areas with "Chinatowns", it's SOP to assign officers of Asian ethnicity who have some fluency in Cantonese, at least, to patrol them.

            2. Rhywun   10 years ago

              Here in NYC, I think it is a greater problem that all the cops live in LI and NJ than maybe the race ratios don't match the community. These guys treat everyone in the city like shit with equal opportunity.

      2. db   10 years ago

        Best to send all cops out unarmed. Have armed backup available, but beat cops should be unarmed, and required to actually walk a beat rather than cruise around in a car.

        1. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

          What? And ruin the ambiance of the inner city by removing the Whoop! Whoop! sound that occurs every 5 minutes?

          1. straffinrun   10 years ago

            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gu5aHBgPRR4

            1. Heroic Mulatto   10 years ago

              That's like an alarm clock, whoo, whoo!

              1. straffinrun   10 years ago

                You're alarm maybe be broken, HM. Dead link?

        2. Rhywun   10 years ago

          I totally agree. And when the unions throw a fit about it, you can point out that us citizens do it every day.

    3. Invisible Finger   10 years ago

      Remember: the police are the ones who think assaulting people for victimless crimes is something noble.

  32. Ted S.   10 years ago

    Laurel and Hardy do propaganda for the US Forestry Service.

  33. SIV   10 years ago

    Get this kid a Reason internship:

    "Who am I to stand from my perch of privilege, surrounded by million-dollar homes and paying for a $60,000 education, to condemn these young men as 'thugs?'" asks Friedfeld. "It's precisely this kind of 'otherization' that fuels the problem."

    1. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

      Who knew that the middle class would willingly throw itself onto the pyre?

    2. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      This guy should feel free to give up his privilege and move to Ferguson. There won't be "othering" any more. He can experience "these young men" up close and personal.

    3. trshmnster the terrible   10 years ago

      If you strip out all the newspeak, the kid has some sort of victim-status fueled Stockholm syndrome.

      Hey kid, you may be a racist but that doesn't excuse robbery.

      1. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

        And he's studying for the foreign service.

        1. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

          That's so he can go apologize to the world.

      2. The Laconic   10 years ago

        As I said before, this is precisely what Ayn Rand meant by "the sanction of the victim".

        This incident made it very clear to me why she hammered on that point so hard.

    4. Rich   10 years ago

      "Not once did I consider our attackers to be 'bad people.' I trust that they weren't trying to hurt me. In fact, if they knew me, I bet they'd think I was okay. The fact that these two kids, who appeared younger than I, have even had to entertain these questions suggests their universes are light years away from mine."

      Ollie? Ollie?

      *** snaps fingers ***

      You OK?

    5. UnCivilServant   10 years ago

      I prefer this take on Privilege

      http://www.thecollegefix.com/post/20236/

      1. trshmnster the terrible   10 years ago

        As a left-handyd individu@l, I am very triggered by this column.

    6. PRX   10 years ago

      he means you deserve it, and for that reason, fuck him.

    7. Zeb   10 years ago

      Stop blaming the victim! Or does that not work here?

      Don't condemn them as thugs. Condemn them as robbers, because that's what they are.

    8. SIV   10 years ago

      The comments at The Hoya are interesting. Pretty much all female-name-authored ones agree wholeheartedly:

      Kim
      November 21, 2014 at 9:22 pm

      Oliver, look at the lively conversation your piece has started! The comments section has been so eyeopening for me (as I am sure it has been for you). It seems that some Georgetown students do not understand white privilege, classism, racism and other forms of structural oppression. And I do not have the energy (nor is it my job) to unpack all of these concepts. I would encourage all the commenters/readers who question your argument to do some actual RESEARCH rather than making useless remarks about your writing style/word choice. Here are some good reads to get you started:

      'White Privilege, Male Privilege" Peggy McIntosh
      "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack" McIntosh
      "The New Jim Crow" Michelle Alexander

      1. SIV   10 years ago

        Correction: All that agree appear to be women, not all women agree.

