Police State

The mayor of Jackson, Mississippi, namely Frank Melton, is currently utilizing the SWAT Team to locate a man who was recently found not guilty of murder. Apparently, there is no warrant for the man's arrest, nor is one forthcoming.

This, for some strange reason, doesn't faze the mayor one bit.

It's nice to know that the mayor can decide that someone is "dangerous" and then hunt him down Nazi style in the streets.

All of the big hoopla has been created by two rather sensational trials that both ended in verdicts of not guilty. Apparently, most people think the people in the trials were guilty, but the jury (who was at the trial, I believe) found them innocent. Apparently most people think the jury was wrong. I don't know what to think (I wasn't there), but I know that people have been convicted on less evidence than what the State provided.

At any rate, continue to read as I update how Melton is waging a one-man war against the United States Constitution.

Unless he determines I'm a threat and arrests me in the middle of the night.

Wait- I'm in a different county- he doesn't have jurisdiction.

Wait- that doesn't matter to a man who doesn't care about civil liberties.

If I don't post tomorrow, take up a collection and post my bail.

A Fate Worse Than Fast

Some say the devil drives a black Corvette.
Flames on the side, hitting ninety-five
Disappearing down a long, dark stretch
Into the dead and unforgiving night.

But I say the devil drives an '83 Toyota
Hazard lights flashing on the side of the road
Rusted out and rolling ever so slowly
Wherever the devil might fancy to go.

People on the interstate pass him by
Busy with troubles on their mind
But he rolls along in a lazy gait
Happy to drive- happy to wait.

Couple of Cool Sites I've Stumbled Across

Project IP basically shows you what information a website can cull from your computer. Pretty extensive stuff and kinda spooky, too.

Pockets empty? Visit this site to see how you compare to the world's population- I'm guessing you'll be somewhat surprised.

Known as a "directory of wonderful things," this website appears to be making quite a splash lately. It's basically an uber-blog of sorts.

And last but not least, visit the News of the Weird website. Considered to be the primary source for all things oddball.

Please, return the favor. Post some links to random websites you like to visit.

Bye-Bye Birdie

As surely everyone knows by now, Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot a hunting buddy while going after quail.

People (mostly in the news industry) are complaining that the information wasn't released soon enough.

Why is this news?

I understand the "shock value" of the whole thing- the "man-bites-dog" angle that reporters salivate over. But it's not exactly front page news. Who cares if this "story" took a half-day to break?

Here's a few topics that probably deserve more attention:

1. The bird flu- apparently it's spread to Africa, now.
2. The Muslim riots over the cartoons- still a lot of violence.
3. How Iraq has changed in the past few years.
4. Iran's burgeoning nuclear program- detente, anyone?
5. The fact that Israel will not hesitate to use atomic weaponry to stop #4.
6. The relationship between Bush and Abramoff, if it existed.
7. Genocide in the Sudan.
8. Katrina victims returning to New Orleans.
9. The millions of dollars wasted after Hurricane Katrina.
10. The "lost world" of undiscovered species recently discovered in Indonesia.

Any one of those would be a better use of time and resources than endlessly covering the fact that Cheney accidentally shot a man.

(To be fair, I did find it interesting that the doctors decided to leave the bird shot in the man's face, because taking it out would cause more damage. Other than that, I've not found anything new in any of the many stories I've read.)

I wish people would cover "hard" news more, and cut some of the fat out of reporting.

Alabama Burning

Whether you believe in God/heaven or not, burning down a church can't be a good idea.

There's been a string of church fires in central Alabama over the past few weeks, and police are still looking for the suspect.

I once had the misfortune of stumbling across a church fire in Mississippi, just off the Natchez Trace. My (now) wife and I were riding around between classes when we saw a plume of smoke rising from the ground. Since there was a small airport in the area, we thought maybe a plane had crashed.

Instead, we came up on a picture I hope to never see again. A beautiful old brick church (later I would find out that it was the oldest historically black church in Hinds County) was going up in flames. Not having a cell phone, we had to run to the airport to call 911. Quickly returning- five precious minutes had passed- we waited for the fire department to arrive.

It is amazing how much heat a fire of that magnitude generates. I've seen movies where a man rushes into a burning building to rescue someone, but I would bet that such a thing rarely happens in the real world. Even fifty feet away one could feel the skin start to blister and cook. If a human were lucky enough to avoid getting burned, he would certainly be baked.

