Sen. Rand Paul: "I think we have too many armed federal agencies"

Amen. Why in the world does the US Food and Drug Administration need armed agents for? To bust Amish natural milk sellers? The fewer armed feds there are, the better.

If you're considering going ex-pat you should probably take Belize off your list of places to emigrate to

John McAfee, the millionaire anti-virus software company founder, claims that he has been continually shaken down for bribes and payoffs by the local politicians and cops since he moved down there CNet News is reporting.

McAffee claims that the local politicos and their minions on the police force are hitting him up for money in return for not raiding his home. McAffee's home has been raided by the Belizian cops at least four times he claims. McAffee  also claims the cops shot his dog during their last raid on his home the result of which he now faces illegal weapons possession and among other charges.

I think that this information might be a good reason to take that particular Turd-World location off my potential ex-pat list if it were me, Belize's great beaches and cheap real estate notwithstanding.

The Dear Leader is speaking now...

The Dear Leader

...so there isn't much happening. (10:22 AM) The suits with wires in their ears and unidentified black uniformed men with automatic weapons as well as the local cops have all us peons on lock down. So I am just twiddling my thumbs waiting for the Dear Leader to finish his speech and go home. Hope & change mofo!

Remember the good old days when being a "gun nut" meant you liked to shoot targets, skeet, collect old guns, or hunt deer?

So does one of the shooting bloggers at Field & Stream. David E. Petzal writing about his disappointing realization at the annual SHOT Show that more and more floor space is being devoted to cop/military/tactical stuff and less and less to traditional American gun culture stuff like target shooting, hunting, skeet and trap shooting, and collecting.

"The most densely crowded venues," says Petzal, "were dedicated to the wonderful worlds of the paramilitary and law enforcement. Apparently there is an insatiable need for the equipment used in shooting, clubbing, and gassing people. There are suits of full body armor the like of which has not been seen since the Battle of Agincourt. There are all-black deathmobiles, equipped with lethal gear of all sorts. I’m told that Cop World constitutes fully one-third of the SHOT Show. How shooting and suppressing the citizenry ties into Shooting, Hunting, and Outdoor Trade is more than I can comprehend, but there it is." [emphasis mine]

I've been going to gun and knife shows for a few decades now and I've seen the same transformation there as well. I am not happy with what it says about American culture. A lot of us are totally infatuated by the forces of violence and repression. Somehow I can't imagine 19th century slaves being infatuated with ankle chains, whips, and such. Go figure?

If a police dog can sniff around your car why can't it sniff around your house?

Asks poster Orrin Kerr at the law blog Volokh Conspiracy. One thing is for sure though; once the dog appears sure as hell the cops are gonna be rifling through your stuff quite soon.

District of Columbia police arresting drivers for expired license tabs. It's not just the law it's the principle of the thing

The "principle" the DC cops want to make clear being: "We can stop you, arrest you, tow your vehicle, fine you, and put you in jail for even the smallest things. So get with the program." The true nature of government is now revealed but not for the first time, eh?

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Welcome, but watch your shit

To be a cop in Detroit requires that you be pretty aggressive but even by Motown standards this guy is out-of-control crazy violent

The Detroit News profiles DPD Officer Nevin Hughes. The article begs the question "why hasn't Hughes been fired yet?" If what reporter Robert Snell reports is accurate the only people benefiting from his continued employment with the DPD are the lawyers who sue him and the city (and successfully every time by the way) on a regular basis.

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Jewish surgeon in Germany refuses to operate on patient with swastika tattoo. UK Telegraph
"If the United States wants to claw its way back to economic self-determination, it should look not at China for the route forward, but at Germany." - Senator James Webb, Democrat of Virginia Arlington Sun Gazette
LA River area homeless encampment broken up by police - LAT (They've lived there relatively peacefully for a few years. Where they gonna go now?)
How police use regulatory inspections to conduct warrantless searches. Reason's Radley Balko
"...the Fourth Amendment doesn't prevent the government from sending a SWAT team to make sure your beer is labeled correctly." So says the US Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals anyhow.
Most commonly used Gawker website passwords. WSJ
I changed mine today.

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Plot of the new movie "Repo Men" is a logical projection of early 21st century capitalist practice - Detroit News (Tom Long)

"And yet there's something here that doesn't seem all that far-fetched. Who's to say you won't be able to put an artificial eyeball on your credit card in 20 years? And what will happen when you lose your job and can't keep up payments? OK, some guy probably won't show up to claim it like a Volkswagen that's three months behind. Probably."
Probably? Go look at yesterday's post about an auto sales company in Austin, Texas that has the capability to flat-line your car if you are late with the payments. Some RM trailers here.

A nasal spray that chills the brain while in cardiac arrest my prevent memory loss and other damage. - Gizmodo
Computer glitch blamed for years of police raids on elderly Brooklyn couple’s home. - NY Post

Die Hipster! Die! - LA Weekly

Shaving foam is bad for your facial skin - Lewrockwell.com blog (William Anderson)

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A river of sewage: LA artists paint scenes from the LA river. - Wall Street Journal online

A creepy slide show of contemporary drawings, paintings and collages of the LA river.

The Challenge of Totalitarianism - Telos (Andrew Walker)

"Totalitarianism is not of itself an ideological position but involves total state authority with the goal of continuation of an established order."

"Fingerprinting" computer chips - Technology Review (Neil Savage)

"By sending a series of signals through, and measuring how fast they travel, he can generate a string of numbers unique to each circuit. This has been dubbed a 'physically unclonable function'--PUF for short."

Stupid fashion fads killing off wildlife - Taki's Magazine (Mandolyna Theodoracopulos)

Chinese discover 90 years worth of frozen methane. - Inhabitat (Bridgette Meingold)

Better to burn the methane/ice than all the coal that they use now.

Houseboat living on the Puget Sound - Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"And they are resistant to earthquakes."(A reader's comment).

Hundreds of drug cases dropped by SF police; Head of lab was stealing, using the evidence herself. - SF Chronicle

What’s the best commuting bike for urban/city riding? - Outdoors online

Sad, wistful story of man who's buying his first car at age 40. - LA Weekly

A native NYer he used taxis, the subway, the bus, walked and bummed rides from friends. Now an Angelino he's had to learn to drive, get a DL, buy a car, and insurance, etc.

Actor who portrayed "Agent Smith" is gonna be "Red Skull" in Captain America movie - io9