      2. Zeb   10 years ago

        It seems that some Georgetown students do not understand white privilege, classism, racism and other forms of structural oppression.

        So, in other words, if you don't agree with me, you don't understand.

      3. Zeb   10 years ago

        The whole "privilege" thing is just an ass-backwards way of looking at things. The problem isn't that white males have been or are privileged. It is that historically various groups have been systematically discriminated against. Which is a bad thing. But you don't fix it by doing the same bad things to different people.

  34. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

    Police in Hong Kong arrested a top student protest leader and cleared a protest site as anti-government demonstrations continue for a second month.

    Grass mud horse covering the middle.

    I feel bad for the kid.

  35. The Late P Brooks   10 years ago

    Do...not...shoot...children...with...BB...guns.

    I don't have the stomach to read PoliceOne. Have they officially changed their designation of us from "civilian" to "target"?

    1. Andrew S.   10 years ago

      Even worse. They've changed us to "dog" status.

    2. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

      Target, cattle, sheeple, prole, victim/criminal...

    3. Libertarian   10 years ago

      Are there any documented cases of real criminals fixing orange tips onto their guns?

  36. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

    "Are you having a holiday party for your company? Are you planning on sharing the cheer by posting photos of said party on your corporate Facebook page or other social media? If so, don't forget to have your employees sign authorizations before you post those photos."

    h/t overlawyered

    http://www.ohioemployerlawblog.....HXo4IvF9K1

  37. gaijin   10 years ago

    So OT question for gym rats:

    What is a reasonable amount of time for someone to use a piece of equipment before asking if you can get a set or two in on the equipment?

    1. Injun, as in from India   10 years ago

      Your gym probably has guidelines on that. There may even be something in your contract.

    2. Bobarian (Mr. Xtreme)   10 years ago

      If they're doing more than three sets of 20 on the equipment, they're probably not doing it right.

      Unless we're talking cardio.

      1. gaijin   10 years ago

        it's weights. I should probably read my contract too 😉

        1. wareagle   10 years ago

          if it's a machine, "can I work in" is a question that is not unreasonable. Most people are cool with that.

    3. RBS   10 years ago

      Depends on the equipment in question. Something like a lat pulldown then just ask if you can work in and if they aren't an asshole it should be ok. If you're trying to squat and the guy has already worked up to something substantially more than what you warm up with then you'll just have to wait.

    4. Scruffy Nerfherder   10 years ago

      This is a Warty question.

      Prepare yourself.

    5. Warty   10 years ago

      The answer is to get huge enough that the Weaks scurry away in fear as you approach. And the way to do that is squatz and whole milk.

      1. Riven   10 years ago

        Nice to know I'm doing it right so far.

      2. Steve G   10 years ago

        *squatz and egg nog*! Don't waste the holiday bonus gainz!

  38. Notorious G.K.C.   10 years ago

    "But here's the real issue: in a country that has so many of its citizens locked up?in 2014, the United States has more people per 100,000 in jail than anywhere in the world other than Seychelles (note to self: do not visit Seychelles)?the idea that we make such a to-do about pardoning a bird is an embarrassing illustration of just how mixed up our priorities are."

    http://americamagazine.org/con.....anksgiving

    1. straffinrun   10 years ago

      I see rape cells by the Seychelles.

    2. Doghouse Riley Jr.   10 years ago

      But the bird is innocent!

  39. The Late P Brooks   10 years ago

    What is a reasonable amount of time for someone to use a piece of equipment before asking if you can get a set or two in on the equipment?

    If he's just lounging on the machine between sets, about ten seconds.
    (ask nicely, of course.)

    1. wareagle   10 years ago

      ask if you can work in, with more declaration than interrogatory. Most gym folks have no issue with that.

  40. Not a Libertarian   10 years ago

    The Quinnipiac Poll referenced by Lord Humungus in the Washington Post article link he posted has some worrisome trend lines for Senator Paul.

    from a high of 17% of GOP voters in October 2013 he is now at 6%

    What can at all explain the drop from 13% in January? If anything his visibility has improved.