The fireman came and I gave my name and contact info to a firefighter before leaving the scene. Later on, my wife and I returned to see if they had put out the flames and two FBI agents instantly approached me with a dossier of information that probably surpassed what I knew about myself. They quickly ruled me out as a suspect, I think, but it was scary how quickly they could get a LOT of information about an individual.

I think they eventually caught the guy who did it, but I'm not sure.

Back to my main point- I felt the heat that day, and I wouldn't want to be the person responsible for that fire when Judgment Day rolls around. Something makes me think that their punishment will make that oppressive blaze seem like a cool winter's day indeed.

Line in the Sand

"Think for yourselves and let others enjoy the privilege to do so too." Voltaire

I'm quite upset over the fact that radical Muslims are burning embassies and killing people over political cartoons.

Upset that he couldn't find an artist for a picture of Mohammed, a Danish newspaperman asked several cartoonists to send in a picture of Mohammed. He printed 12 of them in the newspaper. Some are offensive (the one with Mohammed wearing a bomb on his head is probably the most incendiary) and others are quite tame. This website has the cartoons posted if you'd like to take a peek at them and see what all the fuss is about. Lord knows our media won't show them, even though it's their job to report the news. Meanwhile, several European newspapers have joined their Danish counterpart and published the cartoons as a sign of solidarity in the fight for free speech.

Let me make this clear- I think the cartoons are in extremely bad taste. However, as our French philosopher friend says, they still have a right to say it. I cannot give purchase to a religion that holds it necessary to kill people who had nothing to do with the cartoons because someone did something offensive to their belief system.

I think there's something deeper and darker at work here. I think that many Muslims are tired and frustrated at watching the world's players sweep them aside time and time again. Thus, they clutch at anything to fuel their anger and resentment. Their religious leaders know this and fan the flames.

In short, I think these Muslims are using a time-honored religion as a vehicle to gain something very earthly indeed- power.

We cannot kow-tow now. I wish every newspaper in America would print these cartoons. Either we fight the battle now, or we fight the battle later.

Restraining Civil Liberties

Mississippi has recently passed a primary offense seatbelt law, which will take effect in a few months. Before that, the only way a cop was able to give you a ticket for not wearing a seatbelt was by tacking it on to another offense, such as speeding. In other words, they couldn't look over, see that you weren't wearing a seatbelt, and write you a ticket. Now they can.

I have a problem with this. I don't think that a driver should have any legal duty to buckle up. His actions hurt no one but himself, and his destiny lies in his hands. (Passengers and children, on the other hand, should have to, since they are at the whims of the driver.)

I'm a safe driver- whether or not I wear a seatbelt won't change that fact. When a gravel truck is barrelling toward me at sixty-miles per hour, I don't think to myself, "I've got my seat belt on, so I can chance it." Likewise, I don't drive more safely when I don't have a seatbelt on. I drive safe regardless.

I'm pretty sure that eating a lot of high cholesterol foods is more dangerous than eating a healthy diet. But it's not illegal to eat the high cholesterol foods- why is driving without a seatbelt?

Freedom includes being able to (legally) make stupid decisions that hurt no one but ourselves.

I guess I have a problem when the government decides to police my actions for no good reason. If they really had a vested interest in my life, they'd only allow healthy foods at the grocery store and reduce the speed limit on the interstate. This is too arbitrary for me to stomach. Even though it makes statistical sense that I wear one, that doesn't mean I should be forced to do it.

I'm going to look at the statute and see if there's anyway around it. Politicians always create a loophole.

Hee-Haw

My property professor pronounces the word "assignee" as "ASS- EIN- NEE."

I'm not a language professor, but I think that's pretty close to German for "I was born an ass."

I'll look into it.

Headless Chicken

I have NO time.

Right now I'm posting this message from my Property class, because I'm pretty sure it'll be my only chance to post today.

Here's a quandary-

Last semester I did very well and I never took notes in class. I basically read my Casebooks, looked at a few study aids, and then took the exams. Most of the time I didn't even listen in class. However, during the semester, I felt as though I had a decent grasp of the material.

This semester is different. I'm working harder- taking notes, listening more- but now I feel as though I'm lost. I have 20-page outlines in each class, yet I have no idea what's going on. Last semester, I had a doodle of each professor and a pretty good handle on my subjects.

What gives?