Weblog

Ann Arbor Transportation Authority board is chock full of great new ideas! (Ann Arbor Chronicle)
Unfortunately they're all worthless, expensive, and unpopular non-starters. But if you're a gay/Lesbian, Pacific Islander who is Spanish-speaking, handicapped and a business owner AATA may  have some (federally mandated) business opportunities for you. And so it goes in the People's Republic of Ann Arbor.

Ann Arbor.com endorses all incumbent council members in the August Democratic primary (annarbor.com)
Utterly pointless. Whoever wins this election is on the council whatever happens in November. In effect this is the election such as it is. I don't know which is more laughable; That this is democracy or that anyone really cares what Ann Arbor.com's editorial board endorsements are. Half the council is gonna get picked by a few hundred (if that) local Democratic Party primary voters. This is what passes for representative democracy in the People's Republic of Ann Arbor these days. One party, no opposition, no newspaper, no election choices. The Democratic Party should hire Stalinist hack local attorney and Democratic Party activist Tom Wieder who helped talk us into this idiotic situation back in the day ( Remember the Voting in November is Easy! AKA the "VINE" ballot initiative?) to just set up a Soviet-style Politburo and have them pick the council members directly and save us tax donors the cost of these strictly pro forma elections.

Where you get arrested for DUI determines whether you go to jail in metro-Detroit (Detroit Free Press)
In Detroit: small fines, suspension and probation. In the suburbs: big fines, big court costs, long suspensions, community service and jail.


If you want to get rich, become a farmer?  (Time)
That's what some big shot investment types like Jimmy Rogers are saying. And they may have a point. Everything on the end your fork came from one, eh? And the world has a lot of mouths to feed. Worth a read.

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Head of the NYC cab drivers union urges his members to "racially profile" potential riders. (And he's of mixed race himself too.)

The Hutaree Militia case is back in the news.

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Chicago handgun ban loses before SCOTUS but it will still be very hard to get a gun - C4SS blog
"... the government of Chicago will most likely use all kinds of legal obstacles to make it difficult for the people of Chicago to arm themselves. Acquiring handgun permits will be inconvenient and expensive." Yep.
Why Rednecks Don't Get Arrested As Much As Minorities - The Fulford Files
" ... they don’t adopt the outdoor [i.e. street-corner] lifestyle. They’re almost never visible walking on streets where they can be seen by cops riding around in cars. When they drive, their cars and pickups may be junkers, but they’re street legal, so they have fewer traffic stops. They get wasted indoors, where search warrants are required, and are less likely to carry dope on their persons and in their cars. Often they grow their own marijuana, so they do not buy drugs and fall victim to police stings, undercover cops, and confidential informants. Their dress is scruffy, but T-shirts and jeans blend in better than gang colors and hip-hop gear, so they don’t get targeted as quickly by police." Again, yep.
The First Photo of a Planet Outside Our Solar System - Gizmodo
That little orange dot.
Strippers going outside for a smoke break pisses off Michigan residents on so many levels - MLive
Like I said yesterday, Michiganders are coming unglued.