    REPUBLICANS/REPUBLICAN LEANERS................
    Nov 26 Jul 08 Jan 21 Dec 11 Oct 02 Apr 03
    2014 2014 2014 2013 2013 2013
    Romney 19 na na na na na

    Bush 11 10 11 11 11 10

    Rubio 2 6 8 7 12 19

    Ryan 5 8 13 9 10 17

    Walker 5 8 6 5 4 2

    Christie 8 10 12 17 13 14

    Jindal 2 1 3 3 3 3

    Paul 6 11 13 14 17 15

    1. PM   10 years ago

      If anything his visibility has improved.

      That's probably the reason right there. Mainline Republicans don't like a lot of his positions.

      1. Not a Libertarian   10 years ago

        Now of course, national surveys mean nothing a year out from the primary season

        EXCEPT perhaps to moneymen and editorial writers.

        How is the Paul organization in Iowa and New Hampshire?

        1. PM   10 years ago

          How is the Paul organization in Iowa and New Hampshire?

          I'm sure he can piggyback to some extent off of the groundwork his father laid in those states, which was pretty impressive. Bear in mind how that worked out for him though.

    2. straffinrun   10 years ago

      I'm sure the "Rand Paul reached out to criminals and wanted to decriminalize drug dealing" commecials set against a backdrop of Ferguson riots are being produced already.

  41. leilafairfieldbum   10 years ago

    Start working at home with Google! It's by-far the best job I've had. Last Wednesday I got a brand new BMW since getting a check for $6474 this - 4 weeks past. I began this 8-months ago and immediately was bringing home at least $77 per hour. I work through this link,
    go to tech tab for work detail ????????????? http://www.jobsfish.com

  42. leaniefeneckgik   10 years ago

    my best friend's mother-in-law makes $62 /hr on the internet . She has been fired for six months but last month her check was $18735 just working on the internet for a few hours. visit site....

    ????? http://www.netjob70.com

Please log in to post comments

Mute this user?

  • Mute User
  • Cancel

Ban this user?

  • Ban User
  • Cancel

Un-ban this user?

  • Un-ban User
  • Cancel

Nuke this user?

  • Nuke User
  • Cancel

Un-nuke this user?

  • Un-nuke User
  • Cancel

Flag this comment?

  • Flag Comment
  • Cancel

Un-flag this comment?

  • Un-flag Comment
  • Cancel

Latest

The U.K. Trade Deal Screws American Consumers

Eric Boehm | 5.9.2025 4:05 PM

A New Survey Suggests Illicit Opioid Use Is Much More Common Than the Government's Numbers Indicate

Jacob Sullum | 5.9.2025 3:50 PM

Judge Orders Tufts Grad Student Rumeysa Ozturk Be Released on Bail From Immigration Detention

C.J. Ciaramella | 5.9.2025 3:17 PM

Georgia Man Who Spent 6 Weeks in Jail on a Kidnapping Charge Says He Was Helping a Falling Child

Autumn Billings | 5.9.2025 2:05 PM

Newly Released Documents Show What the Feds Knew About the New Jersey Drone Scare

Matthew Petti | 5.9.2025 12:31 PM

Recommended

  • About
  • Browse Topics
  • Events
  • Staff
  • Jobs
  • Donate
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Contact
  • Media
  • Shop
  • Amazon
Reason Facebook@reason on XReason InstagramReason TikTokReason YoutubeApple PodcastsReason on FlipboardReason RSS

© 2024 Reason Foundation | Accessibility | Privacy Policy | Terms Of Use

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

r

Do you care about free minds and free markets? Sign up to get the biggest stories from Reason in your inbox every afternoon.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

This modal will close in 10

Reason Plus

Special Offer!

  • Full digital edition access
  • No ads
  • Commenting privileges

Just $25 per year

Join Today!