August 12, 2004

BREAKING NEWS -- Supreme Court of California declares same-sex marriages performed in San Francisco "null and void" from their inception.  You can access today's ruling, which issued slightly earlier than expected, at this link (114-page PDF document). The vote on declaring previously performed marriages void was 5-2; the court was unanimous in holding that the Mayor of San Francisco lacks the power going forward to allow same-sex couples to marry in violation of existing California law. As a small consolation, same-sex couples whose marriages are dissolved as a result of today's ruling are entitled to a refund, upon request, of all marriage-related fees that they have paid.   [How Appealing] 3:02:31 PM

p2pnet.net Blaster Maker Faces Slammer Washington Post - There is one good thing you can say about sun-deprived, perpetually wired computer hackers: Their exploits during the past year or so of weaknesses in our computing and Internet technology have taken a subject as inscrutable to to "average" Americans as Mayan glyphs and forced the media to pay real attention to a growing problem. As a result, major media outlets are not only devoting mainstream coverage to Microsoft's latest bundle of software updates for its popular Windows XP operating system, they're also writing "color" pieces about the subterraneans who are making these security updates necessary in the first place. 10:40:12 AM