Tuesday, October 15, 2002

Immigration reform is good policy--and good politics. [OpinionJournal] Here's a column I wouldn't have expected to see in a conservative newspaper like the Wall Street Journal. It makes the case that immigration reform is needed to make it easier for Mexicans to live here. Personally, I'm all in favor of totally open borders. comment () trackback ()  11:04:22 PM     John Gruber: "Bad marketing is one thing. Bald-faced lying is another." [Scripting News] Indeed. Bald-faced lying is good marketing. The fuss Mac users have been making over one testimonial on Microsoft's web site is really ridiculous. Seriously, does anyone really believe testimonials? If so, they should contact me about a great deal on the Brooklyn Bridge. comment () trackback ()  5:53:48 PM     Sklyarov Denied Visa to Return to U.S. for Trial [Slashdot] That's an unusual tactic. It's rather clever, in a sleazy governmental sort of way. By keeping the defendant out of the country during his trial, they then have the option to throw him in jail without trial as a "fugitive from justice" if he ever comes here in the future. They also avoid exposing the very unpopular DMCA to an actual jury trial (where it would stand a good chance of being rejected by the jury), thus preserving it as a club the RIAA and MPAA can use to beat up on their customers. comment () trackback ()  5:41:01 PM     There was no mention of the missile test in the LA Times today. I'll take that to mean the test succeeded. comment () trackback ()  5:21:30 PM     Losing the War on Tax Evasion. According to the Associated Press on September 25th Charles Rossotti, Commissioner of the federal Internal Revenue Service, reported that his agency is ãlosing the war on tax evasion.ä Be still my heart. I could hardly believe my eyes. The chief of one of the largest governmental bureaucratic agencies ever created by legislators has told the world that the State cannot do the job it has taken upon itself to do. To some of us this means that bureaucrats are not as good at thievery as we had previously suspected and gives us cause to celebrate. Especially when we see that the reason the commissioner says the State is losing the war on tax evasion is because the methods employed by tax-cheats have become so sophisticated that the IRS simply does not have the resources to keep up. [Rational Review] comment () trackback ()  2:48:19 PM     Minute Man II Launch October 14, 2002. Minute Man II Launch October 14, 2002                     These pictures were taken from the hill near our home in Diamond Bar, CA about 7:10 PM (Pacific Time) last night, as Vandenburg Air Force Base launched a Minute Man II Missile. See previous post for the full information. Pictures were taken with a Nikon 990 with a 3X telephoto lens on a tripod. I took over 25 pictures in a series.  When I get a few minutes I'll share the rest of the series. [Mary Wehmeier's Blog Du Jour] Nice pictures! I haven't seen any mention of whether the test (of strategic missile defense technology) was a success or not. With everything else going on, there are much higher priority stories on the news sites--hopefully there's a paragraph or two in the print edition of the LA Times. comment () trackback ()  1:42:03 PM     5 Japanese Abductees Return Home [AP World News] Suspicion runs high in Japan, in part, because the abductees, now all in their 40s, are only allowed to stay a week or two and forbidden to bring their children. Calling the children hostages, family members and government officials have said the abductees won't be able to speak openly about North Korea for fear of retribution. The government's preoccupation with Iraq has overshadowed this news, but I think it's more proof that there are much worse countries than Iraq. I would argue that, given our alliance with Japan and the "peace constitution" restraining their military, the US should issue a demand for the immediate release of all abductees and their families, and a full accounting of what happened to those who have died. If North Korea refuses, or even hesitates, that actually would be more than sufficient cause for a declaration of war. comment () trackback ()  9:41:38 AM     Whining Mathilda. The Age: US press ignores Australia's pain. I got that pointer from an Australian in the US. I linked it into Scripting News early this morning and got more complaints from Aussies in the US about how screwed up we are. One email said that bloggers were bad too. So I let it percolate before answering, and this is what I came up with. Bollocks! What a crock of shit. There are plenty of Australian weblogs. The Web is worldwide. Cover it, explain it, grieve it, if the US press isn't covering it, route around them. Use the tools. [Scripting News] The article pointed to only mentions two US media sources, and only one of those (the online edition of the Miami Herald) is described as ignoring Australian casualties from the nightclub bombing. It's a little silly to complain about "the US press" based on half of a sample of two newspapers, neither of them from the largest cities in America. comment () trackback ()  9:06:32 AM     FDA Forces Fatal Chemo on Kids. U.S. law puts the Food and Drug Administration in charge of making sure parents seek approved treatment for their children's cancer. But for one couple, that treatment effectively killed their little boy. By Kristen Philipkoski. [Wired News] The FDA is well known for killing people by denying them treatment, but apparently they're not satisfied with that. They seem to have given themselves the power to kill people (in this case, children) by forcing them to take a "treatment" which is known to be fatal. In fact, from the description of the side effects of the FDA-required treatment, it would be fair to say that the FDA is requiring that children be tortured to death. comment () trackback ()  8:54:42 AM

© Copyright 2006 Ken Hagler. Last update: 2/14/2006; 6:53:03 PM.

Email