Law Enforcement


More CAPPS II

Barry Steinhardt, director of the ACLU’s Program on Technology and Liberty, summed up CAPPs II thusly:

CAPPS II would for the first time put the government in the business of conducting regular background checks on everyday citizens. Not only would the government conduct searches and evaluations of individuals’ past history and records, but it would generate a “risk score” for each person. The social and political consequences of this new role for government are far-reaching and truly frightening.

Read the transcript of the Washington Post online forum he participated in here.
Via beSpacific.


Taking on the Feds

Talkleft tells us about a group of Californians who are taking on the feds over medical marijuana use:

these advocates argue that their cultivation and use of pot � approved by Santa Cruz police, free of profit motive, unfettered by illegal transport over state lines � is a constitutionally protected right that trumps federal narcotics laws.

It would be nice to see them win and do it in such a way that it drives the states and the feds right out of the business of legislating in these areas where they do not belong.


I Hate Thieves

Back from the road and I hate thieves.
Is that correct? Ah, yes, associate your emotion with of the act not the actor. Well, I hate theft and today I hate thieves.
Late last night, 30 minutes from home, returning from a perfectly wonderful few days away (my how the constant caress of near by surf soothes) we get a phone call telling us one of our cars had been burglarized.
I hate thieves.
Deal with the police, deal with insurance, everything takes time and eventually the damage will be fixed and the stolen items replaced. Low deductible helps for part of the loss. But we will be out of pocket several hundred dollars when all is said and done. This is probably triple what the jerk(s) will get when they fence their take. The out of pocket is nothing compared to the psychological loss. It is partially mended by time.
I still hate thieves.
In all their forms, catch them, try them and jail them: the murderers, the rapists, the beaters and abusers, the muggers, the robbers, the vandals. Take something that does not belong to you and pay the price.
And I still hate thieves.